 city is only as smart as its connectivity will allow. While 4G has provided a solid foundation for fledgling smart city initiatives across the region and further afield, the next level smart city will only be possible with the introduction of the next generation of connectivity: 5G. More than just an enabler of smart cities as we currently know them, 5G opens up new use cases that, especially when combined with artificial intelligence, will shape the future of our world.
Connectivity is the life force of a smart city, in which everything requires a connection in order to sense, understand, and respond to the world around it. This technology-enabled nervous system comprises digital solutions across infrastructural platforms such as the Internet of Things (IoT), cloud, artificial intelligence (AI) and big data. Together, these platforms constitute the foundation of ubiquitous connectivity that a smart city requires – but in order for many use cases to be adopted at mass scale, a low-latency network that facilitates near instantaneous connection is also required. For example IoV (Internet of Vehicle) as a part of mass autonomous vehicle adoption or flight control of drones if the sky is full of them in order to avoid collisions.
This is exactly what 5G can offer. With the ability to deliver data speeds of up to 10 gigabytes per second, 5G is fast. To put that into perspective, on a 5G network you can download a high definition movie onto your smartphone in just 2 seconds. Now, imagine the possibilities for application in a smart city.
Autonomous vehicles and smart mobility systems are some of the most talked-about prospects of the connected future. Dubai, for example, is pursuing this aggressively with its Dubai Autonomous Transportation Strategy, through which the emirate aims to transform 25% of its total transportation into autonomous mode by 2030. 5G will have a solid role to play in making this vision a reality. When combined with AI, 5G will be a driving force – no pun intended – in the realization of smart traffic management. Not only will it connect autonomous vehicles with the world around them, it will monitor traffic lights, flow of traffic, and built-in car navigation systems to manage road safety and congestion, amongst other benefits.
There are myriad applications for 5G in a smart city, including across healthcare and in homes. Tomorrow’s world will leverage super-fast connectivity to improve efficiencies beyond what we might imagine. 5G will not only empower our cities, but our imaginations, as it opens up possibilities that were previously only a dream.
