Jane Wakefield of the BBC reports that London plans to test a new “smart city” operating system. She writes, “Living Plan IT has developed its Urban OS to provide a platform to connect services and citizens.  With partners including Hitachi, Phillips and Greenwich council, it aims to use the Greenwich peninsula as a testbed for new technologies running on the system. The OS aims to connect key services such as water, transport, and energy. David Willetts, Minister for Universities and Science, was among the signatories to the partnership. ‘The development of smart cities in future is a crucial commercial opportunity for Britain, and London is the right place to be doing it,’ he said.”

She continues, “The Greenwich peninsula is an area of London earmarked for regeneration. New homes and offices will sit alongside a dock for cruise ships while a cable car, due to be opened in time for the Olympics, is already being put through its paces. ‘We are entering a phase when everything becomes connected, from healthcare to transportation,’ said Living Plan IT chief executive Steve Lewis. ‘This is about connecting things that previously never did.’ Urban OS is different from traditional operating systems in that it is designed to be extremely robust.”

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