Urban Operating System
At the core of the data-driven Super City is its “operating system”—the Data Linkage Platform.
To be considered a Super City, a city must integrate at least five of the systems that are fundamental to daily urban life. These include, but are not limited to, administration, transportation, logistics, tourism, medical and nursing care, education, disaster control, energy and environment, and payment technology.
These systems are linked via the Data Linkage Platform, created as part of the National Strategic Special Zones. This platform simply takes the information that already exists, and makes sure it is available to all relevant parties.
Urban API
Each Super City has its own Data Linkage Platform, but interconnecting Super Cities through their respective platforms will accelerate the creation of more Super Cities over time. Additionally, a standardized API (application programming interface) will facilitate data sharing, by unifying data standards and interfaces across sources of governmental, regional, corporate, and personal information. The open API will also enable data to flow where it is needed across different fields and improve ease of use by non-specialists.
In this way, all API participants will have access to the information they need and be able to share it, as appropriate, among themselves for mutual benefit. As a result, problems can be solved more efficiently. Successful outcomes can then be shared with other cities within the country and, in time, with cities in other countries, thereby shifting the focus from solving domestic social problems to enriching the global community.
Data-Driven with Peace of Mind
Any discussion of data must include the topic of privacy, a concern at the core of the Super City Initiative.
First, protecting the integrity and security of data is paramount. Security of the country's data is a national priority.
Second, trust is at the heart of all data collection. While personal data will be collected only as necessary, collection will often be necessary to provide certain benefits of the Super City to its residents. This is unavoidable, but we must remember that trust comes first in a Super City. If trust is lost, progress slows. Maintaining basic privacy is a fundamental duty of a Super City.
Continue reading to learn about the regulatory reform required for Super Cities.
