The limitless potential of IoT and the speed and low latency of 5G provide the critical infrastructure for future connected smart cities.

5G networks, connected by IoT devices and sensors, are changing the liveability and safety of many of our major cities.  In turn, smart cities are the fuel behind the rapidly growing 5G IoT market.

According to research forecasts, the global 5G IoT market is expected to grow at a compound annual growth rate of nearly 48% per year from 2023 to 2030 and is expected to reach nearly $18 billion by 2030. The smart city movement is the main driver of this market driving force.

New 5G infrastructure greatly expands opportunities for cities to leverage smart devices, sensors, and data to improve operations and functionality.  5G IoT devices bring many functions to enhance the development of smart cities, including smart transportation, smart systems smart energy systems, smart energy systems medical systems and public utilities, etc.

 The Internet of Things connects everything from cars to streetlight sensors and allows businesses, cities and individuals to monitor, manage and control these connected devices while gathering real-time data, analytics and insights. and data analytics to assess and monitor processes while operating more cost-effectively.

Smart cities require two layers of technology to be effective. The first layer is the technological base, which includes a large number of smartphones and sensors connected by high-speed communication networks. Specific applications at the second tier transform the continuous stream of raw data into alerts, insights, and actions. For example, apps that display traffic volumes in real time can allow drivers and pedestrians to better plan travel routes and make instantaneous adjustments. Smart city technology may also include services such as real-time crime maps, telemedicine that brings medical practitioners to patients' homes, and digital tracking of waste containers.

Examples of smart cities:

Copenhagen: The Danish Outdoor Lighting Lab, which is piloting lighting for city streets, hopes to use the infrastructure for other IoT purposes, such as identifying when light bulbs need to be replaced, a more efficient system than regular maintenance checks.

Seoul: The city announced that a city-wide IoT network will be completed by 2023. IoT sensors will track parking, traffic, street lights and environmental data. The information will be sent to the city's 25 regional offices and used to analyze current bottlenecks and long-term trends in service improvement.

Amsterdam: The city monitors air quality through multiple sensors and the results are available to the public in the form of an interactive map. In 2019, Google partnered with the city of Amsterdam to monitor air quality across the city using Street View cars in a project called the Airscape Project. Multiple sensor systems monitor traffic to ensure compliance and traffic safety. The system monitors 3 million vehicles every day. Finally, camera data from across the city could allow government officials to make decisions to reroute traffic to ease congestion.

Singapore: The city-state uses a data-based pricing platform for motorists and drivers called electronic road pricing. The system, which charges drivers more to drive on congested roads, helps provide a safe and efficient driving experience through data collection. A next-generation ERP could include distance-based vehicle pricing.

New York City: The city has installed automatic meter reading devices at businesses large and small, homes and other water utilities to more accurately track water usage and bill residents. The roof-mounted receiver communicates with the Department of Environmental Protection up to four times a day. This enables cities to track the population's water usage. Citizens can also track their water usage by reading meters to choose from.

London: The city maintains an air quality network using sensors. One set is maintained by Imperial College London. Another set is part of a mayor-funded citizen science network that uses more than 100 IoT sensors to measure air quality across the city. Air pollution in the city has declined from 2017 to 2020, in part due to stricter laws on polluting vehicles.

Smart cities are now starting to use 5G IoT technology to collect real-time data, process, communicate and share data at higher speeds and with low latency.  5G networks provide flexible, faster, low-latency and high-reliability results.  Additionally, IoT devices communicate and exchange real-time data for monitoring, management and control of devices to enable technologies that advance smart city projects.  5G and IoT are key components in changing the way cities connect and operate.  With the limitless potential of IoT and the incredible s and low latency of 5G, these technologies unlock critical infrastructure for the connected communities of the future.