TOP 50 SMART CITY THOUGHT LEADERS, FUTURIST KEYNOTE SPEAKERS & IOT CONSULTING EXPERTS

TOP 50 SMART CITY THOUGHT LEADERS, FUTURIST KEYNOTE SPEAKERS & IOT CONSULTING EXPERTS

Top 50 smart city thought leaders, futurist keynote speakers and consulting experts note that such metropolises are rapidly emerging as the next major frontier in global innovation. Fueled by advancements in AI, IoT, automation, data analytics, telecom networks, cloud computing and digital policy, global Top 50 smart city thought leaders observe that cities worldwide are undergoing profound transformation.

Behind the shift are the influencers — policymakers, technologists, executives, and founders — who are rethinking how urban environments operate, evolve, and serve their residents. We’ve put together a Top 50 smart city thought leaders list of consultants and advisors whose work influences mobility, energy, connectivity, sustainability, and the digital future of metropolitan living.

Before diving in, be sure to have a look at research and input by celebrity keynote speaker Scott Steinberg, a futurist consultant and business strategist for over 3000 brands. You can catch his headlining Top 50 smart city thought leaders presentations at conferences, conventions and corporate meeting events all across the nation and globally as well.

And of course further members of the world’s Top 50 smart city thought leaders represent the collaborative ecosystem required to build smarter, safer, more efficient cities. Policymakers such as Hidalgo, Khan, and Bloomberg drive major initiatives in sustainability and mobility. Technology executives including Nadella, Huang, Krishna, and Robbins power the AI, edge computing, and 5G networks enabling urban transformation. Noted Top 50 smart city thought leaders innovators like Bezos and Chesky remake transportation and housing models, while global influencers such as Gates and Rometty champion bold approaches to energy, data governance, and digital infrastructure.

Top 50 Smart City Thought Leaders

  1. Scott Steinberg – CEO, FutureProof Strategies: The Futurist Consulting Firm, celebrity keynote speaker and futurist consulting expert for 3000 companies, multi-bestselling author.
  2. Michael Bloomberg – Former Mayor of New York City
  3. Anne Hidalgo – Mayor of Paris
  4. Sadiq Khan – Mayor of London
  5. Zohran Mamdani – Mayor of New York City
  6. Justin Trudeau – Former Prime Minister of Canada
  7. Ursula von der Leyen – President, European Commission
  8. Tim Cook – CEO, Apple
  9. Satya Nadella – CEO, Microsoft
  10. Sundar Pichai – CEO, Alphabet
  11. Andy Jassy – CEO, Amazon
  12. Jensen Huang – CEO, NVIDIA
  13. Lisa Su – CEO, AMD
  14. Arvind Krishna – CEO, IBM
  15. Chuck Robbins – CEO, Cisco
  16. Safra Catz – CEO, Oracle
  17. Hans Vestberg – CEO, Verizon
  18. Mike Sievert – CEO, T-Mobile
  19. Pekka Lundmark – CEO, Nokia
  20. Borje Ekholm – CEO, Ericsson
  21. Mark Zuckerberg – CEO, Meta Platforms
  22. Elon Musk – CEO, Tesla & SpaceX
  23. Jeff Bezos – Founder, Amazon
  24. Sam Altman – CEO, OpenAI
  25. Marc Benioff – CEO, Salesforce
  26. Shantanu Narayen – CEO, Adobe
  27. Julie Sweet – CEO, Accenture
  28. Brian Humphries – Former CEO, Cognizant
  29. George Oliver – CEO, Johnson Controls
  30. Darius Adamczyk – Executive Chairman, Honeywell
  31. Michael Miebach – CEO, Mastercard
  32. Al Kelly – Executive Chairman, Visa
  33. Mary Barra – CEO, General Motors
  34. Jim Farley – CEO, Ford Motor Company
  35. Brian Chesky – Co-founder & CEO, Airbnb
  36. Dara Khosrowshahi – CEO, Uber
  37. Logan Green – Co-founder, Lyft
  38. John Zimmer – Co-founder, Lyft
  39. Rajeev Suri – CEO, Inmarsat
  40. Francis Suarez – Former Mayor of Miami
  41. Garry Kasparov – Chair, Human Rights Foundation (AI & governance advocate)
  42. Ginni Rometty – Former CEO, IBM
  43. Reed Hastings – Executive Chairman & Co-founder, Netflix
  44. Robert Reffkin – CEO, Compass
  45. Dan Doctoroff – Former CEO, Sidewalk Labs
  46. Parag Agrawal – Former CEO, Twitter
  47. Virginia Rometty – Former Chair & CEO, IBM
  48. Bill Gates – Co-founder, Microsoft; smart city investor
  49. Meg Whitman – Former CEO, HP & eBay
  50. Urs Hölzle – SVP Technical Infrastructure, Google

Consulting Experts Guiding the Cities of Tomorrow

Various Top 50 smart city thought leaders chart a future where technology and humanity converge to create vibrant, resilient, and connected cities for generations to come.