Hosted by Cornell Tech and the Jacobs Technion-Cornell Institute, the sixth Urban Tech Summit explores how artificial intelligence, data, and emerging technologies can accelerate responsible urban innovation. Under the theme The Generative City, the summit brings together policymakers, researchers, technology companies, entrepreneurs, and urban practitioners to explore how cities can deliver better services, build resilient infrastructure, and address complex challenges through new partnerships.
Key agenda themes
1. Urban Sensing & Sensemaking: Leveraging AI, urban data, and sensing technologies to better understand cities and support evidence-based decision-making.
2. Making & Building: Exploring new technologies and collaborations to transform housing, construction, and urban development.
3. Adapting Infrastructure: Applying innovation to climate resilience, transportation, energy, and public infrastructure.
4. Public Engagement: Using technology to strengthen citizen participation, inclusive planning, and collaborative urban governance.
5. The Agentic City: Exploring how AI agents can improve government operations, efficiency, and accountability while maintaining human oversight.
Central takeaway
The summit advances a vision of AI-enabled, collaborative urban transformation: moving beyond technology-driven smart cities toward cities where governments, communities, researchers, and innovators jointly develop and implement solutions. A central question is how AI can help cities achieve more with limited resources while maintaining public accountability and delivering tangible societal benefits.