In recent years, there has been a growing interest in the concept of the Smart City, a term that originated in Anglo-American literature in 2008 and has given rise to a broad and evolving definition. The Smart City, or intelligent city, has sparked debates and research focused on the strategic role of technological infrastructure in urban development. However, its definition eludes a clear delineation, as it is strongly influenced by the specific conditions of each territory.
The lack of a clear definition has led to sporadic and heterogeneous interventions in cities, causing confusion among citizens regarding the functioning of the Smart City and its benefits. In this digital smart landscape, architects play a fundamental role in planning and designing the urban system. The integration of the metaverse in this context opens new perspectives and exciting challenges for the Smart City.
If twenty years ago we explored Second Life, today we witness its reinterpretation in the Metaverse. The metaverse, an interactive and shared virtual environment, can serve as a digital interface for the management and optimization of urban services. The connection between the physical and virtual worlds offers opportunities to enhance the city experience, enabling residents to actively participate in the co-creation and management of the city through digital avatars and beyond. It provides the possibility of a comprehensive view of the project and its functioning, with the ability to anticipate and address any future deficiencies and issues that may arise.
The construction of the Smart City requires a concentrated approach to the physical and technological layers of urban development, identifying models such as the Technological Model and the Collaborative Model. In this context, wired infrastructure and presence in the metaverse emerge as key elements, unlocking the full economic and social potential through innovation, openness, and connectivity. This approach ensures that environmental, social, territorial, urbanistic, and economic needs are met in the present and projected into the future, contributing to the creation of a Sustainable City that represents a true historical revolution, rooted in the past but oriented towards the future, even within an increasingly integrated metaverse context.