Dell Technologies, Vehant Technologies, and Graymatics and Wordsensing have decided to collaborate to develop and deliver smart city solutions in the areas of ‘Intelligent Traffic Management’ and ‘Safe City’ in India.

Germany's Deutsche Telekom has defended its record on expanding broadband services, after the country's digital focus became a hot topic leading up to the federal election campaign. Deutsche Telekom has focused on upgrading its copper network with new VDSL techniques, and some have criticized the company for not investing more in full fiber networks (FTTH).

Dubai Electricity and Water Authority (DEWA) has announced the launch of an Automatic Smart Grid Restoration System (ASGR), the first of its kind in the MENA region, to increase the control, management, and monitoring of its power network.

In a bid to make the United Arab Emirates (UAE) the safest country in the world, du, part of Emirates Integrated Telecommunications Company (EITC), and Injazat have selected Software AG’s Cumulocity IoT platform for the Ministry of Interior’s “Hassantuk” system to speed up response time and maintain the highest standards of fire safety.

du, from Emirates Integrated Telecommunications Company (EITC), and Masdar City, a global leader in sustainable innovation and development, have partnered to build a 5G Centre of Excellence (CoE) in Masdar City, Abu Dhabi.

The Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) was signed during GITEX GLOBAL 2022, where du presented innovative showcases under the theme "Powering Governments, Shaping The Emirates Reality."

Under the arrangement, du will work with Masdar City, Abu Dhabi’s only planned and approved R&D cluster, to implement a Smart City Platform, which combines physical infrastructure, open and shared data, and smart applications to deliver unprecedented value. The project will also oversee the development of an advanced command and control center along with the CoE to showcase exponential technologies.

The plan will enable operational efficiencies for Masdar City management and improve the daily quality of life for residents and tourists. The partnership underscores du’s holistic approach to innovation in line with the UAE’s sustainability agenda and the Net Zero by 2050 strategic initiative.

Commenting on the development, Fahad Al Hassawi, chief executive officer at du, said, “Reinventing tomorrow is all about rethinking and rebuilding operating models for businesses and coming together to establish agile, innovative platforms to support our vision. We are excited to partner with Masdar to establish a 5G Centre of Excellence to present exponential technologies and become part of the equation to deliver a strong, connected future through the Smart City project.”

The Smart City vision encompasses an integrated approach to champion disruption with scalable and phased implementation and flexible frameworks and standards to achieve cost efficiency and agility. du will leverage world-class sustainable Internet of Things (IoT) technology to deliver a complete view on the sustainability of Masdar City’s assets while facilitating processes such as asset benchmarking, performance and predictive analytics, along with insights on digital operations. The partnership will facilitate seamless city operations, leading to optimized and improved services.

Ahmed Baghoum, executive director, Masdar City, said, “We are delighted to welcome du to develop a 5G Centre of Excellence in Masdar City. The CoE will bring du, partner organisations and educational institutions together to create real-world 5G applications. These applications will be tested at Masdar City, which is Abu Dhabi’s only planned and approved R&D cluster with a focus on innovative technologies, and further enhance its reputation as a Smart City. After proof of concept at Masdar City, these applications will be rolled out commercially across the UAE and beyond.”

In addition to the Smart City, the CoE will deliver transformative and disruptive technological innovations with a key focus on environmental, social and governance factors. Through substantiating and implementing next-generation technologies, du and Masdar will embrace advanced innovation to position Masdar City as the first 5G-enabled sustainable city in the world and create an enhanced future for the UAE.

In a bid to turn Dubai into a role model in metaverse technologies with an applicably robust digital infrastructure, the Dubai government launched its Dubai Metaverse Strategy which aims to present      Dubai as one of the world’s top 10 metaverse economies as well as a global hub for the metaverse community.

H.H. Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, crown prince of Dubai and chairman of Dubai Executive Council, and chairman of the Board of Trustees of Dubai Future Foundation (DFF), launched the Dubai programme to enable drone transportation.

Cybersecurity leader Palo Alto Networks showcased some of its latest offerings at GITEX Technology Week in Dubai, where Smart Cities World Forums sat down with Ercan Aydin, the firm’s Regional Vice President, Middle East and Africa. In the interview, Aydin talked about the cybersecurity landscape of the region and what the future of the industry holds with regards to artificial intelligence, machine learning and data analytics.

Ericsson, PS Solutions Corp. (affiliated with SoftBank Group Corp.), and CKD Corporation, a supplier of actuation products, are collaborating on an update to "e-kakashi", a platform which applies artificial intelligence (AI) and Internet of Things (IoT) technologies into agricultural processes. First introduced by PS Solutions in 2015, the second-generation "e-kakashi" platform will launch in March 2018.

In partnership with China Mobile International (CMI), EVOTEQ is primed to launch a smart bracelet solution powered by Narrowband IoT (NB-IoT), a first for the UAE to utilize this technology. Customized to meet the needs of Tandeef, the waste collection division of the Middle East’s sustainability company Bee’ah, the innovative solution aims to enhance the safety and security of street cleaning crew, while improving management efficiency.

A group of telecommunication experts have discussed the 'challenges' and 'opportunities' in a data-driven world at the world's first ever forum on Data Management. The event was a joint-collaboration between the Telecommunications Regulatory Authority (TRA) and the International Telecommunications Union (ITU) which was held in Dubai, UAE.

The International Data Corporation (IDC) Worldwide Semiannual Internet of Things Spending Guide has predicted worldwide spending of Internet of Things (IoT) will reach $745 billion in 2019.

A French start-up company has agreed a deal with a leading Iranian network provider as they announced plans to roll-out IoT services across the country. Some of the services that will be made available to residents in Iran; include the introduction of Intelligent Transportation and gas meters you can monitor from your smartphone.

Telensa, a British IoT firm which is the global leader in driving connected street lighting and Smart City Applications has today confirmed that it has joined the Smart Cities Council. The Smart Cities Council is the world's premier consortium of smart city practitioners and experts. Boasting over 120 members that helped contribute to over 10,000 projects.

With the decreasing price of connected devices, the market for smart cities is expected to grow exponentially namely in the fields of smart governance and education, report finds.

HKT is considered to be Hong Kong's premier telecommunications service provider for the public, local and international businesses. Aiming to provide the best services and technologies to its clients, HKT is investing in new spectrums and in 5G to develop smart cities. In an exclusive interview, Paul Berriman, Group Chief Technology Officer at PCCW and HKT Group, spoke to Telecom Review about the newest spectrum the company applied for, its smart cities projects and the importance of security in 5G.

Digital twins make cities a great deal more efficient, safe and smart. With the growing maturity and importance of emerging technologies, integrating digital twins into a smart city’s network could be highly rewarding. It has been widely speculated that digital twins will be the backbone of industries of the future.

Many are of the belief that the next big trend in tech is humanity and how we can leverage emerging technologies for the good of humanity.

From intelligent homes to connected devices being applied to several industries and aspects of our lives, we are currently experiencing one of the most prominent industrial revolutions the world has ever seen: the Fourth Industrial Revolution.

Ren Zhengfei, CEO and founder of Huawei, hosted an open discussion alongside other prominent guests examining the role of innovation and trust in the future of the information, communication and technology (ICT) sector.