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A Smarter Planet

The planet will be instrumented, interconnected, intelligent. People want it. We can do it.
Change for smart's sake

The list of problems is well-known: A financial crisis. Climate disruption. Energy geopolitics. Food supply hazards.

What they show is that we're all connected, today like never before: economically, socially and technically. When a crisis occurs on one part of the planet, it can bring problems to another part, within days or even hours.

Yet this challenge is also an opportunity, and now is the time to seize it. People around the world are ready for change. And the planet is ready for it, too. Today, we are seeing the infusion of intelligence into the way the world literally works — the systems and processes that enable...

  • physical goods to be developed, manufactured, bought and sold;
  • services to be delivered;
  • everything from people and money to oil, water and electrons to move;
  • and billions of people to work and live.
How we're getting there

Three things have brought this about:

  • The world is becoming instrumented. We now have the ability to measure, sense and see the exact condition of everything. Sensors are being embedded everywhere: in cars, appliances, cameras, roads, pipelines…even in medicine and livestock.
  • The world is becoming interconnected. People, systems and objects can communicate and interact with each other in entirely new ways.
  • All things are becoming intelligent. All the instrumented and interconnected things are being linked to powerful new backend systems that can process all the data produced and advanced analytics are capable of turning it into real insight, in real time.
Smarter systems in action

The world needs a smarter planet. See how we are helping to build it.

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Why get smarter?

Because we can: the technology is both available and affordable. Because we must: the shocks we've seen to so many systems show that the current approaches aren't sustainable. And because we want to. IBM is starting a conversation with the world because we think now is the time to make these changes for the better.

What do smarter systems look like?

  • Smart Utilities

    Discover how smart energy grids reduce downtime and provide control to user level.

  • Smart Traffic

    When building new roads is no solution, then existing roads and smarter cars that do.

  • Smart Infrastructure

    As we explore ways to make the world smarter, it raises a question: Why are the IT systems themselves still not as smart they need to be?

  • New Intelligence

    The new ways we can capture, analyse and act on information will help us make our planet smarter.

  • Smarter Water

    Sensor networks, smart metering and advanced computing and analytics are helping to ensure the flow of clean, plentiful water around the planet.

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A Smarter Planet