Johari Yusof says AI can play a significant role in smart city governance, transportation, healthcare, and waste disposal.
PETALING JAYA: The government should intensify its efforts in creating smart cities driven by artificial intelligence (AI) to help the public embrace this new technology, says an academic.
Putrajaya aims to transform the three federal territories into smart cities by 2030, with an emphasis on sustainability.
Planned initiatives include the use of electric buses in Wangsa Maju as a pioneering low-carbon city, the addition of closed-circuit camera (CCTV) installations in Kuala Lumpur and Putrajaya, and the installation of WiFi in people’s housing and public housing projects in Labuan.
Johari Yusof, a lecturer in Universiti Putra Malaysia’s (UPM) landscape architecture faculty said that AI can play a significant role in smart city initiatives, especially in governance, transportation, healthcare, and waste disposal.
He said the usage of AI in people’s daily lives will help encourage more of them to embrace the technology, in line with the government’s goal of utilising it for national development.
“I don’t see why people wouldn’t be interested in living in a smart city.
“When AI is utilised in smart cities, the lives of residents are simplified, and the quality of life improves,” he told FMT.
Last Tuesday, Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim, during the launch of an AI programme for the people, said the government aims to have one million citizens participate in a four-hour AI literacy programme by the end of this year.
Meanwhile, Universiti Malaysia Pahang Sultan Abdullah vice-chancellor Yuserrie Zainuddin said Malaysia needs to accelerate its adoption of AI, especially at the higher education level.
“All students should be exposed to and educated about AI to incorporate it into their daily lives,” he said, adding that Malaysia is ready to harness this new technology.
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