ROME, March 07, 2023 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Smart cities are at the heart of the digitalisation process in Italy, with investments in ICT solutions rising to 1.6 billion euros in Italy by 2027, more than 100 billion euros in European resources (of which 10 billion under the NRRP) and a global spending value of more than one trillion dollars. This is what emerges from the 'Italy of smart and sustainable cities’ report, drawn up by the TIM Research Centre - Italy's leading telephone company - in collaboration with the 'Smart City' and 'Startup Intelligence' Observatories of the Politecnico di Milano and the CNR Department of Engineering, ICT and Technologies for Energy and Transport. The report, presented today in Rome, highlights how smart city applications based on 5G, IoT, and Artificial Intelligence will contribute to an overall reduction of about 6.5 billion euros in city traffic costs and more than 400 million euros in urban pollution costs in Italy between 2023 and 2027. The new technologies will also allow an annual reduction of CO2 emissions by about 650,000 tonnes.

"There is a lot of confusion about Smart Cities, often used as a catch-all term with the risk of detracting from the choices made by mayors and administrators who have a fundamental role in the innovation of the territories they govern,” explains Elio Schiavo, Chief Enterprise and Innovative Solutions Officer at TIM. "We are the largest ICT platform in the country, and we are the only ones with proprietary services. This is the true distinctive asset of TIM. We will be leading players in the country's digitalisation process,” he continues, adding: "With TIM Urban Genius, we have created the first urban intelligence platform that allows all Italian administrations to make their territories smart, because it is the primary source of information that is useful for the lives of citizens."

During the presentation event, prizes were awarded to the winners of the TIM Smart City Challenge, a scouting initiative in collaboration with some of the leading players in this field, which involved around 170 companies called upon to present solutions for making cities increasingly smart, safe and sustainable. Over 70% of the projects were Italian, although there was also strong interest from foreign companies. The TIM prize was awarded to Mine Crime, for its solution providing a source of geolocalised data on urban crime that can be used to increase security in cities.

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A video accompanying this announcement is available at https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/d39002b5-85d2-464d-93b6-4721959dbbfb