of the Future
A report by ServiceNow, Deloitte, and NVIDIA in collaboration with ThoughtLab
88% of AI leaders integrate data across departments/silos
88% of AI leaders are midway or advanced in leveraging a modern IT platform
92% of AI leaders have digital innovation teams to drive their AI initiatives
73% of AI leaders establish clear AI governance frameworks
What do you picture when you think about a city of the future? Flying cars? Wireless…everything? Well, you’re not that far off. AI is proving to be a force multiplier of progress, helping cities become safer, smarter, and more efficient. And that’s important because a report by the United Nations found that by 2050, about 68% of the world’s population will live in urban environments—2.5 billion more people than today.
For this study, ServiceNow, NVIDIA, and Deloitte collaborated with research firm ThoughtLab to examine the AI plans, investments, and practices of cities around the world. We identified AI leaders on every continent and discovered some truly groundbreaking use cases, from disease outbreak prediction in Chicago to water harvesting in Jaipur, India.
AI presents a unique opportunity to improve the lives of residents, employees, and local businesses while strengthening urban readiness and resilience.
We found that 43% of large/mega cities surveyed are already deploying traditional AI. And while only 12% of small cities surveyed do so today, that number will jump to 41% in three years. Meanwhile, generative AI (GenAI) is becoming a game changer, with almost nine out of 10 cities planning, piloting, or using GenAI. Expect an almost 3x increase in the number of cities widely or selectively using GenAI over the next three years—from 18% to 59%. AI is already making an impact across the urban landscape, from digitizing government operations to optimizing energy usage.
Climate change, public health crises, crime, lack of affordable housing-cities are grappling with a host of complex problems. Al has the potential to move the needle on these seemingly intractable issues.
We found that 78% of Al-leaders surveyed are well or very well prepared to deal with challenges, compared to 63% of cities that are less prepared. And nearly three times as many Al leaders are very well prepared compared to others.
While AI creates huge opportunities for cities, it also presents risk for residents. The potential for discrimination, job displacement, data breaches, and loss of privacy should not be taken lightly. Meanwhile, as cities transfer more control to machines through GenAI and Agentic AI, the risk of misinformation and bad decisions could escalate.
Without the proper safeguards, these errors could be catastrophic in cities, where energy grids, infrastructure, and other systems are interconnected. That’s why today’s AI leaders are taking a multipronged approach to AI governance.
to build robust AI governance
92% of AI leaders have digital innovation teams to drive their AI initiatives
88% of AI leaders integrate data across departments/silos
88% of AI leaders are midway or advanced in leveraging a modern IT platform
92% of AI leaders have digital innovation teams to drive their AI initiatives
73% of AI leaders establish clear AI governance frameworks
88% of AI leaders integrate data across departments/silos
88% of AI leaders integrate data across departments/silos
88% of AI leaders integrate data across departments/silos
real transformation
