Is this you? As a journalist, you can create a free Muck Rack account to customize your profile, list your contact preferences, and upload a portfolio of your best work.
Claim your profile
Articles by Smart Cities
Here's our sneak peak of the definitive IoT landscape
After four years of investing, incubating, discovering, gathering and researching the field, we believe that the Internet Of Things, commonly referred to as IoT or the industrial Internet, will represent the most powerful force for business transformation since the birth of the Internet itself. But what exactly is IoT? What is included in the industrial internet? How do the companies that are in the IoT space relate to each other and to companies outside the boundaries of IoT?
Oxbotica-powered CargoPod makes driverless Ocado deliveries
Ocado has demonstrated its vision for driverless grocery deliveries with a prototype van powered by Oxbotica’s driverless technology. The vehicle spent two weeks on a two-mile circuit in a semi-pedestrianised area of Greenwich, south-east London to demonstrate the kind of environment Ocado believes its driverless vehicles will operate in once deployed. CargoPod is an electric vehicle which helps to reduce its environmental impact.
Volkswagen and NVIDIA embark on a journey to expand AI beyond the car
Car manufacturing giant Volkswagen is partnering with NVIDIA to harness their AI knowledge and use it for applications beyond in-car technology. Volkswagen explores the possibilities for AI in their dedicated Munich-based Data Lab which opened back in 2014. One example of their current work involves new procedures for optimising the flow of traffic in cities where overpopulation and the need for individual vehicles is causing severe and increasing congestion on the roads.
Sigfox finds a partner to expand its IoT network across the UK
Sigfox is expanding its IoT network coverage in the UK from 30 percent of the population to 95 percent. The company’s network already covers 30 percent of the UK population across 11 major cities including Birmingham, Bristol, Leeds, Leicester, Liverpool, London, Manchester, and Sheffield, thanks to a partnership with Arqiva since 2014. Arqiva is what Sigfox calls a SO (Sigfox Operator) who are operators handling local distribution of the IoT network which is now present in more than 30 countries.
In the coming cloud computing war, storage is the next front
See also: Why you should think about the cloud like the electrical grid In the sprawling cloud landscape, price cuts had been mostly confined to virtual machines. This allowed service providers to capitalize on steadily growing margins for the remainder of their product portfolio. Until now. What we are witnessing is a shift that is about to expand beyond compute and bleed into the wider domain of storage, including databases.
How San Leandro is using IoT to transform its core
San Leandro, a suburban city in California, plans to integrate a 10-gigabit fiber loop into public infrastructure and services, in a move to evolve the city from its industrial roots. The fiber loop is capable of connecting thousands of Internet of Things (IoT) devices together, sending all the data back to servers where it can be analyzed.
AI drives (nearly) as badly as the rest of us in GTA 5
A programmer created an AI and set it loose in the world of GTA 5, and it didn’t end well. The world of GTA 5 is sprawling, life-like, and full of unpredictable moments just like a real city. You have various densities of traffic, working lights, various weather conditions, and pedestrians also roaming around. For this reason, the game has been highlighted as being useful to help train AI for self-driving vehicles as it offers fairly realistic conditions without a danger to real life.
Traffic lights in Milton Keynes use AI to help tackle rush hour jams
New traffic lights in Milton Keynes will use artificial intelligence to outsmart traffic and improve the flow to help reduce the gridlock traffic jams during rush hour. Many of us will have been stuck at a red light cursing at it to change because we know no traffic is on the other side, but the light’s inefficient old timer system says we must wait. The new system will react to vehicles passing through them and ensure flow is at its most efficient.
YoBike chooses Bristol for its ‘Uber-like’ bike-sharing launch
YoBike, a new app-based bike-sharing service, has chosen Bristol as its European launch city in the startup’s bid to make local transport more sustainable and convenient. While bike-sharing schemes have seen rollouts not just in the UK but around the world; most require users to pick up and deposit bikes at set locations around the city. YoBike takes a smarter and more convenient approach with bikes able to be locked up (and picked up by other users) in any legal and safe location.
Fed workers overwhelmingly feel digitally naked
In conjunction with 451 Research, Thales has released its second annual data security research brief. The 2017 Thales Data Threat Report, Federal Edition indicates that 96% of federal workers believe they are “very” or “extremely” vulnerable to data breaches. This number is larger than all other sectors polled by the report.
Amazon sees AI, machine learning, and drones as prime opportunity for UK expansion
In a further commitment to its long-term UK investment, Amazon plans to add 400 staff to its R&D centre in Cambridge to focus on AI, machine learning, and drones. Engineers hired to work at the centre will include “machine learning scientists, knowledge engineers, data scientists, mathematical modelers, speech scientists, and software engineers.” The new employees will be working on the future of Amazon’s products and services – including the Echo and Kindle lines, and Prime Air drones.
Uber decides on Dallas and Dubai for its flying car trials
Forget driverless cars, the next big thing is flying cars (finally!) Anyone who’s into sci-fi will have dreamed of flying cars and probably thinks we’re overdue. Just last week, we reported Lilium successfully completed maiden flights of its VTOL taxis on a German airfield. This week, we’re hearing Uber has decided on Dallas and Dubai as its pilot cities for their flying vehicles.
DRIVEN consortium will undertake ‘groundbreaking’ driverless car trial
A consortium of vehicle companies known as DRIVEN has announced plans to undertake a ‘groundbreaking’ driverless car trial between Oxford and London on UK roads and motorways. Most current UK driverless car trials have focused on areas with slow-moving traffic or not on public roads. Using V2V (Vehicle-to-Vehicle) technology, the cars will communicate with each other to warn of potential hazards.
Air-based taxis step closer to reality as Lilium tests VTOL jet
Uber’s specialist Elevate team may have received the most coverage for pursuing on-demand air-based taxis, but Lilium appears closest to reaching our skies after completing initial tests of its electric-powered vertical takeoff and landing (VTOL) jet. The current tests are unmanned and conducted remotely in a two-seater prototype, but the next goal for Lilium is to produce a bigger five-seat version of the vehicle.
MediaTek partners with HERE to enable advanced positioning services for IoT devices
MediaTek has announced a partnership with HERE to use the company’s advancing positioning solutions for IoT devices. The company powers an increasing number of IoT devices with their processors and today’s announcement will improve the capabilities of future devices using select MediaTek chipsets such as the MT2503 product family.
Sinergia Tech finds investors for first Latin American hardware accelerator
Uruguay — best known for its art deco buildings and many steakhouses — will now add leading tech hub to its many great titles. Sinergia Tech raised $500,000 to launch the very first hardware accelerator in Latin America. The firm, known for its technological development, digital fabrication, and prototyping laboratory, can offer a unique environment for aspiring hardware startups.
Grand Theft Auto 5 is training driverless cars - but you shouldn’t be worried
Researchers are using the vibrancy of Grand Theft Auto 5’s world to help train driverless cars in dealing with unpredictable scenarios quickly and safely. The use of virtual worlds helps developers to optimise their AIs within a safe environment before rolling out the technology into the real world. Players of GTA 5 will be aware the game offers various densities of traffic and pedestrians which help to simulate real world scenarios.
Editorial: IoT malware could save us from our devices
Following events in the past year, the narrative around IoT has shifted from excitement to concern about the digital and physical threat it poses. The creator of malware which bricks insecure devices is suspected to be a vigilante hacker who aims to save us from our machines. BrickerBot, as the malware is known, searches for BusyBox-based Linux devices with exposed Telnet ports and proceeds to brute-force its way into the device.
Microsoft aims to secure low-cost IoT devices with Project Sopris
Microsoft hopes its Project Sopris initiative will help to secure low-cost IoT devices which have proven to have inherent weaknesses. Sopris is the name Microsoft has given to an initiative which targets microcontrollers as they represent “a class of device particularly ill-prepared for the security challenges of internet connectivity.” Tens of billions of devices use microcontrollers and each poses a potential threat to security and privacy.
Toyota and NTT team up for platform and R&D around connected cars
Toyota will work with Nippon Telegraph and Telephone Corporation (NTT) to develop, verify and standardised technology in the connected car field, the company has announced. Both companies will conduct joint R&D of technologies necessary for solving various issues ranging from traffic accidents, congestion, to provide customers with new mobility services that are aimed at realising a sustainable Smart Mobility Society in the future at global level.
Uber halts its self-driving car trials in Arizona following a crash
Uber will be halting trials of its self-driving cars in Arizona following a collision between one of its vehicles and another road user. While the accident could have stoked fears about how reliable self-driving technology is, the incident may work in favour of Uber. Local police concluded the company’s vehicle was not at fault and the other car failed to yield which caused Uber’s Volvo SUV to flip – as seen in this spectacular photo.
World Economic Forum opens "Industry 4.0" center in San Francisco's Presidio
Can we call it “PresiDavos?” The World Economic Forum — best known for its annual who’s-who gathering of thinkers in Davos, Switzerland — opened its Center for the Fourth Industrial Revolution in San Francisco this morning, a new space for accelerating technology and science associated with the current data-driven tech revolution.
Can IoT reduce unnecessary road sanding in the UK?
A new deployment of Internet of Things (IoT) weather sensors may reduce the amount of unnecessary sanding of roads in Winchester, a city located in the southern coast of the UK. Hampshire County Council is working with a consortium of companies, including Amey, Mayflower, and Libelium, to reduce the amount of grit used in the winter. Mayflower will be deploying the IoT sensors and Libelium is providing the sensor platform.
More than 250 smart city projects exist today - with focus on government and energy
More than 250 smart city projects exist in 178 cities around the world, with the majority focusing on government and energy initiatives followed by transportation, buildings and water, according to Navigant Research.
Turin to become Italy’s first 5G city, aims for total deployment by 2020
Turin will become the first city in Italy with a 5G mobile network after the municipality signed a memorandum of understanding with Telecom Italia (TIM). The project is expected to start its metropolitan trial in 2018, with the aim of covering the whole city by 2020. The telco will install more than 100 small cells in the main areas of the city, as well as at both the city’s universities, with 3,000 users being made part of the trial process.
World's largest new IoT networks launched at MWC
This week at Mobile World Congress, two new global IoT machine networks were announced in the Middle East and Brazil to provide connectivity for IoT devices and applications across the world. Ingenu Inc. and MEC Telematik announced a rollout of the Machine Network for IoT network connectivity across the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) region, based on RPMA (Random Phase Multiple Access) technology.
Cisco Jasper's empire goes from strength to strength
Cisco today announced at MWC that Cisco Jasper has completed live trials of NB-IoT on its Control Center connectivity management platform, making it one of the first IoT platforms to support NB-IoT. NB-IoT (Narrow Band-IoT) is a 3GPP-standard for LPWAN that is expected to drive growth of IoT at a massive scale, increasing the number of connected devices in excess of 3 billion by 2023. Supported by the GSMA, NB-IoT delivers a reliable, cost-effective IoT connectivity solution for low-cost devices.
Cisco brings digital know-how to today's smart buildings
Building owners are looking at technology convergence to deliver enhanced occupant experiences and improved efficiencies in their buildings. However, as the number of networks and connections within buildings grows, they are becoming increasingly complex. Interconnecting and interoperating isolated building systems such as lighting, HVAC, badging systems, security, CCTV, sensors and audio-video equipment, into a single converged system is fundamental to the digital transformation of buildings.
Orange pushes ahead with its LTE-M strategy for IoT devices
Orange has announced plans to advance its LTE-M strategy this year in preparation to support a wide range of IoT devices. The operator will focus its LTE-M efforts in Europe initially and will begin the roll-out this year in Belgium and Spain before expanding across the rest of the company’s European footprint. At the end of last year, KPN claimed the first to start testing LTE-M in Europe, but Orange is on track to become the first commercially-available network.
MWC17: Autonomous motorsports will make self-driving cars safer
Here at Mobile World Congress, we've heard about the latest advancements in autonomous racing vehicles and why it will make self-driving cars safer for the rest of us. Motorsports has always been about pushing the boundaries of vehicles to make them faster, stronger, lighter, and safer. Many of the innovations which happen in this competitive space make their way into road cars used by those of us without the nerve or skill to be professional racing drivers.
IoT botnet Mirai becomes more contagious
Mirai, the IoT botnet which caused record-breaking DDoS attacks last year, has become even more contagious due to a Windows variant. Spotted by security experts at Kaspersky Labs, their experts are in the process of analysing the first Windows-based spreader of the malware which is believed to have attacked 500 systems this year so far. From the initial analysis, Kaspersky believes the new bot was developed by someone with a higher degree of skill than Mirai’s initial creators.
ARM acquires Mistbase and NextG-Com in NB-IoT investment
Following the approval of the NarrowBand-IoT (NB-IoT) standard last summer, ARM has announced the acquisition of two leading companies in the field. NB-IoT offers low power and wide area connectivity designed to connect multitudes of devices at scale over a long range. The approval of the standard was a landmark moment for the IoT industry and ARM is looking to lead in the field by combining its chip security technologies with the specialist engineering expertise of Mistbase and NextG-Com.
Who wins the three-way cloud battle? Google vs. Azure vs. AWS
When choosing a cloud platform, newcomers may only look at the cost, but many different business needs should be taken care of before making the final call. We hope to help you get a clear perspective on three major cloud platforms. Right now, there are three main players in the market: Google Cloud Platform (GCP), Amazon Web Services (AWS), Microsoft Azure. The fierce competition has enabled cheap cloud computing prices and excellent competing feature-set.
The Weather Company partners with IBM to distribute alerts over mesh networks
The Weather Company is partnering with IBM’s researchers to deliver emergency alerts to citizens without access to a mobile or WiFi network. Today’s weather apps can provide alerts of severe weather conditions, but current iterations are dependent on constant internet connectivity. By utilising a mesh network, one device with access to connectivity is able to receive the latest information and distribute it to others nearby, who can then pass it onwards as soon as others are within their vicinity.
Baidu seeks AI leadership with Raven Tech
Chinese web giant Baidu is pushing further into the AI market with the acquisition of Raven Tech, a startup behind the ‘Flow’ digital assistant. As most emerging digital assistants, Flow was touted as “the next Siri” but with improved localisation for the Chinese market. The app never broke the top 700 ranking in the App Store in China after facing stiff competition from established local rival services developed by companies such as Xiaomi.
Ford pumps $1bn into ex-Google, Uber engineers’ AI startup
Ford has announced plans to invest $1 billion over the next five years into an AI startup co-founded by engineers who held positions in Google and Uber's respective self-driving vehicle teams. The engineers who co-founded Argo AI would make an enviable addition to any company looking for their slice of the emerging connected car market. Brian Salesky, CEO of Argo AI, was director of hardware for Google’s self-driving car project.
Auto Compensation: UK wants victims of self-driving car accidents to be quickly compensated
The UK is planning ahead of how insurance will be handled in the self-driving era with a framework that ensures accident victims are quickly compensated. Among the biggest questions surrounding the roll-out of self-driving cars is that of insurance and how it will function when there’s no-one in control of the vehicle. This has gained extra attention over the past year as more self-driving tests were conducted, and more accidents were reported.
San Diego gives green light to sustainability initiative with ‘machine network’
More and more cities are getting to grips with the Internet of Things (IoT) – and the latest cab off the rank is San Diego, California, who is pushing ahead with a ‘machine network’ dedicated to clean energy and sustainability. The network is being powered by Ingenu, a company which provides IoT machine connectivity through its random phase multiple access (RPMA) technology.
Municipal drones are coming - and cloud leaders are getting prepared
Like it or hate it, government drones are coming to your block. The Cloud Security Alliance (CSA), a leading organization dedicated to ensuring a secure cloud computing environment is working with Securing Smart Cities, a nonprofit global initiative focused on smart city cybersecurity, to set up drone guidelines. Their report, co-authored by the CSA Internet of Things (IoT) Working Group, provides guidance for the safe and secure creation and operation of municipal drone programs.
The road as a ‘social space’: Analysing the challenges of autonomous vehicle integration
The future of mobility has become a major topic of discussion in the automotive world. Introductions including the Internet of Things, autonomous vehicles, ride sharing and new synergies between car manufacturers and technology players are all changing the transportation ecosystem as we know it. One thing in particular I think we can all agree on is that autonomous vehicles (AVs) are coming.
Red phone boxes receive a New World makeover
The original ‘K2’ red phone boxes are something of an icon, but they’ve become decaying relics of a time which the smartphone generation won’t remember. New World Payphones are updating the humble red phone box with features that suit our modern lives. New World Payphones own among the biggest fleets of payphones in the UK. They first started to appear on the streets of London in August 1996 and by September of the following year, the network had grown to 500.
Uber poaches a NASA aircraft engineer to fulfil our flying car dreams
2020 was portrayed in sci-fi flicks as being a futuristic year of hoverboards and flying cars, but as it approaches, it’s becoming evident the most realistic expectation we can hope for is driverless cars. Ride-sharing giant Uber isn’t ready to give up on the dream of flying cars, however, and has just announced the company’s recruitment of NASA Engineer Mark Moore to become the director of engineering at Uber Elevate.
How smart machines will transform labour-intensive industries
The progress in technologies such as artificial intelligence, the Internet of Things, cloud computing, robotics and intelligent mobility have set the stage for cognitive or sentient tools to emerge onto the global market. These tools are aware of and can learn from their surroundings and users, and mark the next step in the evolution of computational systems, according to the latest worldwide market study by Frost & Sullivan.
EZ-Link provides easier payments systems in Singapore
Residents of Singapore now have the option of contactless payment wearables, thanks to the collaboration between EZ-Link, Watchdata Technologies and Garmin. In late January, two contactless payment options were introduced.“This collaboration with EZ-Link puts Singapore on the road map as the first country in South-east Asia to offer a contactless payment solution where you can pay for public transport rides with a tap of your wearable on your wrist.
Mumbai Slum Use Beacons To Advertise Local Retail Market
A 535-acre slum in Mumbai has started using beacons to advertise local products, part of a project by Google, the Industrial Design Centre (IDC), the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) and Swansea University to improve the slum’s retail market visibility. Dharavi is one of Asia’s largest slums, according to Ananya Bhattacharya, a writer for Quartz India, and has a manufacturing and retail sector worth around $1 billion. The slum mainly deals in leather products, pottery, jewelry, and textiles.
How leveraging data can create a safer smart cities
At its core, a smart city should be a safe city. However, with 54% of the world’s population living in urban areas today, and the addition of another 2.5 billion people to cities expected by 2050, achieving this goal has never been more challenging.
Here are the 6 major trends that changed the world of IoT in 2016
The Internet of Things is moving from futuristic to commonplace. The huge amount of active devices in 2020, projected by IDC, Gartner, and Juniper, don’t seem as colossal as they did at the start of the year, due to a variety of ambitious and successful IoT projects. IoT has been most effective in the industry, with multiple projects highlighting the power of connected machinery, farms, and utilities to save money, energy, and time.
How you can turn smarter decisions into smart cities
Recently, the city of Austin, Texas passed an ordinance requiring all new-home construction to include a smart or connected Wi-Fi thermostat as part of each HVAC system. This will not only help make homes more comfortable and energy-efficient, but also help reduce energy usage for the entire city.Today, municipal efforts to manage home energy usage tend to focus on improving HVAC systems – especially in the summer, when temperatures soar and air conditioners strain power grids.
PARC secures federal funding to develop peel-and-stick sensors
PARC, the research and development arm of Xerox, announced on Tuesday that it has secured part of $19 million in federal funding from the Energy Department to develop peel-and-stick sensors for homes, businesses, and other buildings. The peel-and-stick sensors will be able to detect air quality, temperature, humidity, occupancy, and more, according to PARC. Instead of using batteries, which are hard to recycle, the sensors will be powered using RF energy.
Can Jiyo's new health platform keep Aspen healthy and happy?
Jiyo, a new comprehensive digital platform introduced by Dr. Deepak Chopra to discuss holistic approaches to health and well-being, just launched its “Smart Cities-Internet of Well-being” program in partnership with Aspen City of Well-being, a non-profit organization whose focus is measuring, prioritizing and improving the overall health of community members in Aspen.
Show More
loading
Actions
Is this you?
As a journalist, you can create a free Muck Rack account to customize your profile, list your contact preferences, and upload a portfolio of your best work.Get in touch with Smart
Contact Smart, search articles and posts on X, monitor coverage, and track replies from one place.
Learn more about Muck Rack