We need more urban innovation projects like the ‘Google City’. This is why
- Date: 23-Sep-2020
- Source: World Economic Forum
- Sector:Technology
- Country:Middle East
We need more urban innovation projects like the ‘Google City’. This is why
Sidewalk Labs, owned by Google's parent company Alphabet, has pulled out of a new, large-scale urban development in Toronto;
How we test digital innovation in a physical space is a huge challenge and attracts both critics and risks;
Without lots of experimentation, led by start-ups, however, we will not drive urban innovation forward or find a path to healthy urban futures.
One of the lesser-known casualties of COVID-19 is a new, large-scale urban development in Toronto led by Google's sibling company, Sidewalk Labs. Several years in the making, the "Google City“, as it is sometimes called by the media, has ultimately come to a halt because of the ongoing recession.
Public perception has, however, stymied the development's entire lifespan with some activists labelling it an "800-acre surveillance state“. While