Speaking on a panel alongside Nga, Singapore Management University president Lily Kong adds: “The right question is not ‘What can this technology do?’ But who is being served and who is being left behind? Very often, we remember the first question, we may remember the second question and we may actually forget, sometimes, the third question: ‘Who is being left behind?’”
A successful city is not one with the most advanced technology, but one that uses technology “to expand opportunity, dignity, involvement and a sense of identity”, says Kong. “Success shouldn’t be measured just in terms of efficiency gains — which, of course, is important and useful — but it’s also whether digital innovation improves accessibility, whether it strengthens social cohesion [and] whether it enhances the quality of life for its residents.”
Kong adds: “If we are clear-sighted about what we are aiming [for], then we are less likely to say ‘I want the best smart traffic lights’ while not fixing the potholes.”
