Planning New Inclusive Cities using Smart Tech and Artificial Intelligence

Ulrich Graute • 19 October 2024

Report on the Urban Conversation on Ethical Use of AI in Urban Planning at the 60th World Planning Congress in Siena, Italy on 11 OCTOBER 2024

The Future of Cities – AI as friend or Foe for Cities !

There are different entry points to deal with Artificial Intelligence (AI) depending weather you are an AI researcher, an IT programmer, code developer, an investor etc. At the 60th World Planning Congress of the International Society of City and Regional Planners ISOCARP on 8-12 October in Siena, Italy, urban and regional planners, academics and practitioners gathered for an Urban Conversation to discuss opportunities and threats related to new innovations like AI.

The panel speakers, thought leaders and critical thinkers in the conference room approached AI with the perspective of planners and city makers. The guiding question was formulated by Keynote Speaker Dr. Sarah Hill, the former CEO of the Greater Sydney Commission (GSC) and Western Parkland City Authority (WPCA, NSW Govt Australia) and Executive Project Director (PIF, Saudi Arabia): In adapting one of Jan Gehl’s famous city quotes – that whilst we may well shape our cities and they in turn shape us, she asked: “What shape will AI have on future cities and the ethics of those who plan them?”

Dr. Sunil Dubey of UNSW Cities Institute, Australia established underlying innovation links from ancient cities to modern day city making in countries like Australia and Saudi Arabia. He demonstrated how (innovative) language was always a key to human life and city development from the Cuneiform (31st Century BC to 2nd Century AC) at the ancient city of Nimrud to the binary code of our computers and now to the Large Language Models used in AI. Language is the basis for Community, Creativity and Innovation as they are at the core of the New City -Bradfield Western Sydney Aerotropolis in Australia. Sunil’s presentation was important. Not that it diminished risks and the call for attention with respect to innovation and AI but it framed future AI development and use as part of an ongoing cultural and societal development which reaches thousands of years back. In doing so he took a strong position regarding the important role of cities for sustainable development. For instance, he quoted his mentor and the former Secretary General of United Cities and Local Governments UCLG Joseph Roig: ‘the future path for global peace & prosperity must go through Cities. The transition from Nationhood to Cities is challenging due to competing power pressures but global peace & prosperity will not be established without Cities Leading the charge.’

The important technical innovation through AI was not at the center of the Urban Conversation. However, Dr. Ulrich Graute quoted in his introduction goals and concerns coming from AI researchers, including Stuart Russel of the University of Berkeley, California.

Important is Russel’s indication that he is ‘fairly confident that we have some breathing space because there are several major breakthroughs needed between here and superintelligence’ which is confirmed by other AI researchers. There are so many insecurities regarding AI that the IMF recommends governments to prepare for both, massive disruption, in the case that AI should impact an estimated 40 percent of global employment, and for business as usual in case that the current AI hype should pass and just leave some technical tools as earlier innovation waves did. It is also too early to answer the guiding questions of the Urban Conversation on the impact AI will have on the future of cities. However, panellists concurred that AI is an important new subject for urban and regional planning and for cooperation within ISOCARP to lead the Global Dialogues on AI in Future Cities.

Sunil presented a strong case with Innovation examples on Riyadh leading the Urban Innovation AI campaign for the Middle Est Region in promoting Peace, Progress & Prosperity through capacity building and City Leadership campaigns led by Mayor Dr Faisal. He further pursued the role of Riyadh in leading the ISOCARP Innovation and AI global campaigns and establishing AI focused City Leadership Lab in collaboration with global institutions like IMF, World Bank and WEF. It is time to act now and to ensure we are on a socially beneficial path with AI in cities, we must start with a broader discussion, encompassing many more stakeholders than just the most powerful tech leaders, on what we can achieve with these new tools and what we want from them.

As an Urban Conversation (in contrast to a general dialogue on AI) it was important that Sarah Hill in the first part of her keynote presented some context to the case of Bradfield, why Australia is building a new city and the aim to enhance social equity and inclusion across Greater Sydney. In the second part she focused on how she and her team are using smart technology to help achieve these objectives. The third part of her speech provided commentary on the role AI could play, perhaps should play and certainly should not play in planning new cities and community infrastructure. In her current role she and her team are pushing AIs design capability even further to help ideate what our cities could deliver with unique building design. Equally they are testing the practical function and Their masterplans and what outcomes they could achieve.

Sarah Hill has no doubt that AI will bring a transformative force – but the question is whether we can harness this force for good and ultimately whether the change will have positive or negative consequences to social inclusion. According to her and other discussants at the panel and in the audience, this is one of many topics concerning AI that is of heated debate. Indeed, there are some extreme theories about the potential negative effects to humanity as a result of AI. Also relevant, by AIs own admission, if its algorithms are written by homogenous teams that do not represent the mix of communities they serve, decision bias can in fact be exacerbated to disastrous effect. For example, when bias facial recognition systems are used to determine access to public spaces, airports or schools or when it is used for surveillance.

Digital literacy is also a matter of debate in the context of AI and social inclusion. As she and her team identified during our research in Greater Sydney, the digital divide is a real and present issue, that was exacerbated by the ability of some families to afford technology during Covid19 and for older or more marginalized communities to feel comfortable using it.

Despite their best intentions with designing Bradfield with social inclusion as a foundational principle, she would not be surprised if this divide between the early and later adopters of this technology grows before it improves owing to the sheer rate of change.

There are also notable debates about ownership and control of big data, let alone who writes the algorithms that feed AI. The communications centre in Bradfield is live example of this honeypot of data. The potential to work with the centre to design and run this facility secured significant interest from global firms wanting to use it to showcase their new technology and systems and get a stronghold in the market.

And finally, the predicative capability of AI and its ability to iterate its thinking and thereby decision making independently is both a positive if you think about applications to managing carbon and energy loads or the effective operation of our cities, but also a likely terrifying negative. Particularly given the inability for humans now to track, let alone keep up with how AI derived solutions or decisions.

In wrapping up, Sarah Hill congratulated ISOCARP for putting the Planning and AI agenda as a priority for the professionals and decision makers in the room today.

My own takeaway as moderator of the session is that the new wave of innovation around AI is very dynamic and difficult to predict in detail. And because AI is expected to impact all spheres of life we need a broader discussion, encompassing many more stakeholders than just the most powerful tech leaders, on what we can achieve with these new tools and what we want from them. We'll need capacity building to increase AI literacy and then we’ll need a lot of interface management between the development of AI applications, the different user and affected stakeholder groups. AI is already entering the stage with the intention to stay. It’s up to us to assign to AI its role and function e.g. in planning and by that we also decide if AI applications remain just technical tools under our full control, turn into co-pilots influencing our perception and decision-making, or if we even allow AI to take full control over us. AI has no ethics on its own. The ethical use of AI will depend on how we use AI and how we program our objectives and ethical standards into learning machines.

T H E P A N E L

Sarah Hill, Sunil Dubey and, on the right, the two together with ISOCARP President Elizabeth Belpaire, Ulrich Graute and Congress Director Eric Huybrecht

Picture: Speakers, Panelists, Moderator and the Delegation from Riyadh, Saudi Arabia

Programme of the Urban Conversation on 11 October 2024 in Siena, Italy

11 October 2024
Time: 10:45 - 13:15
Room: Accademie. Fisiocritici

Session Organizers

Dr Ulrich Graute, Chair of the ISOCARP Scientific Committee, Berlin

Dr Sunil Dubey, The UNSW Cities Institute, Sydney.

1. Introduction to the theme of the session by Ulrich Graute

2. The making of inclusive, prosperous and sustainable cities and the new challenges and opportunities provided

by AI and Data

2.1 The case of Australia

- Key note by Dr Sarah Hill, CEO Greater Sydney Commission and Western Parkland City Authority (New

South Wales Govt, former) ‘Planning New Cities and Inclusive economic development’

2.2 -Western Sydney Aerotropolis – Australia’s 22nd Century City Making through Community, Creativity and Innovation.

- The case of Saudi Arabia - Progress, Peace & Prosperity 2030 – How Saudi Cities are transforming using data and power of Ai.

Presentation by Dr Sunil Dubey

4. Roundtable moderated by Ulrich Graute

Panellists:

Sarah Hill, Executive Project Director (Public Investment Fund PIF, Saudi Arabia)

Eric Huybrecht, Congress Director ISOCARP’s 60^th WPC, Institute Paris

Region

Elisabeth Belpaire, ISOCARP President

Ulrich Graute, Chair of ISOCARP Scientific Committee

Sunil Dubey, Smart Cities thought leader.

Thanks to the Congress team for the organization, to Dr Sunil Dubey for co-organizing the session with me and thanks to Siena for the excellent hospitality.

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Policies and Governance for Resilient and Sustainable Cities and Regions

City Economies in the Global South - Growth, Inclusion and Sustainability

by Ulrich Graute • 6 May 2026

COMING SOON!!!

Experience matters

by Ulrich Graute • 21 April 2026

Experience Still Matters - From ISOCARP's 2025 World Planning Congress in Riyadh to the 2026 Conference 'Centrality in the Age of Dispersion' in Wroclaw to the 2026 Smart City Expo World Congress in Barcelona I just finished the review of more than 200 full papers of last year's 61st ISOCARP World Planning Congress in Riyadh together with ISOCARP's great Congress Content Team and my Co-General Rapporteur and President of IFLA Middle East, Dr. Nadine Bitar Chahine. Now, I would be ready to take it a bit easier and to focus on my special interests, like the relationship between humans, cities and AI. However, I am happy to share that I received a call to serve on the Expert Evaluation Committee (Call for Speakers and Call for Awards) for the 2026 Smart City Expo World Congress in Barcelona - the world's biggest and most influential event on urban innovation. Since 2011, the Smart City Expo World Congress has been the world’s biggest and most influential event for cities and urban innovation. Hosted annually in Barcelona, it brings together a powerful ecosystem of leaders from global companies, governments, and strategic organizations, driving real change. By convening the brightest minds and the most cutting-edge technology, the Smart City Expo is actively shaping a new urban paradigm: more sustainable, efficient, and human-centered. This function comes on top of my continued membership in the Scientific Committee for this year's Conference on 'Centrality in the Age of Dispersion' at the Wroclaw University of Science and Technology and an assignment as assessor and evaluator by hashtag#CitiesAlliance. Apparently, and in spite of the new wave of technology innovation, around AI experience still matters. More is coming up, and I am thankful for that. I will keep putting my penny into the jar of international cooperation of cities and their multilevel engagement.

To Master AI we have to train ourselves, not only AI Models and Applications

by Ulrich Graute • 13 April 2026

In her fascinating book Le Paradox du Tapis Roulant (The Paradox of the Conveyor Belt) Marion Carré writes about our intellectual laziness in using AI and that we need to and how to overcome it. Does that make sense? Isn’t it the promise of all adds on Artificial Intelligence (AI) that it will provide services to us to make our life easier, to foster innovation and to increase our quality of life? Marion Carré observes and provides evidence from US and UK studies that using Large Languages Models (LLM) can make the individuum more creative, but that comparing this progress with other users using similar prompts shows in LLM responses only limited diversity and creativity. Instead, LLM provide similar suggestions and inspiration to different people who provide the LLM with similar tasks/prompts. Users who start from a lower level of knowledge may be able to make big steps towards an average level of knowledge and creativity while those from an already above average level may experience less gain of knowledge and creativity. She compares this phe nomenon with a conveyor belt. It is able to move individuals forward easily. Everybody is moving forward but they all move in the same direction. And here is the paradox: while we move forward the machine moves us into the same direction. Thus, on the longer term, AI might contribute more to standardization than creativity and innovation. But as co-founder of the company Ask Mona, a start-up that uses AI to mobilize curiosity and cooperates with culture institution on different continents, Marion Carré describes a way out of this impasse: instead of allowing AI to lull us into a false sense of security by simply trusting that our prompts generate trustworthy answers, we should use AI more as a sparring partner to train our critical thinking. Of course, it will be necessary that developers of AI program models and applications to be more interested in what users exactly mean. As various projects described demonstrate, it is also possible to challenge AI to be more gender and culturally responsive. Thus, AI Models should strengthen their Reinforcement Learning from Human Feedback, ask users questions and give them different options to choose from. And after overcoming all temptations to lean back, trust AI and become lazy, Marion Carré realized: “It was at this point that I began using AI to engage in dialogue with myself. Not because I recognized its particular expertise or attached importance to its ideas, but because some of its remarks prompted reflections I wouldn't have had in isolation. The machine shifts my perspective away from my own way of thinking and its inevitable biases. It helps me more easily identify blind spots in my work and question certain limitations” (page 205).

Transforming a Global Movement for Safe and Ethical Use of AI

by Ulrich Graute • 6 March 2026

The International Association for Safe and Ethical Artificial Intelligence, Inc. (IASEAI.org) hosted its second successful annual conference on 24 and 25 February 2026 at UNESCO House in Paris. Movement can be impactful for a while but needs to build a sustainable and agile structure for cooperation if they aim at longer term impact. IASEAI is an independent nonprofit organization founded to address the risks and opportunities associated with rapid advances in AI. With 1200 attendees and its interdisciplinary program the Paris conference was a rousing success. However, IASEAI still a young movement in a dynamic and difficult policy environment: Overall, the use of AI is not regulated. There are some national AI policies in countries like China and at regional level the European Union the EU AI Act is in effect since August 2024. The UN is establishing an Independent International Scientific Panel on AI. In most countries and cities of the world governments are still struggling to find their right AI-approach. Meanwhile big tech is betting high on the (aimed for) return of investments in AI development. A $7 trillion race to scale data centers is driving the investment landscape. At the same time, public concerns are growing about possible negative impacts of AI on the labor market and social cohesion. In addition, the AI bubble may burst. However, in global competition government tend to let AI development go without regulation rather the risking to fall behind in the race. All that happens in a time when the climate change is an ever-growing challenge, wars in Ukraine, Sudan and now in the entire Middle East continue to weaken international cooperation, kill thousands and destroy economic resources. What can non-governmental organizations like IASEAI do? In short IASEAI needs a sustainable and agile structure. With its President Stuart Russel, Executive Director Mark Nitzberg, Council, Advisory Board and Volunteers the Association has already a core team able to organize excellent international conferences like IASEAI’25 and ’26. But what happens in between of the annual conferences? How to keep the momentum? Stuart Russel at the closing plenary in Paris (see picture) expressed hope that e.g. as many national chapters as possible will be established. But how long will it take to establish such chapters in possibly all 195 recognized countries in the world? Or might the association end up with a few active countries which then leave many interested members behind? Therefore, and without excluding any establishment of national chapters, but also considering the dynamic global environment and limited resources of IASEAI, it might be recommendable and strategic to choose a structure and approach like this: Governance The President, Executive Director and Council already form the core governance structure of IASEAI and they should be supported by the Advisory Board and a Secretariat. They decide on the program of work, policy statements, other global activities and are accountable to members at the General Assembly of Members of the society. Regional Chapters and Working Groups In addition, IASEAI should establishing Regional Chapters or Working Groups in North America (US, Canada and Mexico), Europe (EU, UK and other non-EU-member states), Africa, Western Asia, Asia and Pacific (China, Australia etc). Again, National Chapters should be welcome but as a global movement the structure should not leave any member behind. Regional Chapters are more flexible and agile to exchange and cooperation, including with members in countries, where there either is no national network of members yet or where it may be difficult to establish a national non-governmental group of IASEAI. In addition, in cases like the European Union, a Regional Chapter is useful to follow-up e.g. developments around the EU AI Act. IASEAI work across all policy levels: AI and cities, and AI and International Organizations Considering that most people of the world live in cities, it would be important to establish an additional Working Group ‘AI and Cities’ to address the specific needs and opportunities of cities. Not paying enough attention to local needs and opportunities is one of the reasons why many UN agenda and policies like 2030 Agenda with its SDGs are weak or fail on the implementation side. In addition, one additional global Working Group should coordinate cooperation with the UN and other International Organizations. A global movement like IASEAI must work across all policy levels to be sustainable. After all, advising the UN through its Scientific Panel on AI, and national governments on AI safety and ethics may fail easily, if IASEAI has no competence at all on subnational matters of AI implementation and impacts. Ad hoc Thematic Groups and Projects In general, IASEAI should beware of becoming a organization which is top-down organized only. This might choke the momentum achieved at the first two annual conferences. IASEAI needs motivated and engaged members across disciplines, countries and regions for its global movement and to speak up in favor of safe and ethical use of AI. The dynamic of developments in the field will generate emerging subjects and may require that ad hoc groups with a single purpose are set up e.g. to write a report or policy statement on emerging issues in the field. This might be the case on a wide range of subjects like 'AI and children'. Depending on funds available the Association can build own and independent capacities for policy analysis and research. On the longer run this may turn IASEAI into a Think Thank always demanded when AI faces a new development of safety and ethical relevance. Of course, it will remain the task of the President, Executive Director, Council, Secretariat and advisory groups to compose out of all the above and in cooperation with all affiliates a sustainable global movement that speaks with authority and convinces governments and the public of a safe and ethical use of AI. And thanks again to the organizers of IASEAI'26 for the excellent conference with its 'radical interdisciplinary' programme. It was the right approach for the global movement.

Trends and Signals for 2026 - The new APA 2026 Trend Report Artificial Intelligence and urban and rural development

by Ulrich Graute • 29 January 2026

On 28 January, the American Planning Association (APA) launched the fifth Trend Report for Planners. One of the strengths of the Report is that the trends are structured within three timeframes (Act Now, Prepare, Learn, and Watch), which indicate the urgency of planners' actions. Within each timeframe, trends are grouped into themed clusters. For each trend, the report gives insights and explains why it is important for planners to know about and consider the trend in their work. The Future of Planning requires embracing uncertainty. Planning was and is always linked to uncertainties. However, the Report is linked to the current specific multiple crises developments from climate to AI, Trump policies, geopolitical challenges, and the fact that policies leave many people behind. Looking more specifically at AI, I agree with the position that the intensifying bonds between humans and Chatbots are a trend where action is needed now. The Report also describes the need to prepare for policy shifts not working: "Fears of technology taking our jobs have been persistent through time, and the recent adoption of artificial intelligence (AI) is no exception. Nearly one-third of U.S. workers believe that AI will reduce jobs in the future, and while some studies haven’t found significant disruption by AI in the labor market, the available data have limitations. Moreover, other research has found that while certain jobs have been insulated from AI thus far, early-career". Isn't this an area where not only preparation but also acting now is needed? The Report suggests embracing uncertainty and updating the planner’s toolkit. The Report is an excellent read. I highly recommend it. There is only one caveat: With so much about (often interrelated and interdependent) uncertainties for cities, economies, society, and individuals, I miss a more integrated foresight on urban and rural life of the future. Will cities look the same? How to ensure, in hybrid planning processes, that AI doesn't substitute our human objectives with its own? We are learning a lot about the parts shaping our future, but the traditional strength of planners to plan for integrated and inclusive human settlements still needs to be demonstrated, e.g., by describing based on foresight data scenarios and narratives of cities in a possible age of AI. Integrated narratives are necessary to inspire and motivate citizens and planners. In its conclusion, the Report summarises: "Although the future may feel uncertain, it also holds significant promise. Addressing complex global and local challenges will require innovation, creativity, and collaboration. Social and technological advances offer powerful opportunities to prepare and be ready—if they are applied thoughtfully, equitably, and sustainably." Please download your copy of the APA-Report

BUILDING A GLOBAL MOVEMENT FOR SAFE AND ETHICAL ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE NEEDS TO INCLUDE AN URBAN LENS

by Ulrich Graute • 22 January 2026

The International Association for Safe & Ethical AI (IASEAI) is one of the most important new foundations in the field of AI. Its mission is "to ensure that AI systems operate safely and ethically, benefiting all of humanity. We connect experts from academia, policy groups, civil society, industry, and beyond to promote research, shape policy, and build understanding around this goal." The International Association for Safe and Ethical Artificial Intelligence, Inc. aims to build a global movement. IASEAI will host its second annual conference (IASEAIʼ26) on 24-26 February 2026 at UNESCO House in Paris, France. (Here is the link https://lnkd.in/d8Yfiwg7). The aim is to advance its mission of fostering a global, interdisciplinary community focused on the safe and ethical development of AI. By bringing together experts from various domains, we aim to facilitate dialogue, share knowledge, and foster partnerships that can collectively address the challenges and opportunities posed by AI. I am looking forward to attending the conference, which will include these featured speakers: 👉 Yoshua Bengio - Full Professor, Department of Computer Science and Operations Research, Université de Montréal 👉 Geoffrey Hinton- Prof. Emeritus, University of Toronto; Former VP and Engineering Fellow, Google; Nobel laureate (physics, 2024) 👉 Stuart Russell - Dist. Professor of Computer Science, University of California, Berkeley 👉 Joseph Stiglitz - Prof. of Economics, Columbia University; Nobel laureate (economics, 2001) 👉 Anna Salomons - Prof. of Law, Economics, and Governance, Utrecht University 👉 Tara Steele - Founder and CEO, Safe AI for Children Alliance 👉 Clara Chappaz - Ambassador, France for AI and Digital Affairs 👉 Anne-Sophie SERET - Executive Director, everyone.ai 👉 Ryan James - Chief Strategy Officer, Keep AI Safe Foundation The conference brings together technical, policy, and ethics researchers from academia, government, civil society, and industry. Of course, as a young organization, IASEAI may not yet cover all relevant aspects and groups. However, I miss a stronger attention to the specific urban dimension. After all, most AI companies are based in urban areas, and most people nowadays live in cities. If major disruption, unemployment, and unrest should occur due to AI, it is likely to happen in cities. City leaders and citizens will be challenged to coordinate and plan for the future of urban living in an age of AI. Thus, it is a bit surprising that urban stakeholders, so important for a global movement, will not be more strongly addressed by IASEAI. But I am confident that the discussions in Paris will raise awareness that building a global movement for safe and ethical AI needs to include city and business leaders, local AI, citizen engagement, and their advocacy at the national level.

What makes a perfect team of Congress General Rapporteurs?

by Ulrich Graute • 12 December 2025

Like any other big conference the 61st World Planning Congress of ISOCARP - International Society of City and Regional Planners in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia was complex, putting organizers under stress. But I must admit, the Congress in Riyadh was also different. Dr. Nadine Bitar Chahine and I made a perfect team of GRs, General Rapporteurs. Moments where we met in Riyadh to discuss problems were rare and stress came up only when the Riyadh Declaration was revised last minute. As I recall, we had no single work meeting and certainly no night sessions during the Congress. But the content programme of the Congress rolled out smoothly. Certainly, this is also due to other teams working hard, but as General Rapporteurs responsible for the content of the program it could have been very different. Root cause of our performance was that we at an early stage defined our single most important goal 'Making the Congress a success'. Easy as it sounds, it was often difficult to defend our understanding of what would make the Congress successful. But we didn't act as a block against others. Instead, at the preparatory in-person content meeting in Riyadh two months before the Congress we were not even sitting next to each other. We learned to rely and trust each other. In addition, we empowered the Congress Team. Prepared by us and highly motivated as they came to Riyadh, track teams worked perfectly without too much support or supervision. Well, and being able to rely on the work of the Congress Team and Secretariat we found time to attend sessions, discuss content of the Congress and have a lot of fun together as team and with others. That's how it works if a Society is member-led. Practically, we were working in parallel without loosing connection and mutual understanding. If you see these days posts commented by Nadine on behalf of both GRs, in most cases they were not discussed between us, but I agree on all of them. And in some of my posts the same happens in reverse. If our intuition shouldn't work perfectly at some point we briefly synchronise and go on. Since the Congress is over now, the peak of this perfectly tuned cooperation comes to the end. Thank you, thank you Nadine for a great year of cooperation. It will be difficult to repeat this perfect cooperation but let's try. Yours sincerely, Ulrich

Activity Report of ISOCARP's 2023-2025 Scientific Committee

by Ulrich Graute • 7 December 2025

ISOCARP ScientificCommittee 2023-2025 Activity Report 7 December2025

International Photo Competition for Routledge Book "City Economies In The Global South: Growth, Inclusion, and Sustainability"

by Ulrich Graute • 28 November 2025

As the book "City Economies In The Global South: Growth, Inclusion, and Sustainability" of which I am one of the co-authors is being reviewed for publication by Routledge, we requested the publisher and they have agreed to include photographs on the cover page (1) and for the section dividers (5). Being an international publication, INHAF, the Indian habitat Forum, felt that nothing less than world class photographs will do. As such, INHAF has launched an international photography competition to be curated by none less than the renowned international photographer Raghu Rai. The competition was launched on 15th November through social media. We are also mailing potential participants - Indian and International Institutes and Organizations - pertaining to arts, media, journalism, and photography. Please find below the links for the poster and brochure for the competition. We request you to kindly circulate it in your circles so as to gain global reach and ensure widespread participation. The earlier mail containing the attachments was too large and could not be delivered to some recipients and hence I am resending the mail with the links instead: Poster: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1Jx5bgzvOCCiHvTUfi9tHotMwQ627p1cl/view?usp=drive_link Brochure: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1i-LFqPmkLwQEv-fKThxxh-IbsKzOtZkM/view?usp=drive_link

What makes cities really smart are the people behind technology

by Ulrich Graute • 7 November 2025

The annual Smart City Expo World Congress in Barcelona, S pain with its about 30000 participants is famous for its data and tech-orientations. There you can see drones flying and robots walk up and down the aisles. Definitely, technology and increasingly also artificial intelligence are important components of Smart Cities. However, looking closer you see that behind the technology it’s people who make cities really smart. Just to give a few examples: In New Orleans, Kim Walker LaGrue is Chief Information Officer and she described how she and her team work without much support from the federal government all year round to prepare, go through and follow up to the hurricane seasons. They embrace all data they can get but what really helps are fast reacting teams on the ground that evacuate and rescue people if needed. Dr. Sarah Hill works at the Public Investment Fund of Saudi Arabia in Riyadh on subject related to new urban development and brings in her international experience from new city developments e.g. as the CEO of the Western Parkland City Authority in Australia. There she secured major investment and delivered significant city making initiatives whilst juggling complex priorities - managing budgets, multiple programs and projects to meet the diverse needs of various stakeholders. Dr Sunil Dubey came from Sydney to Barcelona. Teaching at the Cities Institute of the University of New South Wales and working for the Regional Government he is a networker par excellence. Preparing with him a session in Barcelona is challenging because there is always a mayor he quickly has to catch up with or colleagues who want to greet him. But it’s very inspiring to work with Sunil, and we deliver thought provoking discussions. Already ten years ago Sunil and I worked with Jonas Schorr in Berlin, where he co-founded Urban Impact, Europe’s leading urban tech advisory. Operating at the intersection of urban tech startups, investors, and public and private city stakeholders, Urban Impact connects, advises, and educates around the impact of new technologies in cities, building novel alliances that drive real-world change. No surprise, the Berlin night ‘City Rebels Salon: Connecting City Ecosystems’ organised by Urban Impact at the top of a Barcelona skyscraper was a rousing networking success. Since the early 1990s, I work as policy analyst, team leader and member with urban, national and international partners. AI will change the field but it won’t substitute the need of humans to meet, exchange and make change possible. It will be humans who have to continue making cities really smart, while using available technology. You want to discuss with me? Invite me, or meet me as General Rapporteur at ISOCARP’s 61St World Planning Congress, 1-4 December 2025 in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. https://lnkd.in/gsrbKtQh

Planning New Inclusive Cities using Smart Tech and Artificial Intelligence

Policies and Governance for Resilient and Sustainable Cities and Regions

Contact Ulrich Graute