Smart cities are meant to improve citizens' lives and 5G technology is the key for its development

Smart cities: technology and innovation to improve citizens’ lives

The world’s population is growing every year and resources are limited. We have no choice but to reinvent the way we live. Is in this context, and in past years we have been increasingly hearing about the idea of smart cities. 

But do we know exactly what it is and what defines a smart city? Why is Alaian focusing on the development of smart cities?

We tell you in this post.

What are Smart-Cities

A Smart city is a city capable of using information and communication technology (TIC) with the aim of creating better infrastructures for its citizens. From public transportation, to energy saving, sustainability or efficiency in all its aspects.

Essentially, it is the combination of people, technology, creativity, and innovation to make any city in the world more sustainable and efficient. In a way, smart cities provide citizens with tools to create more value for the city.

Which elements make up a smart city?

According to the consulting firm Frost and Sullivan there are eight key features of a smart city: smart building, smart infrastructure, smart energy, smart technology, smart mobility, smart healthcare, smart governance, and smart citizens.

In all cases, the term “smart” means the application of technology to every aspect of the city environment.

For example, smart buildings integrate people and systems functionally and dynamically in order to improve productivity and work in a safer environment, both physically and digitally. 

Or if we talk about smart mobility it comprises not only self-driving vehicles but also many other technology elements such as travel booking applications using digital money and technology that connects travel infrastructure to citizens. Or getting information about public transport vehicles using predictive analytics to ensure availability when and where they are required.

    5G and Smart cities

    In order to make smart cities a reality, it’s vital that many elements known as the Internet of Things (IoT) be able to collect, process and communicate information across the network that can be meaningful and useful to all users.

    Taking into account the number of people living in cities, plus all those IoTs connected, it is clear that we need a technology that can support it.

    This is where 5G comes to play: it will allow augmented connectivity, faster communication and more concurrent users.

    For example, autonomous self-driving cars not only emit large amounts of data, they need to communicate efficiently with their environment. This includes traffic lights, street lighting, street sensors and other vehicles. 

    Or in the case of healthcare, remote healthcare services also need reduced 5G latency to be used in physical therapy with virtual reality.

    Without a doubt, 5G technology will play a fundamental role in the performance of IoT, a key element in the development of smart cities.

    Alaian’s role in the development smart cities

    It is in this context that Alaian makes perfect sense: It has the mission of reinventing the telco industry by discovering the most disruptive startups with its first call focused on real use cases of 5G technology applied to different verticals. 

    We are in the process of scouting for innovative projects around 5G to thrive in an unique ecosystem to create, among other applications, new ways of living in the cities.

    Smart cities and 5G

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