Busan Ranks 12th Worldwide, 2nd in Asia in Smart Centres Index—Accelerating Towards Global Hub Status
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Busan Ranks 12th Worldwide, 2nd in Asia in Smart Centres Index—Accelerating Towards Global Hub Status
□ Busan Metropolitan City has once again proven its leadership as a smart city, standing 12th globally and 2nd in Asia in the latest Smart Centres Index, thanks to its comprehensive dedication to the digital transformation.
□ Busan earned a top-12 position among 76 cities in the Smart Centres Index 11, released by Z/Yen, a London-based consultancy firm founded in 1994.
<About the Smart Centres Index>
- (Official Name) The Smart Centres Index (SCI) ※ ’Centre’ refers to ‘city.’
- (Publication Frequency) Semi-annually, starting July 2020 (11 editions to date)
- (Publisher) Z/Yen Group
- (Criteria) 135 statistical indicators and expert surveys
□ Since debuting in the index four years ago, Busan has shown consistent upward momentum. Its current 12th-spot finish marks five consecutive appearances in the top tier, underscoring its emergence as a frontrunner in digital urbanization.
<Busan’s Progression>
* SCI 3 (June 2021): 62nd → SCI 4 (November 2021): 41st → SCI 5 (May 2022): 27th → SCI 6 (November 2022): 22nd → SCI 7 (May 2023): 19th → SCI 8 (November 2023): 15th → SCI 9 (May 2024): 14th → SCI 10 (November 2024): 13th → SCI 11 (May 2025): 12th
○ Within the Asia-Pacific region, Busan held onto 2nd place, surpassing Hong Kong for the second time in a row and trailing only Singapore.
□ Busan’s steady ascent is largely credited to strong performance across all six instrumental factors.
○ ▲ Technology: 12th; ▲ Financial Services: 13th; ▲ Human Capital: 9th; ▲ Business Environment: 8th; ▲ Reputation: 11th; and ▲ Infrastructure: 6th
□ Particularly noteworthy was Busan’s improvement in innovation support, which measures regulatory and policy readiness for tech-driven fields—jumping from 13th to 7th.
○ In March, the city launched the Business Support Division under the Digital Economy Office, expanding the former One-Stop Business Support Team. The newly established Future Technology Strategy Bureau has since fostered next-generation domains such as R&D, AI, bio-health, and big data.
□ Busan also retained No. 1 in the reputation category in the online expert survey.
○ Busan’s outreach—highlighted by its first-ever city pavilion at CES 2025 to enhance global networking and support local companies, engage in active urban diplomacy, and attract robust investment—has significantly amplified its international visibility, reinforcing its trajectory as an up-and-coming global nexus.
□ To bolster its economic resiliency, Busan is embedding digital technologies into high-value industries, guided by the Digital Economy Office, which oversees smart digitalization efforts. It remains committed to advancing frontier technologies such as AI, big data, quantum computing, robotics, and biotechnology.
○ In March, Busan unveiled its AX Roadmap and was chosen as the first municipality to host the 2025 World Smart City Expo in July—an event expected to facilitate decentralized technological exchanges and stimulate relevant development.
○ In April, the Busan Startup Investment Agency opened, representing a pivotal step in building a more cohesive ecosystem through increased venture capital and targeted assistance.
□ Major ongoing infrastructure initiatives include: ▲ future industry innovation cluster; ▲ Centum 2 Urban Convergence Special Zone; ▲ digital twin pilot program; ▲ cloud industry framework for deep-tech sectors; ▲ green data cluster; ▲ Busan AI Demonstration Center; ▲ smart healthcare & big data center; ▲ quantum science & technology center; and ▲ Busan Digital Innovation Academy, which together aim to train 10,000 ICT professionals over the next five years.
□ Mayor Park Heong-joon remarked, “This recognition reaffirms that Busan is truly a global smart pioneer,” adding, “We will tirelessly strive to counterbalance capital-area overconcentration and turn Busan into a beacon of innovation, not only in the southern part of Korea, but also on the world stage.”
