AI Application in Smart Cities, Energy, and Climate Action

The convergence of fast-paced urbanization, increasing energy demand, and the need for climatic action presents complex challenges to the achievement of sustainable development goals. Artificial intelligence (AI) offers a transformative capability in addressing these issues within the system of smart cities. This chapter discusses the multidisciplinary uses of AI in linking and harmonizing urban energy management and climate action systems to address the pillars of Industry 5.0, i.e., resilience and sustainability. We move beyond siloed applications to talk about how AI can enable a systemic strategy, such as the use of predictive analytics for optimizing building energy consumption, smart grid management for balancing renewable energy and grid stability, and the development of intelligent transport systems for reducing emissions. Besides, the chapter delves into how AI can enhance city resilience to climate change impacts, e.g., using machine learning to predict extreme weather and reassign resources. We discuss theoretical underpinnings that make such applications possible, e.g., relevant AI approaches and data requirements, and practical implementation hurdles, ethical considerations, and the policy regimes that are needed to govern AI take-up for fair and sustainable urbanization. Lastly, this chapter illustrates the promise of Industry 5.0 principles-driven AI to become a major force in creating wiser, energy-efficient, and climate-resilient cities, which will support achieving global sustainability objectives.