Giuseppe Masanotti

Cities are rethinking how urban spaces are designed, built, and maintained in response to growing environmental, social, and economic pressures. Innovation in infrastructure, construction, and urban planning is driving a shift toward more sustainable, resilient, and adaptable urban environments. As cities expand and transform, the focus is moving beyond growth alone to creating spaces that improve quality of life, optimize resources, and respond to future challenges. The next generation of urban development will depend on integrated approaches that combine sustainability, efficiency, technology, and human-centered design to shape smarter and more livable cities.

How can cities build resilient digital infrastructure while integrating AI and the digital economy from day one? Alatau City, Kazakhstan, presents its vision for an AI-native smart city built on core digital infrastructure, including data centers, IoT sensors, communication networks, and unified data platforms. The session explores how this physical and digital backbone enables urban digital twins, AI-driven city management, and tokenization by default, while supporting infrastructure resilience, sustainable urban development, and new investment opportunities.