Songdo, located 60 kilometers southwest of Seoul, is one of the hi-tech capitals of the world. It was started in 2000 from nothing and cost US$40 billion to build. At first sight, the city seems pretty normal with offices, homes, shops, hotels, and public spaces. But its technology makes it one of the smartest cities in the world.
High-speed Wi-Fi everywhere makes it easy to send emails or watch videos while you are walking along the street. Sensors check temperatures, energy, and traffic. They can tell you personally when you can expect your bus to arrive, but they can also send warnings of any problems in the electricity or other systems. There are "TelePresence" screens in all homes, offices, and shopping malls so people can make video calls whenever they want.
There are charging stations everywhere for electric cars. Garbage is not picked up by trucks. It is transported directly from homes to underground tunnels, where some of it is used to produce renewable energy.
The city was planned around a central park and designed so that every person who lives there can walk to work in the business district, Kwon here from Seoul and says her daily commute is a 15-minute walk across the park to her job as a translator. "Aft lunch, walk with my in the park. When I lived in Seoul, I had to drive to see my friends. Here I can walk to visit them. It brings people closer."