Smart Cities: Strategic Intelligence

All the vital news, analysis, and commentary curated by our industry experts.

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Published: September 04, 2025 Report Code: GDTMT-TR-S657-TH

Report Overview
Key Players
Table of Contents

What makes this report unique?

Rigorous Methodology: Built on primary interviews along with thorough research, offering a forward-looking thematic framework covering all dimensions of the smart cities ecosystem.
Balanced Risk and Opportunity Analysis: Quantifies both growth levers (e.g., platforms, sensors) and systemic risks (e.g., trust, cyber).
Data-Driven Scoring: Evaluates companies using a rigorous thematic scoring methodology to benchmark smart city leadership.
Practical Insights: Highlights smart city case studies and strategies from global cities that are leading by example.
Actionable Use Cases: Learn real-world deployment strategies through use cases and case studies.

By 2050, nearly 70% of the global population will live in cities up from around 50% today. Rapid urbanization, combined with mounting climate pressures, is intensifying infrastructure demands and exposing gaps in how cities operate. These challenges are accelerating investment in smart city technologies, from intelligent transport systems to connected utilities.

According to GlobalData, the smart cities market is set to double from $204.8 billion in 2023 to $417.0 billion by 2028, growing at a 15.3% CAGR.

Scope

Provides a comprehensive overview of the smart cities theme.

Highlights key technology, macroeconomic, and regulatory trends shaping the next 12–24 months.

Includes detailed industry analysis with global smart city spending forecasts through 2028.

Maps the full smart cities value chain, covering the platform, application, and services layers within the IoT ecosystem.

Use Cases & Applications

Urban planners and municipal leaders evaluating smart infrastructure investments.

Technology providers and IoT solution companies positioning themselves within city ecosystems.

Investors assessing long-term urban tech opportunities.

Policymakers and regulators shaping frameworks for data governance, privacy, and digital equity.

Key Highlights

Smart cities are expanding worldwide, evolving beyond China’s tech-driven, surveillance-focused models to include a new wave of renewable-energy-centric cities, especially in the Middle East.

Major projects like NEOM in Saudi Arabia are reshaping urban development by reducing reliance on oil, diversifying the economy, and transforming public services.

Core technologies such as AI, digital twins, and 5G underpin modern smart cities, enabling efficient, data-driven urban operations.

Digital twins play a central role in optimizing city management and are already used effectively in cities like London, New York, and Paris.

The COVID-19 pandemic disrupted traditional urban patterns and exposed critical weaknesses in health infrastructure, prompting cities to focus on long-term resilience.

Climate change is intensifying risks such as flooding and extreme weather, driving adoption of advanced weather monitoring systems and resilience planning tools.

Cities are prioritizing healthier living environments through low-emission zones (LEZs), stricter air-quality monitoring, and broader sustainability initiatives.

Reasons to Buy

Smart cities represent a fast-growing market attracting significant global investment.

This report offers a clear, concise overview of the smart cities landscape.

Explains what truly defines a “smart” city and how these capabilities are evolving.

Highlights the companies best positioned to benefit from accelerating urbanization.

75F
ABB
Accenture
Acuity
ADT
Alibaba
Alphabet
Alstom
Amazon
Arcadis (IBI)
Arup
Assa Abloy
AtkinsRéalis
Atos
Azbil
Baidu
Bentley Systems
Black & Veatch
Bluedot
Bosch
Breezeometer
Building IQ
Carrier
CGI
Cisco
Cleverciti
Cognizant
Cubic
Dassault Systèmes
Deloitte
Didi
Dott (Tier)
Eaton
Emerson Electric
Enel
Ericsson
GE Healthcare
GE Vernova
Hikvision
Hitachi
Honeywell
Huawei
Hubbell
Iberdrola
IBM
IEM
iFlytek
Intel
Itron
Johnson Controls
Kapsch TrafficCom
KlausMultiparking
Landis+Gyr
Legrand
Libelium
Lyft
McKinsey
Microsoft
Mitac
Moovit
Mott MacDonald
Neutron Holdings (Lime)
Nokia
Nvidia
Olea Edge Analytics
Oracle
Philips
Qualcomm
Quantela
Salto
Schneider Electric
SenseTime
ServiceNow
Siemens
Signify
Smart Parking
Surbana Jurong
TCS
Telit Cinterion
Tencent
Thales
ThoughtLab
TomTom
Trilliant
Uber
Urbiotica
Valeo
Veolia
Verizon
Via Transportation
Wipro
Xylem
ZTE

Executive Summary

Players

Technology Briefing

Trends

Industry Analysis

Value Chain

Companies

Smarter Cities

Sector Scorecards

Glossary

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