The Triple-Helix Model of Smart Cities: A Neo-Evolutionary Perspective

This paper sets out to demonstrate how the triple-helix model enables us to study the knowledge base of an urban economy in terms of its civil society's support for the evolution of the city as a key component of an innovation system. It argues that cities can be considered as densities in networks among three relevant dynamics: the intellectual capital of universities, the wealth creation of industries, and the democratic government of civil society. It goes on to suggest that these interactions generate dynamic spaces within cities where knowledge can be exploited to bootstrap the technology of regional innovation systems. These dynamic spaces can best be understood as spaces of ubiquitous information and communication technologies (ICT) where knowledge is key to regional innovation systems, creating the notion of “smart cities.”