Frisco Named a Winner in IDC’s 2026 Smart Cities North America Awards

Frisco, Texas – March 12, 2026 – Frisco, Texas was named a winner in the 2026 IDC Smart Cities North America Awards, which recognizes leading practices and innovation in state/provincial and local government projects and initiatives. Winners and finalists demonstrate how technology innovation, partnership and community engagement can solve pressing challenges. Frisco was named a winner in the Economic Development, Tourism, Arts, Libraries, Culture, Open Spaces Category for their AI Travel Assistant, Frankie.

Frankie, Visit Frisco’s AI Assistant showcases an integrated, curated chatbot experience that allows users to efficiently navigate through Visit Frisco’s content, serving valuable recommendations for their trip to Frisco. 

"Frisco continues to lead with innovative approaches that enhance how people experience our city. Frankie demonstrates how artificial intelligence can help visitors from around the world easily discover Frisco while providing insights that help us continuously improve the digital experience," says Melissa Kraft, Chief Information Officer, City of Frisco.

The awards were designed to celebrate the progress North American states, provinces, municipalities and educational institutions have made in executing Smart Cities projects, as well as provide a forum for sharing best practices to help accelerate Smart City development. This year’s competition had a competitive set of applications across 10 categories. The 10 winners, one Overall winner, and 20+ finalists will be honored during a reception at the Smart Cities Connect conference taking place in March in Raleigh, NC. 

“The chatbot originally came about to help visitors, especially international soccer fans, plan trips to Frisco,” says Marla Roe, Executive Director of Visit Frisco. “Frankie is multilingual and available 24/7, which is a valuable extension of our team. And, the insights from users who interact with Frankie show us visitor demographics and behaviors that help us improve the content on our website.”

Implementation of the AI Assistant with vendor partner GuideGeek began in August 2025, followed by indexing, staging, and two rounds of testing before launch in November. Users will see a discreet soccer ball icon and short introduction message on the website, and when engaged, the chatbot acts as an FAQ and presents the user with suggested partner hotels, restaurants, shops, and event information.

“Organizations throughout North America continue to find new ways to provide services for their communities and improve the experience of working in, and with, the public sector,” said Ruthbea Yesner, vice president, IDC Government Insights, Education and Smart Cities. “Every year, we see more advancement in the types of technologies and projects deployed, and it is a privilege to celebrate all of this year’s applicants.” 

To learn more about Smart Cities Connect please visit spring.smartcitiesconnect.org. 

About IDC 

International Data Corporation (IDC) is the premier global provider of trusted intelligence, advisory services, and events for the information technology, telecommunications, and consumer technology markets. With more than 1,300 analysts worldwide, IDC offers global, regional, and local expertise on technology, IT benchmarking and sourcing, and industry opportunities and trends in over 110 countries. IDC's analysis and insight helps IT professionals, business executives, and the investment community to make fact-based technology decisions and to achieve their key business objectives. Founded in 1964, IDC is the world's leading tech data services company. To learn more about IDC, please visit www.idc.com. Follow IDC on Twitter at @IDC and LinkedIn.