Accelerating City trasformation using frontier technologies

The United for Smart Sustainable Cities (U4SSC) initiative is a global platform dedicated to supporting cities in becoming smarter and more sustainable. The U4SSC is coordinated by the International Telecommunication Union (ITU), the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE), and the United Nations Human Settlement Programme (UN-Habitat) with the support of 14 other UN bodies.
Frontier technologies provide cities with an innovatory opportunity to expedite their transformation to unique cyber-physical systems, capitalising on data exchange among heterogeneous agents, while encapsulating the concepts of “smartness” and “sustainability” in their operations. To this end, the transformative potential of frontier technologies is exemplified in their ability to reshape the way cities provide services and meet citizens’ needs.
This report aims to shed light on the impact of frontier technologies in cities and on citizens. In this context, it delves into a series of frontier technologies including: artificial intelligence; Internet of things (IoT); digital twin; unmanned aerial vehicles/drones; wearable technology; and virtual/augmented reality. The impact of each technology is highlighted in the corresponding sections and a set of common challenges have been identified.
This report will first provide insights into the current urbanisation trends and provide an overview of the importance of connecting cities with the sustainable development goals (SDGs). The deliverable will conclude by highlighting the technical challenges that cities are still facing when implementing frontier technologies and the pivotal role of standardisation in addressing these challenges.

Read the Report