UAE operator du has always been at the forefront of the country’s technological development with the revolutionary solutions and services that it offers to its customers. Lately, du has been very active in the area of smart cities given the efforts deployed in Dubai to make the city a leading smart city. In this context, it has chosen to take part in the 2^nd edition of Smart Cities World Forums’ “Building the SMART Future” conference as the Smart ICT Partner. At the event, we spoke to Jihad Tayara, VP ICT Business Development, EITC, to know more about the operator’s participation in the event.

Social distancing technology is one of this year’s top emerging technology trends that is set to drive innovation in the post-COVID era.

Brighter is a health-tech company from Sweden, founded in 2007, with a vision to improve quality of life and reduce the complications of chronic diseases. Brighter developed ‘Actiste’, the world’s first unified diabetes care device with a mobile-connected service for monitoring and treating insulin-dependent diabetes. It is a pocket-sized device that combines the necessary functions for daily diabetes care and shares the data with healthcare providers. At GITEX technology week, Ericsson showcased Actiste as an example of how IoT solutions are being used in healthcare. Telecom Review secured an interview with Petra Kaur, Chief Commercial and Marketing Officer of Brighter, to find out more about how this will contribute to science and help to reduce the burden on healthcare systems around the world.

Abu Dhabi ranked as the smartest city in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region for 2023, according to the annual IMD Smart City Index released by the International Institute for Management Development (IMD) in Switzerland. This will be the third consecutive time the UAE capital has received this prestigious recognition.

The IMD surveyed 120 residents in 118 cities worldwide. Abu Dhabi surpassed several international capitals to rank 13th globally out of the 141 cities included in the current ranking. The study evaluated current infrastructure and digital services available to residents, relying on variables related to residents' perceptions and interactions with government efforts in five main pillars: health and safety, mobility, activities, opportunities (work and education systems) and governance.

Commenting on the achievement, H.E. Mohammed Ali Al Shorafa, Chairman of the Department of Municipalities and Transport (DMT), said, “Abu Dhabi's leadership in this field is a translation of the leadership's vision and commitment to supporting the digital transformation journey and utilizing it to serve the community and enhance its well-being and quality of life. Through employing next-generation technologies such as artificial intelligence and the Internet of Things (IoT) and developing smart city initiatives across various societal, service and economic sectors, including public and smart transportation, Abu Dhabi has been able to establish itself as a smart and sustainable city and one of the best global destinations to live, work and visit.”

Zurich took the lead in this year’s survey, with Oslo in second place and Canberra in third.

Asian and European cities dominated the top 20 cities out of the 141 studied. Six cities show either continuous improvement or year-on-year stability. These “super-champions” are Zurich, Oslo, Singapore, Beijing, Seoul and Hong Kong. The 2023 findings also demonstrate the increasing “smartness” of second-tier cities such as Montreal, Denver, Lausanne and Bilbao.

Also Read: GCC Countries Revealed Strong Digital Transformation Efforts in 2022

Smart cities contribute to the development of many key sectors in the emirate, such as the smart transportation sector and the smart economy, which is based on advanced software that helps develop many sectors such as supply, delivery, and joint support services.

Additionally, interactive platforms are built with the public to identify their needs and aspirations and interact with them transparently, placing them at the center of government work in addition to developing and facilitating access to services for citizens.

The Smart Cities Index issued by IMD is considered an important reference for international organizations, decision-makers, and institutions to measure the impact of national strategies on enhancing levels of welfare, achieving progress and promoting the quality of life for people.

Abu Dhabi Digital Authority (ADDA) has successfully held the ‘ADDATHON Artificial Intelligence’ in Abu Dhabi as it moves ahead with its plans to further enhance government services and meet the continuing needs of the Abu Dhabi community through innovation using Fourth Industrial Revolution technologies.

The landscape of post-pandemic education will look very different. The advent of 5G and the types of technologies that it will enable, coupled with the pandemic and the realization of the need for and the use of technologies such as AR and VR, are set to make way for a more advanced and tech-centric educational landscape.

Recent preliminary results from Gartner, Inc. shows that worldwide PC (personal computer) shipments totaled 72.6 million units in the fourth quarter of 2016, a 3.7 percent decline from the fourth quarter of 2015. In total, for the year 2016, PC shipments totaled 269.7 million units, a 6.2 percent decline from 2015. The significance of PCs is diminishing as the smartphone trend and popularity of connected devices takes center stage. PC shipments have declined annually since 2012, while mobile broadband subscriptions have been growing by around 25 percent annually, increasing by approximately 190 million in Q3 2016 alone, Ericsson reports.

US telecoms giant AT&T is working with Maxwell Air Force Base, officially known as Maxwell-Gunter Air Force Base, a United States Air Force installation under the Air Education and Training Command, to bring the power of IoT to their base operations and infrastructure.

AT&T joined with Current, powered by GE, and Southern Company subsidiary Georgia Power to test intelligent lighting solutions in Atlanta. The Atlanta smart city project adds momentum to the growing smart city movement in progress across the U.S.

An Australian city has chosen an innovative Internet of Things platform which will deploy a network of environmental sensors that will relay real-time data on air quality, urban heat and noise. The 'Reekoh IoT' platform has been selected as part of the Technology for Urban Liveability Project (TULIP) which is based in Sydney.

One of Australia's leading telecommunication companies has announced that it will launch a new IoT lab which has been described as a 'game changer' for the country's IoT ecosystem. Telstra Corporation Limited - is one of Australia's largest and most successful telecommunications and media organizations.

Bell, Canada's largest communications company, announced it will launch an LTE-M (Long Term Evolution, category M1) network to support the rapidly increasing use of Internet of Things (IoT) devices on low-power, wide-area networks (LPWANs) in Canada.

India's largest telecom services provider, Bharti Airtel, announced a strategic partnership with South Korean telecom provider SK Telecom, under which the Indian comapny will leverage SK Telekom's expertise to build the "most advanced telecom network in India".

Attacks in the cyberspace in the Middle Eastern region are very much prominent and present. Bitdefender, the cybersecurity technology provider, has been at the forefront of providing organizations with robust security infrastructure to protect them against cyberattacks.

A Brazilian telecom operator has disclosed its intentions to launch a 'Smart Cities' platform that will be targeted at both public and private sector. Brazilian company Oi, formerly known as Telemar, is the largest telecommunications company in Brazil and South America and is headquartered in Rio de Janeiro.

BT announced the launch of a new project with See.Sense, an innovative cycling company from Northern Ireland, to provide sensor-enabled and connected bike lights to up to 180 cyclists across Manchester as part of CityVerve, the UK's smart city demonstrator.

The first edition of “Building the SMART Future” conference was organized on December 7^th, 2017 at the Meydan Hotel, Dubai, UAE. The conference highlighted the latest smart cities trends and technologies and tackled the challenges that governments and telcos are facing in their journey to make their cities smarter.

Panels discussed artificial intelligence and its impact on transportation, employment and health sectors in addition to IoT being a driver of smart cities around the world. 

In addition, the conference hosted the ITU CXO meeting. ITU hosted the first CXO meeting in October 2016 in Tunisia. The conclusion of the first CXO meeting went on to feed discussions in ITU on the promotion of OTT (over-the-top) innovation, possible regulatory approaches to OTT, and the value of partnerships between OTT players and network operators 

• Building the SMART Future 2017

Bell Mobility announced a managed Internet of Things (IoT) security service that offers businesses, smart cities and other organizations employing IoT solutions with an advanced layer of comprehensive security services to detect and respond to evolving cyber threats.

Berg Insight estimates that global cellular IoT module shipments increased by 76% in 2017 to a new record level of 237 million, fuelled by exceptional volume growth in China. Until 2023, shipments of cellular IoT devices are forecasted to grow at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 23.2% to reach 1.1 billion units.

It could be argued that without robust cybersecurity infrastructure in place, smart cities would do more harm than good and would be absolutely flawed.