Datafication Process in the Concept of Smart Cities

Datafication, currently visible in almost all areas of the human life, turned out to be a very good basis for the development of the concept of smart cities. Smart city authorities use various types of information and communication technologies (ICT) in the process of managing individual urban infrastructure systems. Modern ICT solutions enable city authorities to collect and process data about citizens. The purpose of this article is to determine the correlation between datafication and a city's position in the global smart cities ranking, with particular emphasis on the role of social media. To achieve the goal, the method of examining documents was used. Two independent reports were thoroughly analyzed: the Smart City Index 2020 and the Digital 2021 Local Country Headlines. The study showed that the more residents use social media, the better a city performs in the ranking. Additionally, a directly proportional relationship between the level of urbanization and the percentage of people using the Internet was demonstrated. The results of the presented study may be important primarily for people and institutions responsible for creating modern urban space.

Automated summary

Datafication plays a key role in the development of smart cities, and the use of social media is closely related to a city's performance in global smart city rankings. The study found that cities with higher social media usage tend to rank better, showcasing a direct correlation between digital engagement and urban success.