Message from Seizo Onoe, Director,

Telecommunication Standardization Bureau, ITU

Dear Colleagues,

Welcome to the latest edition of the Digital Transformation and Cities Digest.

As we approach the end of the year, we reflect on the significant strides made in digital transformation, smart sustainable cities and virtual worlds.

In this issue, we bring you the Year of Impact 2024 report and spotlight key events and outcomes, including insights from the ITU Global Standards Symposium 2024, the latest developments in the work of the United for Smart Sustainable Cities initiative, and a look ahead to the upcoming ITU-T Study Group 20 gathering in January 2025.

As always, we also bring you updates on the latest Digital Transformation Dialogues and our reports and publications.

I do hope you enjoy this Digest. If you have any comments or suggestions for improvement, please send an e-mail to digitaltransformation@itu.int.

Sincerely,

  A Year of Impact: Advancing sustainable digital transformation with ITU standards in 2024

The Year of Impact 2024 report offers an in-depth view of the accomplishments of ITU's standardization arm (ITU-T) on sustainable digital transformation, smart sustainable cities and virtual worlds.

The World Telecommunication Standardization Assembly (WTSA-24), held from 15–24 October 2024 in New Delhi, India, set strategic priorities for standards and capacity development, with 8 new resolutions including on topics including metaverse standardization, artificial intelligence (AI), sustainable digital transformation, and digital public infrastructure. 

The 5th Global Standards Symposium (GSS-24) and celebrations with partners of World Standards Day on 14 October 2024, explored innovation and standards to propel sustainable AI, smart cities, virtual worlds, and more. 

On UN Virtual Worlds Day on 14 June 2024, ITU launched the UN Global Initiative on Virtual Worlds - Discovering the Citiverse, in partnership with the UN International Computing Centre and Digital Dubai.

ITU-T Study Group 20 on Internet of Things (IoT), digital twins and smart sustainable cities and communities advanced standards for digital transformation in cities. Focus groups on metaverse and AI and IoT for digital agriculture completed their work, while United for Smart Sustainable Cities (U4SSC) launched four new thematic groups and welcomed new cities, like Ecuador's capital Quito, in the implementation of the U4SSC Key Performance Indicators (KPIs). 

Looking ahead, ITU remains dedicated to fostering collaboration for a digital future for all. To learn more, visit the Year of Impact 2024 website or read the report.

 5th Global Standards Symposium (GSS-24)

GSS-24 convened on 14 October 2024, in New Delhi, India under the theme “Charting the Next Digital Wave: Emerging Technologies, Innovation, and International Standards”. This significant gathering brought together thought leaders from government, industry, academia, standards developing organizations and the United Nations.

The event attracted more than 2600 participants. The event's High-Level Segment welcomed Ministers and Deputy Ministers, Heads of Regulatory Authorities, and industry leaders to explore the fast-evolving digital technology landscape and associated priorities for standardization. GSS-24 also featured the inaugural session of the International AI Standards Summit, the U4SSC KPIs Ceremony and the Blockchain Secure Authentication Application Challenge Ceremony.

The symposium's outcomes were submitted for the consideration of ITU's membership at WTSA-24.

• Digital Transformation: International standards as the foundation for global progress.
• Global Collaboration: Leaders unite to discuss standards' role in emerging technologies.
• High-Level Segment: Ministers and industry leaders discussed how to explore innovation and craft the next digital wave.
• AI & metaverse: Exploring their transformative potential in public services.
• Bridging the Gap: Closing the standards divide between countries.
• Sustainable Development: Standards as key enablers of the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
• AI Governance: Advocating for international standards to support safe, secure and trustworthy AI.
• Open Source: Highlighted open-source's role in innovation and fostering collaboration.
• People-centred Smart Cities: Celebrating the implementation of U4SSC KPIs in 200+ cities.

Find out more, read the GSS-24 Conclusions.

 New Thematic Groups launched at the U4SSC annual meeting 

U4SSC is a UN initiative coordinated by ITU, the UN Economic Commission for Europe, the UN Environment Programme and UN-Habitat, and supported by 16 other UN entities. U4SSC assists in developing policies and strategies facilitating cities’ digital transformation journey towards becoming smart and sustainable cities and communities.

The eighth U4SSC meeting took place in conjunction with the RECI International Congress of Smart Cities on 19 September 2024 in Madrid, Spain. The meeting was hosted by the City of Madrid and the Spanish Federation of Municipalities and Provinces. 

At this event, two key deliverables, Policy benchmarks for digital transformation of people-centred cities and Data and API requirements for centralized smart city platforms, were introduced alongside the launch of four new Thematic Groups. 

Experts are invited to join the U4SSC Thematic Groups and contribute to advancing smart city innovation:

• Digital Public Infrastructure for Cities
• Artificial Intelligence in Cities
• Enabling People-Centred Cities through Digital Transformation
• Social-cultural Sustainability in People-centred City Governance 
• Sustainable Digital Transformation in Buildings and Urban Energy
• Future Foresight for Cities 
• City Platforms 
• Digital Wellbeing 
• Building Urban Economic Resilience at City Level.

For more information on U4SSC, explore the U4SSC Brochure and visit the U4SSC website.

 Upcoming ITU-T Study Group 20 meeting in January 2025 

The next ITU-T Study Group 20 “IoT, digital twins and smart sustainable cities & communities” (SG20) meeting will take place from 15 to 24 January 2025 in Geneva, Switzerland. 

This pivotal meeting will review some of key outcomes of WTSA-24 and kick off SG20's work in the 2025–2028 study period. 

SG20 will continue leading the development of standards (ITU-T Recommendations), guidelines, reports, methodologies, and best practices to support IoT, digital twins, and smart sustainable cities, with a strong focus on accelerating digital transformation across urban and rural settings. SG20 is the lead study group on:

• IoT and its applications
• Smart sustainable cities and communities and related digital services, including effective energy management, digital twins and the citiverse
• IoT identification
• Digital health related to IoT and smart sustainable cities and communities.

The deadline for submitting Contributions is 2 January 2025.

For more details, please visit the SG20 website.

 Latest Digital Transformation Dialogues

ITU Digital Transformation Dialogues have expanded the successful digital transformation webinars platform, looking deeper into key digital transformation topics, featuring insights from senior leaders and leading experts.

Past sessions

Fireside Chat: Quantum Leaps: Pioneering the Future with Quantum Computing (28 November 2024)

In this fireside chat our special guest speaker Georges-Olivier Reymond, CEO of the quantum computing hardware company Pasqal, explored how quantum algorithms are reshaping our understanding of data analysis, optimization and simulation, paving the way for breakthroughs in renewable energy, resource management, and beyond. Learn how quantum-inspired approaches can accelerate progress towards achieving the SDGs. Watch here. Watch here. 

Ask the Expert Session: Smart Submarine Cables: The future of disaster management (5 November 2024)

In conjunction with World Tsunami Awareness Day on 5 November 2024, this Ask the Expert session covered the evolution of submarine cable technologies, the backbone of global Internet connectivity and the challenges and innovative solutions in submarine cable deployment by understanding the complexities of laying and maintaining submarine cables. Watch here. 

Webinar: City Horizons: Celebrating World Cities Day and Shaping Urban Futures  (31 October 2024)

This webinar, jointly organized by ITU and Global Cities Hub explored the concept of people-centred smart cities as a means to enhance the human experience by fostering a sense of community, accessibility, and innovation for all inhabitants. Watch here. 

Fireside Chat: Less Power, Less Cost, More Impact – Tiny Machine Learning and Edge Artificial Intelligence To The Rescue  (17 September 2024)

As semiconductors, software and networks mature alongside AI technology, new opportunities are arising to solve difficult problems across agriculture, healthcare, manufacturing, safety, security, and more. This session explored how this ecology of companies in AI can help you capitalize on new opportunities for innovation. Watch here. 

 Latest Publications

A Year of Impact: Advancing sustainable digital transformation with ITU standards in 2024  

The Year of Impact 2024 report offers an in-depth view of ITU's accomplishments on sustainable digital transformation, smart sustainable cities, metaverse and virtual worlds. Looking ahead, ITU remains dedicated to fostering collaboration for a digital future for all. For more information click here.

U4SSC Key Performance Indicators for People-Centered Cities for city leaders

The United for Smart Sustainable Cities (U4SSC) Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) are a comprehensive, globally recognized framework designed to help cities measure and track their progress in becoming smarter, more sustainable, and more people-centered, while aligning with the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Supported by 19 UN agencies, these KPIs provide cities with a standardized approach to collect data, evaluate performance, and drive people-centered digital transformation. For more information click here.

5th Global Standards Symposium (GSS-24) Conclusions 

The GSS-24 Conclusions summarise the key findings and recommendations and have been submitted for the consideration of ITU's membership at the World Telecommunication Standardization Assembly (WTSA-24). For more information click here.

U4SSC Brochure – Connecting communities, empowering people

U4SSC Brochure offers an overview of the United for Smart Sustainable Cities (U4SSC), a global initiative supported by 19 UN entities committed to driving the sustainable digital transformation of cities and communities. For more information click here.

Policy benchmarks for digital transformation of people-centred cities

This deliverable provides guidelines on how urban areas can leverage digital technologies to improve citizen well-being, enhance inclusivity, and ensure sustainable urban development. The report emphasizes the importance of people-centred policies in the context of smart city initiatives. For more information click here.

Data and API requirements for centralized smart city platforms

This deliverable provides guidelines for data management, integration, and API standardization, essential for cities looking to adopt a centralized approach to smart city technologies. For more information click here.

UN Executive Briefing on unlocking the potential of virtual worlds and the metaverse for the Sustainable Development Goals

This Executive Briefing was developed by 19 UN entities. It provides an in-depth look at the enabling power of digital spaces in advancing the SDGs, particularly focusing on the transformative impact of the metaverse. For more information click here.

Contact us
Email: digitaltransformation@itu.int
International Telecommunication Union
Place des Nations, 1211 Geneva 20, Switzerland

To unsubscribe, please contact digitaltransformation@itu.int.