Prince William says UK homelessness 'preventable' with AI

Homelessness in the UK is "entirely preventable" thanks to AI-supported technology, Prince William told the London Tech Week conference on Wednesday.

The heir to the British throne spoke as his homeless charity, Homewards, launched the Homelessness Data Lab -- a national collaboration it said can improve how data and technology flag "clear warning signs long before" someone loses their home.

This could involve the sharing of personal data on an individual's finances, welfare benefits and health between different bodies, prompting some cautionary comments elsewhere at London Tech Week surrounding data privacy.


"Homelessness is not inevitable, it is entirely preventable, it is predictable," William said during a panel discussion.

The prince said "data and the technology" can be used "to keep people in their homes, their jobs, their communities, families, at school".

"In life, prevention is better than the cure," the royal told a packed conference hall.

Homewards notes that there are more than 430,000 people in the UK experiencing homelessness, half of whom are children.

Data privacy

Dan Hughes, a trustee of the property sector charity LandAid that is partnering with Homewards to deliver the data lab, cautioned that data privacy needed to be respected while seeking to tackle homelessness with the help of tech.

"We can throw huge amounts of data at solving this, but a lot of it is about individuals and people," he told a separate London Tech Week event Wednesday.

"We need to make sure that we take best practice on personal data and how we can leverage that information without risking privacy."

Zahra Bahrololoumi, chief executive of Salesforce UK and Ireland, a tech company also involved with the data lab, said "AI will help... identify the interventions that will actually work" in preventing homelessness.

"Our mission is to reduce the administrative burden on frontline workers," she said sat alongside William.

"We are applying AI tooling... (that) will enable the frontline worker to focus on the individuals and families that need the support the most," she added.