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Omni | X Founder Cesar R. Hernandez Smart cities worldwide face a basic challenge because they don't work well when disasters strike, despite their advanced technology. A detailed Deloitte study shows that 66% of 167 cities are investing heavily in AI and 80% will do so over the next three years, yet many can’t handle disruptions. This is where the “Omni Cities” concept, resilient, equitable and adaptable urban ecosystems with integrated AI nervous systems, are reshaping the future of our civic tech agency. The Breakdown You Need To Know: Omni | X, a first of its kind civic operating system could be the foundation for “Omni Cities” to completely help governments use AI’s full potential to boost resilience and responsiveness in daily operations and crises. This integrated approach needs systems that work together and clear governance frameworks that identify trust as the key driver for system compatibility. Governments worldwide must build resilient infrastructure, secure data storage, and skilled teams working within accountable governance structures. These elements are the foundations of digital sovereignty. Cesar R. Hernandez, Omni | X Founder, is an Equity Fellow in the Center for Public Leadership at Harvard Kennedy School. His company is creating a unified AI architecture that connects drones, robots, and critical systems to bridge innovation and accountability for governments. Omni | X is based at the Harvard Innovation Lab and is incubating at the MIT Media Lab’s AI Venture Studio, “By embedding human oversight and public accountability into every decision cycle, we ensure that AI strengthens democratic governance while improving the safety and performance of cities,” said Hernandez to CultureBanx. Where Smart Cities Failed: Smart cities put technology ahead of what people need. This tech-first approach created isolated systems that worked alone instead of forming a unified response network. So, these cities couldn’t adapt well enough to keep running during crises. MORE FOR YOU System fragmentation leads to multiple critical failures during emergencies. Cities show this through disconnected emergency response systems, uncoordinated traffic management, and isolated environmental monitoring platforms. This slows down help delivery and creates duplicate efforts. “The Achilles’ heel of public safety technology is its lack of interoperability,” said Jose Rolon, former FDNY and U.S. Army Civil Affairs specialist. Cities Leveraging Agentic AI: Agentic AI marks a major step forward from regular smart systems. They can think, anticipate and act in ways smart infrastructures never could, while setting and prioritizing urban goals on their own. Shared coordination is possible with agentic AI between previously disconnected systems. North American cities lead in AI adoption at 83%, followed by small cities at 74%. This suggests a growing understanding that agentic systems provide the coordination capabilities needed for true urban resilience. Interoperable AI For Urban Resilience: Interoperability enables unified civic action and can stand as the life-blood of AI that works in urban governance. The benefits in urban settings include things like faster cross-agency collaboration during emergencies. Additionally, interoperable AI can provide unified response protocols across departments, along with Immediate service performance optimization. Cities can now overcome these types of vertical silos that usually block communication between systems when standardization is missing. The concept extends beyond simple data exchange to governance frameworks and ethical standards. “We are entering an era where intelligence is abundant but conscience is scarce. The future of civilization will depend on how well we align the two,” Hernandez said. Ethical Protocols: Inclusivity must be prioritized with AI, as these systems tend to fail vulnerable populations when trained on biased data. A few of the ethical protocols that could be needed for agentic systems in which the industry has leaned into include; bias reduction through regular audits and diverse datasets, privacy protection needing clear, informed consent, and transparency that makes AI decisions understandable and justifiable by humans. Local leaders are tackling these issues by requiring open protocols and public accountability frameworks. Their work shows a growing understanding that AI governance needs both technical standards and strong oversight. For example, Los Angeles shows practical solutions through its platform that shares over 500 datasets across 20 city departments, according to the OECD, which enables agencies to work together for better emergency responses Situational Awareness: Cities worldwide show that fragmented systems fail their citizens at crucial moments. The path to intelligent governance requires a new understanding of how AI systems work within civic structures. Moving from disconnected smart cities to unified "Omni Cities" needs both innovation and careful governance frameworks that prioritize working together, accountability, and fair access. Editorial StandardsReprints & Permissions
