“City by people and for people."

 

—Jan Gehl (2010, p. 29)

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Overview
What is a LongevityTech City, and how does it differ from an AgeTech City? This week, we will explore the evolution of age-inclusive urban development from the Age-Friendly Cities framework (World Health Organization, 2007) to the emerging concept of the LongevityTech City (Lee et al., 2026; Wang et al., 2021). 

 

Through lectures, discussions, and case studies, we will examine how longevity, technology, and urban innovation intersect across multiple dimensions, including transportation, aging in place, AI-assisted services and experiences (Dubai Future Foundation, 2026), healthcare and care systems, urban infrastructure, and the business opportunities and economic implications of longevity (World Economic Forum, 2026). We will critically evaluate how emerging technologies and interdisciplinary design approaches can help shape more resilient, inclusive, and future-ready cities for a longevity society.

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Reading Material

• World Economic Forum. (2026). The longevity dividend: The business case for linking health and wealth. World Economic Forum. https://www.weforum.org/publications/the-longevity-dividend-the-business-case-for-linking-health-and-wealth/

• Dubai Future Foundation. (2026). Dubai Future Forum 2025: Key insights report. Dubai Future Foundation. https://www.dubaifuture.ae/reports/dubai-future-forum-2025-key-insights-report/

• Loke, S. W. (2024). Opportunities and Challenges of Urban Agetech: from an Automated City to an Ageing-Friendly City. arXiv (Cornell University). https://doi.org/10.48550/arxiv.2408.02072

• Wang, C., Huertas, D. S., Rowe, J. W., Finkelstein, R., Carstensen, L. L., & Jackson, R. B. (2021). Rethinking the urban physical environment for century-long lives: from age-friendly to longevity-ready cities. Nature Aging, 1(12), 1088–1095. https://doi.org/10.1038/s43587-021-00140-5

• World Health Organization. (2007). Global age-friendly cities: A guide. World Health Organization. https://www.who.int/publications/i/item/9789241547307