The 2018 Smart City Summit and Expo kicked off March 27 at Taipei World Trade Center Nangang Exhibition Hall No. 1, bringing together participants from around the world to discuss the latest advances in sectors like artificial intelligence and Internet of Things.
Billed as the largest IoT and smart city trade show in Asia, the fifth edition of the four-day event is expected to attract more than 30,000 visitors from over 50 countries and territories. It also involves more than 120 mayors and municipal representatives, as well as a record 210 organizations displaying cutting-edge technologies in 1,050 booths.
At the opening ceremony, President Tsai Ing-wen said Taiwan is a leader in information and communication technology and gearing up to catch the AIoT wave. The government is leaving no stone unturned in its efforts to enter this emerging area integrating AI and IoT, she added.
According to Tsai, related measures include building smart public housing and establishing test sites for self-driving vehicles, as well as key policy undertakings like the Asian Silicon Valley project.
The project, which aims to transform Taiwan into an R&D hub for the IoT sector and a global center of entrepreneurship, forms part of the government’s five-plus-two innovative industries initiative. This covers the biotech and pharmaceuticals, green energy, national defense, smart machinery and Internet of Things sectors, as well as the circular economy and a new paradigm for agricultural development.
Tsai said advancing smart city technologies also requires a corresponding legal framework. To this end, the recently promulgated financial technology innovation and experiments act—the first of its kind in the world—is anticipated as creating a safe and supportive environment for financial technology, or fintech, R&D activities, she added.
The fintech industry comprises companies utilizing technology to increase the efficiency of financial services. Examples include cryptocurrencies bitcoin and blockchain.
Echoing Tsai’s remarks, Taipei Deputy Mayor Lin Chin-rong said the metropolis’s staging of the event underscores the commitment of the local government to establishing the Global Organization of Smart Cities in March 2019. As the world’s biggest platform for intelligent solutions by municipal administrations, the organization will put Taiwan at the heart of core developments in this potential-laden industry of the future, he said. (CPY-E)
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