Major Cities Around the World Are Evolving Beyond 'Smart Cities' Into 'AI Cities'
Recently, major cities around the world have been focusing on 'AI (Artificial Intelligence) cities' as a core strategy for urban management. While the focus in the past was on 'smart cities' utilizing the Internet of Things (IoT) and sensors, there is now an active movement to solve urban problems more intelligently and quickly through artificial intelligence technology.
AI cities play a significant role in reducing traffic congestion and increasing energy efficiency by analyzing vast amounts of data in real time. For example, artificial intelligence can predict traffic volume on roads in advance to adjust traffic lights or optimize energy consumption in public facilities to reduce carbon emissions.
Furthermore, AI technology is being actively introduced to protect the safety of citizens. The main goal is to create an environment where citizens can live more safely by having AI systems immediately detect risks and activate response protocols in the event of crime prevention or disaster situations.
These changes provide important implications for major cities in South Korea. Korea is already evaluated as having a relatively favorable condition for transitioning to an AI city because it possesses world-class information and communication technology (ICT) infrastructure.
Moving forward, cities around the world are expected to develop AI policies not just by adopting technology, but in a direction that substantially improves the quality of life for their citizens. It is also time for Korea to consider how to utilize AI technology to build sustainable future cities.