A smart city uses information and communication technology (ICT) to improve operational efficiency, share information with the public and provide a better quality of government service and citizen welfare.
Smart city projects need to be transparent and available to citizens via an open data portal or mobile app. This allows residents to engage with the data and complete personal tasks like paying bills, finding efficient transportation options and assessing energy consumption in the home.
This all requires a solid and secure system of data collection and storage to prevent hacking or misuse. Smart city data also needs to be anonymised to prevent privacy issues from arising.
The largest challenge is quite probably that of connectivity, with thousands or even millions of IoT devices needing to connect and work in unison.