Smart cities drivers and ICT: in search of relationships

The increasing number of smart cities projects all around the world is related to the development of different models created by the industry players, the Institutions, or the public administrations. The implementation of these models supports the smartization process in cities, aiming at overcome the latest urban problems and find a resolution to citizens’ issues thanks to the rising of initiatives concerning one or more so called drivers, namely specific smart city characteristics or dimensions. Our research has been conducted through a content analysis of the official Reports developed by the solution providers widely recognized as global leaders, in order to focus on the identification of the relationships among ICT (Information and Communication Technology) and the smart city drivers (economy, people, governance, mobility, environment, and living) identified through an overview of the theoretical background on models. The main results of our analysis show that the stronger linkages are those between ICT and governance, people, and environment.