The disruption caused by the coronavirus may have opened doors that many have been waiting for. Preliminary studies support that we experienced a faster technological revolution during the last three months than ever before. Forced to adapt, and to ensure the liveability of urban fabrics, policymakers are reviewing data protocols and legislations, giving way to tech-powered urban health solutions. However, many of those amendments will stay post virus. The precedence gained as a legacy will offer cause for both wonder and worry for our urban future.
Faced with the viral outbreak and the speed at which COVID-19 is spreading, a tech-powered revolution is underway. Numerous labs, corporations and governments across the globe have pledged money, tools, equipment and facilities to come up with solutions, vaccines and cures. To achieve this, collaborative platforms -which were previously considered lengthy and tedious processes were set up at record speeds. We see the rise of novel solutions, of voluntary data sharing and the emergence of citizen science. Corporations, which usually move at turtle speed, were quick to catch up. Alibaba Group and Tencent incorporated coronavirus trackers in their existing Apps, like Alipay, WeChat and DingTalk to track infected people, seek medical assistance and provide analytics. Governments have also been observed turning towards corporations like Facebook, Twitter, and Google for support to help track whether people are maintaining social distancing. And recently, we read about the extremely controversial and bold joint move by Apple and Google -- totalling together over 99% of the mobile operating system market share - in view of using Bluetooth technology for contact tracing. The importance of data has never been hammered this much in popular media, rendering it more obvious that it will be key in navigating this pandemic.
