The goal of the ‘Global Initiative on Virtual Worlds and AI – Discovering the Citiverse’ is to create a platform for co-development and shared solutions as the physical and digital worlds merge with advancing technologies. The underlying principles include global strategic guidance, digital equality, risk minimization, and the promotion of sustainable development.
Tampere is well represented in the Citiverse initiative. Deputy Mayor Jouni Markkanen is a Vice Chairman of the initiative, and Teppo Rantanen, Executive Director of Competitiveness and Innovations, serves as a Vice Chair of the Steering Group.
– The importance of global collaboration in AI development is constantly growing, and its significance is greater than ever. For Tampere, it is crucial to be involved in leading this development. We must now focus particularly on how the citiverse1 functions as an user interface for digital services and experiences for people. We need to encourage structured decision-making structures to collectively steer the development of the citiverse—and AI as well—toward a sustainable direction, says Markkanen.
His Excellency Hamad Al Mansoori, Chair of the Executive Committee for the Global Initiative on Virtual Worlds and AI, and Director General at Digital Dubai commented:
– We welcome Tampere’s participation in the World Governments Summit as one of the cities that have joined the Global Initiative on Virtual Worlds and AI – Discovering the Citiverse. This participation enhances the presence of experts and thought leaders exploring the future of virtual worlds, reaffirming our shared commitment to leveraging advanced technologies for the benefit of humanity and the advancement of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals. We anticipate more cities and experts joining this promising initiative, ushering in a new era of digitalization—one defined by connectivity, collaboration, and meaningful global interaction.
On February 13, as part of the World Government Summit, the UN Citiverse Challenge will be launched for students and startups to gather innovative solutions to pressing global challenges. The challenge is built around three themes: accessibility of public services, sustainability and resilience, and tourism and digital culture. Tampere is one of the organizing partners of the challenge.
The best ideas in the competition will gain global visibility and the opportunity to collaborate with cities, UN organizations, industry leaders, and decision-makers. Additionally, participants will compete for prizes of 5,000 Swiss francs in the student and startup categories.
– AI-powered virtual worlds, and what we envision as the Citiverse, will fundamentally reshape how we connect, collaborate, and create, said Seizo Onoe, Director of the ITU Standardization Bureau. - These technologies hold immense promise—but their success depends on a shared commitment to international standards that ensure security, trust, and inclusivity.
– Cities face many challenges, including inequality, climate change, and digital transformation. That’s why we are now gathering bold ideas to tackle these challenges and warmly welcome everyone to participate in the competition. We believe that the potential of the citiverse for cities is best realized through collaboration and open ideation across different sectors. This also helps us steer the direction we want to take, Rantanen states.
The organizations participating in organizing the challenge include: International Telecommunication Union (ITU), the United Nations International Computing Centre (UNICC), the International Training Centre of the International Labour Organization (ITCILO), World Intellectual Property Organization(WIPO), the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), the World Bank Group, UN Tourism, the United Nations International Children’s Emergency Fund (UNICEF), Digital Dubai, Open & Agile Smart Cities (OASC), City of Tampere, City of Valencia and Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona.
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The term citiverse comes from the European Union's English definition of citizen and metaverse. The citiverse is a virtual layer intertwined with urban space, aiming to streamline the lives of city residents, enable new kinds of experiences, and address urban challenges.
