Economy
The Complex Relationship Between Data and Cities
Checking in on the latest advancements, and the challenges that remain.
There’s been no shortage of hype about the relationship between cities and data, especially so-called big data. For large numbers of tech companies, cities, and even a growing number of urbanists, data promises to solve all manner of urban problems, from predictive policing to improving traffic flow to promoting energy efficiency.
An even bigger potential role for new kinds of data lies in helping researchers and policy-makers better understand how cities and neighborhoods grow and evolve—but only if done right.