Singapore, the Smart Nation

1. A vision for a Smart mobility

Singapore has applied smart, connected traffic solutions, in conjunction with very strong policy curtailing car ownership in an effort to reduce the number of vehicles on its roads. This vision makes Singapore the perfect place to experiment with smart alternatives to cars based on the sharing economy. Singapore was one of the first places to have stationless shared bicycles (Obike, Ofo, Mobike) and the second biggest electric vehicle car-sharing program after Paris (BlueSG).

The Singapore Land Transport Authority is collaborating with the tech company Aptiv to provide a fleet of fully autonomous vehicles and implement a cloud-based mobility-on-demand transport concept that should be fully operational in 2022.

2. Virtual Singapore

Virtual Singapore, developed with the French company Dassault Systems, allows scientists and urban planners to conduct experiments and run simulations through a data-rich, 3D model of Singapore at the touch of a button.

3. Elderly inclusion

Singapore focuses on addressing healthcare service provision for elderly citizens through a range of technologies, including digital service platforms as well as remote monitoring devices. Among other initiatives, Singapore’s think tank ACCESS Health International and NUS Enterprise co-created the startup competition and incubator Modern Ageing Singapore in 2015. Every year, winners receive a grant to develop their idea within the next 3 years.

4. Innovative public services

Singapore’s government is often compared to a corporation and sometimes informally named “Singapore Inc”. In fact, Singapore’s Prime Minister office was one of the first to launch an Innovation Lab as a small Design Thinking unit of the Public Service Division (PSD) in 2012.

The Singapore Government has launched and completed key strategic national projects, including the National Digital Identity portal SingPass, the adoption of PayNow which makes e-payments more integrated and interoperable, and the Moments of Life application which aims to address citizens’ pain points when transacting with the Government.

London, open innovation for a smarter city

London’s growing population is putting pressure on transport and public services. That’s why the mayor has launched a set of initiatives called Smarter London Together to make London “the smartest city in the world”. The project promotes user-centered design, data sharing, connectivity, digital leadership and skills, and collaboration between public services and the private sector.

1. Smart mobility / transport sytsems

Traffic congestion has been one of the greatest challenges for London. Through its cutting-edge mobility systems including smart parking initiatives, London is managing the congestion problems.

Its innovation with regard to transportation has led it to install the Heathrow pods, capsules that work as a means of transit to connect with Heathrow Airport, one of the busiest on the planet.

Private companies such as FiveAI are also experimenting with autonomous transportation, testing self-driving cars on London public roads.

2. Participatory approach

To connect and engage its citizens, London has set up a free open-access data platform known as the London Datastore. London Datastore connects every citizen to every event happening in the city. It is open for everyone to gain access to information and statistics starting from property prices to crime rates. Every month more than 50,000 residents, companies, researchers and tech developers make use of the data to manage daily operations and plans in the city.

3. Connected city

Intel, for instance, is contributing to technology research in London, through the Connected Cities Institute. This institute supports the research of user-centered technology solutions, such as London Living Labs. As part of the Living Labs project, scientists are performing air, water quality and ecology tests in Hyde Park. This project uses a network of wireless sensors.

Berlin, the smart mobility hub

1. Smart mobility

Beside being home to the largest number of mobility-focused innovation labs, launched by car manufacturers such as Volkswagen, the airplane company Lufthansa or the national train German Rail (DB) for example, Berlin startup ecosystem is filled with companies working on “Mobility as a Service” solutions to make on-demand mobility more efficient.

Berlin has recently accelerated its transition towards electric vehicles.  ‘BeMobility’ is an integrated electric car-sharing project in Berlin meant for public use. Today, there are more than 2,000 cars running on the roads of Berlin with facilities of charging at several charging stations and permission to drive on specified bus lanes.

2. Waste Management

Berlin is also innovating when it comes to waste management. In Potsdamer, downtown Berlin, waste management company Alba has developed a waste system that collects food waste from restaurants,  extracts polluted water and sends it to biogas plants for further treatment. This program reduces up to 40% of waste in this area of Berlin.

3. Companies and government working together

The giant IoT company Cisco has established in Berlin and is working together with the German government to make Berlin an even smarter city. Cisco is supporting the city in developing the areas of telemedicine, network infrastructure, and security. This move is a part of Cisco’s project ‘Deutschland Digital’ in which the company is preparing to invest $500 million in the city.

Interested to organize a learning expedition?