I returned to Cairo in the summer of 2023, after 6 years. Naïvely, I expected to return to the Cairo of my childhood: to her sprawling streets, her dense traffic lanes and cacophony of car horns.
But almost immediately -on the drive from the airport, located on the outskirts of the city, moving towards downtown Cairo- I was struck by the wide, empty highways we were driving on, alerting me immediately to a vast amount of infrastructure development. For a country that was ranked second most at risk of a debt crisis after war-torn Ukraine, this seemed a pleasant surprise: an array of bridges, wide highways, all adorned with posters of President Abdel Fateh El Sisi’s face, and an array of Egyptian flags.
Read more: Smart Cities in Egypt: Utilising Techno-Utopianism to prevent Democratic Participation
Jesse Berst, founder of the Smart Cities Council, once sagely predicted, "If cities are our best hope for a better future, smart technologies are the path to that better future." The reason for this is simple. According to a Deloitte whitepaper about 5G in smart cities, urbanization is gaining speed around the world. Countries are turning to smart city technologies to overcome challenges in population and maximize existing resources. Smart cities represent a bridge towards a practical future of urban development.
Gorilla Technology Group Inc. ("Gorilla") (NASDAQ: GRRR), a global provider of AI-based edge video analytics, IoT technologies, and cybersecurity, with the receipt of the advance payment from Government of Egypt, announced the official commencement of its ground-breaking project that will provide the Government of Egypt with a Smart Government Security Convergence solution. The project is a significant step forward for the country and will contribute to Egypt's Vision 2030 objectives.
"Driven by global threats, we are pushing the boundaries of cutting-edge technology innovation and progress for defence networks. We are thrilled to kickstart the project and embark on this journey. I am extremely proud of the Gorilla team and elated to share a profound commitment that beats at the heart of my endeavours, the unwavering dedication to transforming Egypt into a technological giant,” said Jay Chandan, Gorilla’s Chairman & CEO. “With our keystone project in Egypt progressing, we have begun generating revenue and cash flow, increasing our cash balance and providing ample runway to capitalize on the growth opportunities ahead of us.”
Luxury developer Emaar Misr, a subsidiary of the UAE's Emaar Properties, is driving digital innovation with AI-enabled smart city solutions at Marassi, a 6.5 million sqm luxury development on Egypt's north coast, thanks to a collaboration with Salesforce, the global leader in customer relationship management (CRM).
Emaar Misr has deployed Salesforce CRM solutions including Sales Cloud, Service Cloud, Field Service, and Partner Community, which it has integrated with Marassi's systems for access and security, facilities management, and maintenance. This has enabled Marassi to deliver greater convenience to its 30,000-plus residents and 100,000-plus monthly visitors, while also maximizing the use of data to drive visibility, efficiency, and intelligence.
Some specialists know what the importance of the new mega projects is, but many do not. Others believe that establishing new cities isn’t necessary nowadays.
Let's admit that the map of Egypt witnessed a successive proliferation of new cities to expand and foster the circle of development and urbanization outside the traditional areas of overcrowding, urban concentration and economic density.
Read more: The Administrative Egyptian New Capital: A Vision for the Future