Dueling visions of what the development of 5G wireless technology means for cities were on display Wednesday as advocates of “smart cities” converged on Atlanta for a three-day conference about economic development, internet-connected devices and whether technology can make communities more equitable.
In the morning, about 300 people rode out to suburban Peachtree Corners, for the opening of a research center called Curiosity Lab, which is designed to attract startup companies that develop autonomous vehicles, drone-based delivery services and interactive robotics. Later in the day, many of those people hummed around the Smart City Expo World Congress, an event exploring the many facets of modernizing urban environments.
