US ‘smart city’ tech highlights contrasts with China over privacy and control
- American communities try to balance the benefits of new technology with the threats of a surveillance state
- China has a first-mover advantage abroad, particularly in developing nations, installing equipment based on Chinese standards
Christian Hammack stands outside city hall and surveys his kingdom – cars at rest. The Redwood City parking manager has spent years helping transform this California city of 84,000 people near San Francisco into a model of smart city technology.
Parking, however smart, may seem dull. But Redwood City’s hi-tech system is helping revitalise the downtown area, increase business and tax revenue and reduce congestion, pollution and accidents, even as powerful smart city tools raise concerns.
“We don’t want to be recording or streaming data … like Big Brother,” said Hammack, citing privacy concerns and smart city applications in China and other authoritarian societies. “We want people to be comfortable with any system we implement. While we want to manage parking – it’s for the public, for their benefit.”
As sensor, artificial intelligence, drones and voiceprint technologies advance rapidly, they promise to reduce crime, the cost of living and global warming – even as technical advances race ahead of law and privacy safeguards.
