Singapore is one of the most technologically advanced cities in the world, and in the future, its position in this field is likely to only strengthen. In addition to testing the latest achievements such as unmanned and flying cars, the largest 3D project in history, Virtual Singapore, has already been launched, which is a real copy of the city in a virtual space. By the end of the year, government agencies will have access to this platform, and then all citizens.
The online platform, unique in its scale, is estimated at $ 53 million and is based on the so-called big data. The virtual model contains a huge amount of information about the entire urban infrastructure. It is, in fact, an exact replica of the city in the virtual world.
At the first stage of testing, government services will receive it at their disposal, but only on devices that are not connected to the Internet. It will be used for planning the construction of buildings and laying roads, for solving problems associated with various emergencies, preventing terrorist threats, and so on. Virtual Singapore is part of an even larger Smart Nation project. This is a state program for the introduction of the latest technologies to improve the quality of life of citizens.
However, experts also have a number of questions for the new system. Naturally, some data should be anonymous, but having made the platform open to it, dishonest people can easily use it. According to the head of the project, George Lo,
“The question of which data should be in the public domain and which should not be quite acute. After all, if the platform is not accurate enough, no one will use it. And if it's the other way around, it can be dangerous. For example, it can be used to analyze the height of buildings, distance from the target and find a position for a sniper without leaving home. So we need to find the right balance."
Vladimir Kuznetsov