4 keys to building the smart cities of the future

Nearly 70% of the global population could live in cities and urban areas by 2050. How many of those will be smart cities?

Smart cities are built on interconnection: technology, infrastructure, and human life blending seamlessly for billions of people, creating a society in which our economies and movement are facilitated by digital systems. Many cities are already working towards this goal.

Masdar City is one such place, a sustainable urban community in Abu Dhabi, where the ADSW Advisory Committee on Smart Cities and Mobility gathered to identify what is truly crucial for boosting smart city development.

1. Integrated systems and AI

Machine Learning (ML) and artificial intelligence (AI) are central to the smart city vision. Elements of smart cities employing them are cropping up worldwide. Autonomous, driverless taxis are already on the streets in cities like San Francisco, Singapore and Shanghai, adjusting routes based on real-time demand. Helsinki 3D+ is a fully rendered digital twin of the Finnish city designed to aid urban planning. Gradiska in Bosnia and Herzegovina has smart street lighting and sensors around the Rwandan capital Kigali measure air quality and monitor issues with utilities. While these tools hold the promise of streamlined and responsive public services, achieving fully integrated, city-wide AI control systems with proper human oversight remains a long-term challenge.

2. Green energy for data demand

The lifeblood of these systems – and therefore of smart cities – is data. The problem is that the associated energy costs of running the servers that host this data are skyrocketing. By 2030, AI is predicted to consume twice as much energy as the whole of France. Balancing the energy needs of expanding, power-hungry data centers alongside increasing numbers of electric vehicles (EVs) is a conundrum that must be tackled to ensure long term sustainability. 

The answer could lie in harnessing cheap, clean energy provided through the rapid and continuous growth of renewables. In the future, smart city innovations could “pay for themselves”, both environmentally and economically. 

3. Forward-looking policy leadership

Technology alone won’t build smart cities—policy development is key. Development and oversight efforts remain siloed, and technical capabilities are developing faster than our governments and organisations are able to respond. 

There is an acute need for coordinated leadership. Governments need to signal their long-term commitment to smart cities, despite the traditional reluctance to back initiatives spanning multiple terms. This could start with a high-level political appointment to coordinate across siloed government departments and regulatory bodies. Long-term investments made now are also more likely to reap exponential benefits as key technologies come to bear. Look at how solar power deployment has accelerated in the last 15-20 years, and doubling in capacity to 2TW between 2022-2024.

4. Community-focused research

As mentioned, millions if not billions of people will be affected by the advent of smart cities. As these rapid changes take effect, governments must do more research on how they will affect and be accepted or resisted by communities – communities that could experience a complete overhaul of daily life and interpersonal relationships.

Building the smart cities of the future also means embracing a mindset of integration, experimentation, and bold governance. Greenfield sites, like The Line urban-living concept being developed at NEOM in Saudi Arabia, can provide important insights as models for bold policy-driven urban smart city and mobility innovation.

A commitment to the future

Technology is advancing rapidly and policy leadership must accelerate alongside it. Governments must exert more action and investment in future-ready infrastructure as it will shape the next generation of cities. If they commit to this shared vision today, the urban environments of tomorrow can be smarter, cleaner and greener than ever before.

Go deeper with the ADSW Advisory Committee Insights Report: Smart Cities and Mobility.