Samuel J. Palmisano
IBM Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer
Final Remarks, as prepared
SmarterCities Event
Berlin, Germany
June 23, 2009
Opening Remarks
Welcome to IBM's inaugural conference on smarter cities
If humans had been able to go into orbit around the Earth 100 years ago, they could have seen the light from 16 concentrations of a million or more people.
Berlin would have been one of them.
Today, the crew of the space shuttle can see 450 such shining cities across our globe. They are the economic, governmental, cultural and technological power plants of an urbanizing world.
It's really not an exaggeration to say that the story of the past 5,000 years—in other words, what we call "history"—has been, at root, the story of how our planet has become urbanized.
The city is arguably humanity's most important innovation. It was a societal invention made possible by agriculture—by the discovery of how to grow our food. That enabled people to settle down in one place, rather than live a nomadic, hunter-gatherer existence. And that, in turn, made possible what we came to call "civilization."
That is, the city is the form of social organization that makes possible the creation of lasting institutions... of the rule of law... of marketplaces... of advances in technology... and of sustainable economic growth.
And as all of you know so well, the pace of this 5,000-year-long story is now accelerating.
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Today, cities are where most of the people are... Where most of our jobs are located... Where most of our gross domestic product comes from... Where most of our energy is consumed... Where most of our pollution is produced... And where most of the world's infrastructure is located...
We should be proud of this unprecedented urbanization. It is an emblem of our economic and societal progress—especially for the world's emerging nations.
But it is also a huge strain on the planet's infrastructure. And no one feels that more urgently than you and your peers around the world—mayors, heads of economic development, school administrators, police chiefs and other civic leaders.
The challenges you face—educating your young, keeping your citizens safe and healthy, attracting and facilitating commerce... enabling the smooth flow of planes, trains, cars and pedestrians—are only being compounded by the global economic downturn.
The good news is, we have the potential—both technological and political—to make our cities smarter. This isn't theoretical. The technology exists today in inject new intelligence into the systems that make up our cities.
Which is why we are all here.
I think it's evident that cities—more than states, provinces or even nations—will increasingly be the crucible where the success or failure of our planet is determined.
It's clear that the time to act is upon us.
Today at our first SmarterCities forum, we are joined by 250 leaders from across Europe and beyond—from a broad range of backgrounds... mayors... government, city and regional officials... CEOs... and urban experts from academia—representing more than 120 cities in 24 countries.
Over the next two days, together, we will delve into these issues to explore a new vision for our cities.
We will hear from some of Europe's most forward-thinking leaders and examine the key systems that make up our cities. We will explore how these systems interact—within our cities and beyond. Because it is at those key intersection points—and in the discovery of new ones—that we will find the best opportunities for innovation.
Tomorrow we will have a unique opportunity to meet with public and private sector leaders in small group sessions in the more interactive part of our program, where we'll all collaborate to start shaping the blueprints for smarter cities.
As you know—and as the name of this forum indicates—IBM has been sharing our point of view for the past few months on how our planet can become not just smaller and flatter, but also smarter.
I'll talk about that in depth in a few minutes—but I want to highlight one aspect of it that has particular relevance to why we are here today in Berlin.
That aspect is the capacity of sophisticated analytics to find important patterns in masses of data. Patterns that can help us understand the trajectories of our cities' many interrelated systems. Patterns that can enable us to anticipate their direction—and make decisions in real time.
Those decisions can make our systems, processes and infrastructures more efficient, more productive and responsive—in a word, smarter.
Last month I committed IBM to the creation of multiple new Analytics Solution Centers—hubs of new capability for our clients.
Today, we're announcing the creation of the first of these centers here in Berlin... focused on bringing this new level of value to clients in the public sector, universities and healthcare.
Initially, this virtual center of competence will draw on 100 IBM staff at first, tapping into the skills of another 300 experts across our consulting, SW and Research organizations—including our lab in Boeblingen—with plans to grow as this market takes shape.
Why did we select Berlin to be the host of this center—and indeed this forum?
For starters, the city and its people are well accustomed to transformation and experienced in leading innovation.
I suppose you could say this goes back 20 years, to the fall of the Berlin Wall. That historic event unleashed a remarkable stream of innovation. In just two decades the city center has been rebuilt entirely and, with this, a whole range of complex public systems from East and West Berlin have been integrated—from education, government, utilities and more.
Today's Berlin has a vibrant services and industrial sector, leading universities and research centers, a young and skilled international workforce, public safety systems and a modern infrastructure that are among Germany's best.
The city is investing heavily in education—about €1.5 billion, exceeding national requirements—and it has a vibrant and growing information and communications sector. In fact, a new high-tech cluster is being established around Technical University Berlin, which is just 1 km from where IBM's Analytics Solution Center will be located.
But I'm not the best person to talk about Berlin. Instead, I'm honored and delighted to introduce Klaus Wowereit, Governing Mayor of Berlin, who can tell you more about the city he calls home.
