City-Scale Intelligent Systems and Platforms

TL;DR

This paper discusses the rapid urbanization trend, the challenges it poses for infrastructure management, and the importance of data-driven approaches to develop sustainable and efficient smart city systems.

Contribution

It highlights the scale of urban growth and emphasizes the need for intelligent systems and platforms to manage urban infrastructure sustainably.

Findings

Urbanization is increasing rapidly, with 66% of the population expected in cities by 2050.

Massive investments are needed for urban infrastructure renewal and expansion.

Data-driven urban management is crucial for sustainability and efficiency.

Abstract

As of 2014, 54% of the earth's population resides in urban areas, and it is steadily increasing, expecting to reach 66% by 2050. Urban areas range from small cities with tens of thousands of people to megacities with greater than 10 million people. Roughly 12% of the global population today lives in 28 megacities, and at least 40 are projected by 2030. At these scales, the urban infrastructure such as roads, buildings, and utility networks will cover areas as large as New England. This steady urbanization and the resulting expansion of infrastructure, combined with renewal of aging urban infrastructure, represent tens of trillion of dollars in new urban infrastructure investment over the coming decades. These investments must balance factors including impact on clean air and water, energy and maintenance costs, and the productivity and health of city dwellers. Moreover, cost-effective management and sustainability of these growing urban areas will be one of the most critical challenges to our society, motivating the concept of science- and data-driven urban design, retrofit, and operation-that is, "Smart Cities".