The Lion City has roared to the top of the Smart City rankings , mainly thanks to the number-one position from SCIR . The timing of the report is interesting , as at the time , Singapore was considered to be handling the pandemic particularly well . That survey asked citizens for their perceptions of the impact technology has on their lives , in terms of governance , health , mobility . This year , the IMD , in collaboration with Singapore University for Technology and Design ( SUTD ), has included key findings on how technology is playing a role in the Covid-19 era . The index shows that those cities with better technology are handling the pandemic better . Singapore has invested heavily to achieve its smartest city status , to the tune of around US $ 2 billion since the Smart nation initiative was launched in 2014 . The small island nation was well equipped for a healthcare crisis and had already put a number of measures in place that put it ahead of the competition . By 2050 , almost half of the population will be aged 65 or over and to tackle the ageing population TeleHealth video consultations are commonplace , while TeleRehab wearable tech allows people to be monitored while at home . There are even AI-powered chatbots to talk to elderly people to help prevent loneliness . But it ’ s not just in healthcare where Singapore is super smart . Singapore is app central , which helps when around 90 % of people have a smartphone . From monitoring traffic to hailing a self-driving taxi – there ’ s an app for that . How about two initiatives – AI for Everyone and AI for Industry – upskilling some 12,000 people , and the Virtual Singapore 3D digital model that can run simulations and make everything even smarter ? It ’ s going to take something special to knock Singapore from its perch in 2021 .

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