The World's 10 Smartest Cities, Including Indonesia's Neighbour
Jakarta, CNBC Indonesia — London has proven itself to be far more than a historic city with classical architecture that delights the eye. The British capital has just officially been named the smartest city in the world for 2026.
As reported by Time Out, the title was awarded by the renowned global consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG) through its inaugural report, the Intelligent Cities Index 2026. The index evaluated 61 of the world’s largest cities to measure how effectively local governments harness Artificial Intelligence (AI) and digital technology to improve their residents’ quality of life.
The index scores each city across five areas, including outcomes, strategy, adoption, how well governments actually execute their plans, and broader ‘enablers’ such as funding, talent and infrastructure.
It also captures practical considerations, such as residents’ satisfaction with local government service applications and the intensity of AI usage in daily activities.
Based on their total scores, cities are grouped into four maturity tiers: leading, accelerating, emerging, or developing.
London topped the ranking thanks to the highest score in the resident outcomes category, spanning wellbeing through to access to new economic opportunities. Just behind London, Dubai took second place, followed by New York City, Washington DC and Amsterdam, which complete the world’s top five.
Interestingly, the BCG report also dispels the notion that AI fever is the preserve of mainstream technology hubs such as Silicon Valley in the US or Shenzhen in China. The facts on the ground show that cities in Africa, Asia and the Middle East actually record the highest levels of public enthusiasm for adopting Generative AI (GenAI) tools for everyday needs.
As an alternative benchmark for those seeking an ideal place to live, this technology-based smart city ranking naturally offers a different perspective from lifestyle indices, such as Time Out magazine’s Best Cities in the World 2026 list, which placed Melbourne at the top thanks to its green spaces and access to nature.
The 20 Smartest Cities in the World in 2026 (BCG version):
London (United Kingdom)
Dubai (UAE)
New York City (USA)
Washington DC (USA)
Amsterdam (Netherlands)
Berlin (Germany)
San Francisco (USA)
Shanghai (China)
Beijing (China)
Seoul (South Korea)
Singapore (Singapore)
Vienna (Austria)
Copenhagen (Denmark)
Shenzhen (China)
Boston (USA)
Los Angeles (USA)
Stockholm (Sweden)
Zurich (Switzerland)
Munich (Germany)
Abu Dhabi (UAE)
The success of these cities demonstrates that the right integration of digital technology can genuinely create urban ecosystems that are more adaptive, efficient and welcoming for their residents in the future.