Around the globe, post-Covid society has witnessed major alterations in the everyday work-life dynamics, leading to the acceleration of digital transformation and the development of smart cities by governments and businesses worldwide. On the 11th, National Chung Cheng University (CCU) along with Vpon Big Data Group signed the “International Association for sustainable smart city research,” a collaborative agreement which through the linkage of statistics and AI technology, will be strategically used to tackle transportational, environmental, and economic issues, aiming to build a better and smarter city, ultimately hoping to form an innovative example amongst international industry and academia collaboration.
Continuing after the construction of the nation’s first “Integrated command and control center for sustainable smart cities” in late 2022, the head of CCU’s Office of Information Technology, Dr. Hsiung, Po-Ann, led a multidisciplinary team, along with the Chandigarh Administration of Punjab, India, the Environmental Protection Bureau of Chiayi County, the Construction Department of Chiayi County, the Chiayi City Police Bureau, the Department of Transportation of Chiayi City Government and various domestic and foreign government organizations, tackling crucial issues in the civilian sector and in general safety, which include air pollution, water contamination, multi-camera vehicle tracking systems, etc. Today, a cosigning from Dr. Hsiung and the founder/current CEO of Vpon—Victor Wu commenced, vowing to establish the “International Association for sustainable smart city research”
For the National Science and Technology Committee (NSTC) program ”Replying to major national challenges—a research program on AI：Sustainable Smart Cities Command and Control Center designs'' to be enacted, the team here at CCU aims to utilize the “International Association for sustainable smart city research,” connecting resources and manpower in industries, governments, academia and research institutions, collectively assisting in the national development of digitization resilience. Dr. Hsiung claims data is a crucial driving force in the development of a smart city, and with the collaboration between CCU and the leading big data corporation in Asia—Vpon, its immense significance will eventually assist Taiwan in becoming a leading promoter in sustainability in smart cities around the globe.
Dr. Hsiung pointed out, CCU’s Research Center on Artificial Intelligence and Sustainability has already initiated relative collaborations with Vpon during the previous days, such include “Key Performance Indicators (KPI) for sustainable development in smart cities,” coinciding with the 11th United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), which will evaluate sustainability through environmental, economic and societal factors. Within this collaboration, Vpon will provide in-house data combined with open government data, the combination will then be processed by an AI model developed by CCU’s teachers and students to predict sustainability KPI. Allowing the data from a sustainable smart city to speak for itself, and equipping the government with references for future policy assessment and decision making.
Dr. Hsiung further mentioned the likes of Air Quality Index (AQI), River Pollution Index (RPI), Travel Time Index (TTI), Economic indications (taxation), etc., will be able to predict future city developments through long term surveillance, reminding the government and citizens of the altercations amongst living environments, and the results to come.
Mr. Wu noted, Vpon Big Data Group, having been established for 15 years, is an outstanding corporation amongst the current big data industry, reaching 900 million mobile devices monthly, and has a cumulation of 1500 notable brands as customers. The company is essentially data-centric, providing businesses with data analysis services, advertisement delivery, cross-borders marketing and other comprehensive solutions. Vpon combines its mobile communications with CCU’s AI technology and smart dashboard technology during this collaboration, and with this collaboration, Mr. Wu believes with the additional applications in big data, governments are better assisted in making quicker and more precise decisions, molding a more pleasant living environment, and advancing the nation’s digital development with greater intelligence and resilience.