Building Intelligent Cities

By Richard Vestner, Contributing Author

More than half of the world’s population now lives in cities. That number is expected to climb even higher in a few decades, even though three-quarters of the infrastructure those cities will depend on has not yet been built.

With dense populations, diverse industries and robust infrastructure, urban environments provide the ideal conditions for experimentation and rapid development. They are constantly buzzing with collaboration, fueled by the concentration of capital, talent and diverse communities. With access to resources, ideas and skilled people all in one place, companies can scale quickly. This synergy is a key reason why cities have become hubs of innovation.

However, these opportunities also come with their own challenges. 

City officials are coming to terms with aging infrastructure, energy transition mandates, high mobility demands and unpredictable environmental conditions, all of which are interconnected. Wastewater systems affect transportation corridors. Energy networks shape housing density. Underground utilities determine what can be built above ground. 

Infrastructure technology serves as the backbone of modernization, enabling cities to operate more efficiently, sustainably and intelligently. Yet, too often, cities attempt to manage these interconnected systems with fragmented tools and static datasets. 

Infrastructure is designed in silos, operated reactively and maintained based on incomplete visibility, resulting in inefficiency at best and systemic risk at worst.

The future of resilient, sustainable cities will not be defined simply by building more, but by building smarter. Technologies like artificial intelligence (AI), digital twins and geospatial data create the foundation for scalable solutions, real-time decision-making and continuous improvement across urban environments, determining whether cities can grow sustainably, equitably and safely or if they will fall behind.

Technologies Powering Smarter Cities

For decades, municipal systems have operated in silos with reactive maintenance and fragmented data, limiting insight and slowing decision-making. AI-powered digital twins change that by creating dynamic, data-driven representations of infrastructure across its full lifecycle, connecting departments and disciplines within a shared, system-level environment. 

This integrated system improves transparency. It supports smarter testing and planning, and it gives leaders real-time insight into roads, utilities and public spaces, enabling predictive maintenance, stronger performance and more resilient infrastructure designed for sustainable growth.

However, digital twins are only as effective as the foundational technologies behind them; together, these tools form a city’s modern urban operating system: 3D geospatial and data integration, interoperable data platforms, ground-informed design and subsurface intelligence, real-time monitoring and adaptive infrastructure and AI-driven infrastructure intelligence.

3D Geospatial and Data Integration—smarter cities begin with better context. Immersive, photorealistic 3D city models provide a detailed, spatially accurate representation of the urban environment. When city planners and engineers can visualize infrastructure within its real-world context, above and below ground, risks become visible earlier and conflicts are resolved before construction begins. Better context leads to better planning, reduced design risk and more efficient land use.

Open, Interoperable Data Platforms—each urban system may use its own data standards and software environments, but siloed departments are one of the greatest barriers to performance. Breaking down these silos allows for seamless integration and data sharing across departments and technologies, enabling cities to respond more intelligently and holistically to the needs of their communities. An open, interoperable digital platform connects these systems without forcing cities to abandon existing investments.

Ground-Informed Design and Subsurface Intelligence—cities build upward, but critical infrastructure lives underground: sewer networks, energy grids and telecommunications lines form a complex web beneath the surface. However, subsurface conditions are often poorly documented, causing delays and cost overruns. Construction teams frequently encounter conflicts only after excavation begins.

Real-Time Monitoring and Adaptive Infrastructure—sensors embedded in bridges, pipes, and roadways generate continuous operational data. When sensor data feeds into a digital twin supported by AI, cities shift from reactive to proactive operations. With real-time monitoring, infrastructure can evolve from static construction to adaptive, responsive systems capable of meeting shifting population patterns, economic pressures, and climate realities.

AI-Driven Infrastructure Intelligence—automated and AI-enabled defect detection can analyze imagery of road surfaces or streetlights at scale. Faster data discovery and pattern recognition accelerates design cycles. Predictive maintenance identifies anomalies before failures occur, decreasing downtime and repair costs. Over time, digital twins evolve toward predictive and increasingly autonomous systems where performance is always evaluated and optimized. 

Together, these technologies optimize resource use, model sustainability strategies before implementation, evaluate energy transition scenarios, and assess long-term lifecycle performance. That way cities can move from reactive infrastructure management to intelligent, innovation-driven governance at scale.

How City Leaders Can Leverage These Technologies

Forward-looking municipalities are already deploying city-scale digital twin platforms to manage infrastructure more holistically, from real-time flood intelligence initiatives to integrated urban modeling environments that support cross-department planning and emergency coordination.

When implemented thoughtfully, digital twins allow leaders to test and simulate projects before construction begins, further reducing uncertainty and de-risking major investments. 

A great example of this is the city of Pau in Southwestern France, where municipal leadership has leveraged a city-scale digital twin to inform decision-making and engage citizens. 

By providing a shared, visual platform for discussion, the city strengthened collaboration across departments and improved communication with residents in Southwestern France, where municipal leadership has leveraged a city-scale digital twin to inform decision-making and engage citizens. 
 
Pau’s implementation demonstrates how a full 3D city digital twin can unify data, improve planning workflows and enhance public communication. 

Instead of debating static renderings, stakeholders can explore immersive models that show infrastructure in context. When leaders begin to treat data as a strategic asset, not a byproduct of projects, they build the foundation for long-term resilience.

The Biggest Barriers to Adoption

If the technology is ready, then why aren’t more cities using it in action? The challenge is rarely technical capability. Most often, it is institutional structure and organizational readiness. 

Many municipalities still operate within deep departmental silos, where independent systems, inconsistent data standards and fragmented workflows limit coordination. Transportation, utilities, planning and emergency management may each maintain their own datasets and tools, making it difficult to build a unified operational picture. 

Legacy IT environments further complicate adoption. Many cities rely on aging hardware and software systems that were never designed to operate at scale. Modernization requires a clearly defined architecture supported by strategic investments in cloud infrastructure, cybersecurity and workforce capability. 

Cultural inertia can also be just as much of a barrier as structural fragmentation. Technology alone does not transform infrastructure. Cities must define why they are implementing digital twins, what outcomes they expect, and how success will be measured. Without that clarity, even the most advanced platforms risk becoming underutilized visualization tools rather than engines of operational intelligence. 

The Path Forward: A Systems-Based Strategy for Resilient Cities

Cities that continue to rely on fragmented systems and static assets will face increasing strain while those that adopt a systems-based strategy anchored in digital twins and powered by AI, geospatial intelligence, real-time monitoring and subsurface insight, will be the first to succeed.

Infrastructure is not only concrete and steel. It is the foundation of community and economic resilience. By embedding intelligence into that foundation and creating transparent, collaborative digital ecosystems, cities can evolve into true innovation hubs capable of adapting to whatever challenges lie ahead. In doing so, they will cultivate urban innovation ecosystems that are adaptive, connected, and resilient by design. 

That is how we will build the operating system for tomorrow’s cities.

Richard Vestner is vice president of Bentley Systems Industry Solutions Group for Cities and Water.