Innovative, AI-based solutions for urban planning and management

 

SCOPE & EXPECTED OUTCOMES :

 

Expected projects 

1. Digital Twin models with their associated tools, that use Artificial Intelligence (including generative AI);
   
2. Guidelines and recommended approaches on the integration and orchestration of developed models, applications and tools in urban planning and management and the subsequent decision-making process, considering synergies with the open sand-boxing infrastructure provided by the LDT-CitiVERSE-EDIC;
3. Capacity building, for instance, making available software in relevant platforms (such as AI on Demand platform, open source, EU LTD toolbox, etc.), and peer learning for potential replication in other cities;
4. Plans for the exploitation of the project result(s) through relevant Smart Cities networks specifically of the Digital Twins developed, including a market analysis for replicability and scalability of solutions;
5. Visualisation component of the Digital Twin promoting participatory urban planning and management and facilitating communication between different stakeholders, while enabling citizens to provide well-informed feedback and solutions;
6. Creation of multidisciplinary communities, bringing together IT developers, urban planners, designers, local authorities, and other relevant actors. This will facilitate future activities for adaptation, enhancement and integration of existing and future AI-based applications and solutions, including Digital Twins, applied in different urban domains (e.g. infrastructure planning, including nature-based solutions, urban logistics, network and traffic management, climate neutrality, safe and inclusive streets, health and wellbeing urban space, etc.). This could be achieved through synergies with the LDT-CitiVERSE-EDIC, and with other funded projects under this topic and under topics covering similar themes and aspects.

 

Project Requirements

• Integrates within the urban planning process and practice and supports the development of medium- and long-term strategic visions at city level for achieving a climate-neutral city.
• Supports decision-making and prioritization of policies and investment for sustainable, energy-efficient, and climate-neutral measures and solutions through visualization, prediction, diagnosis, assessment and prevention.
• Incorporates static physical urban characteristics such as topography, buildings, overground, underground, blue-green infrastructures, energy and heat grid, also considering the EU buildings dataset from the EU_LDT toolbox and at least two of the following urban features as variables : Urban functions; Mobility modes and services, including freight transport and logistics; Energy generation and consumption, including energy generation from RES and energy storage infrastructure; Weather forecast and reduction of pollutant emissions; Socio-demographic, economic and cultural trends.
• Provides different scenarios for achieving climate-neutrality as well as the possibility to simulate the impacts when prioritizing the implementation of specific policies, measures, or solutions for the other areas/sectors, and for the city as a whole. When defining climate-neutral scenarios, both forecasting and backcasting methodologies could be employed.
• Evaluates potential use cases, and assesses the potential of replication of developed Digital Twins, in other cities
• Allows, using its flexible features, the estimation of the resources needed to implement the different projected scenarios.

 

The AI-based Digital Twin to be developed for each city could cover a city-wide area – the urban core but can extend as far as the functional urban areas with well-defined characteristics (in terms of morphology, density, socio-demographic and/or economic features)”. The involved cities should promote complementarity in terms of climatic conditions, city typologies and geographical balance.

 

 

• This topic requires proposals from consortia that include at least three cities, each from a different Member State or Associated Country, participating as beneficiaries. 
• At least one of the three cities must be one of the 112 cities selected for the EU Mission on Climate-neutral and Smart Cities. 
• The consortia should include local authorities, urban planners, IT developers, operators, service providers and other relevant actors to jointly develop, test and integrate Digital Twins in urban planning and management.