If you haven’t heard of smart cities, you’re not alone. Simply put, smart cities capitalise on the efficiencies that AI can offer, such as increased efficiency and reduced costs, essentially extinguishing the need for some of the humans that once did the role. 

As Australians, we are familiar with some technology advancements like speed cameras, and more recently using apps to pay for parking and public transport, but smart cities take the concept to another level. Through the use of the Internet of Things (IoT), defined as computer-2-computer data exchanges, the technology would allow the government to capture non-compliant parking, plan for future infrastructure projects, and even record illegal rubbish dumping. Private sectors on the other hand, could be more equipped to improve customer experiences and manage security operations. 

One can speculate why there would be government interest in the concept, for instance: increased civic compliance and reduced road congestion, not to mention lower employee costs paired with higher fine revenue. Australia does appear to be making the move to becoming smarter, however, countries like Singapore have implemented ‘robo cops’ and police drones, showing us how much more improvement can be made and proving that the technology is already there to do so. 

Fortunately, there appears to be an Australian company which is making waves in the smart city space. Melbourne-based SenSen (ASX: SNS) are focused on using artificial intelligence to increase efficiency, primarily in the government and casino sectors. 

For example, SenSen’s casino solutions allow table occupancy, hands dealt, and even bet values, to be tracked and recorded against KPI targets. The company also appears focused on improving parking fine management while reducing the need for on-foot parking officers. For instance, the company has created a product which allows a car driving through city streets to record various parking infringement types and car registrations. With big clients such as Crown Casino, several local councils, and international airports, it’s clear that SenSen’s impressive technology is highly valued across various client segments. 

The $51m market cap company announced today that they have secured a A$1.24m government contract in Singapore in the interest of reducing illegal parking and traffic congestion, increasing the company’s recurring revenue over the 5 years and resulting in almost 600 cameras in Singapore using SenSens software. News of the deal saw SNS stock rise as high as 8% by mid-morning.