City News
Date : 2026-10-08 Source : New Taipei City Government
New Taipei City Wins WSCE 2026 Award for the Second Time Taiwan’s First AI Governance Guidelines and AIEC Earn “Outstanding City – Overseas Cities” Award
New Taipei City Government has once again achieved international recognition for its smart governance initiatives. Its pioneering project, “Leading the New Era of Digital Government: New Taipei City’s AI Governance Guidelines and Innovation Validation Framework,” has stood out among leading cities from around the world to win the “Outstanding City – Overseas Cities” Award at the WSCE 2026 Awards in South Korea. This international recognition marks New Taipei City’s second WSCE Awards win. Following its 2024 victory in the “Overseas Cities” category for the “New Solution to Net Zero Carbon Reduction – NewTaiPAY (New Taipei Mobile Payment App),” the latest award establishes New Taipei City as a two-time WSCE Awards winner. On September 10, Director of the Information Management Center of New Taipei City Government, Chen Fu-Tien, represented the City Government at the award ceremony held at the BEXCO Exhibition and Convention Center in Busan, South Korea. The award provided an opportunity to showcase New Taipei City’s leading AI governance capabilities and forward-looking approach to AI development on the international stage.
The World Smart City Expo (WSCE) in South Korea is one of Asia’s largest and most influential smart city events. The theme of WSCE 2026, “Beyond Smart City, Into AI City,” focuses on innovative solutions addressing digital transformation, the climate crisis, and AI technologies, bringing together government leaders, cybersecurity professionals, and technology experts from around the world. This year, WSCE presented awards across eight categories, with a total of 33 awards. Competition for the “Outstanding City – Overseas Cities” category was particularly intense, with only three awards available. An expert judging panel evaluated submissions based on five key criteria: project feasibility, operational innovation, governance excellence, effectiveness and competitiveness in addressing urban challenges, and sustainability. New Taipei City stood out among numerous international cities with its comprehensive AI governance framework, once again demonstrating the international recognition of its smart city development.
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At the award ceremony, Director Chen Fu-Tien noted that as Taiwan’s most populous special municipality and the city government with the largest number of government agencies, New Taipei City faces a high level of governance complexity when introducing AI to transform operations and administrative processes. As generative AI becomes increasingly widespread, government agencies are rapidly adopting AI applications to pursue digital transformation and improve administrative efficiency. However, without a unified risk management framework, the pursuit of AI innovation could create new risks, including personal data breaches, algorithmic bias, and system failures. As a leader in AI governance in Taiwan, New Taipei City invited experts from the central government, including the Ministry of Digital Affairs, as well as leading experts from industry, government, and academia to jointly review the “New Taipei City AI Governance Guidelines” during its development. The guidelines also reference the EU Artificial Intelligence Act (EU AI Act) and establish a rigorous four-level risk assessment mechanism. The framework covers all 489 government agencies and approximately 2,000 information systems across the City Government. In addition, high-risk AI systems are required to undergo comprehensive verification at the City Government’s AI Evaluation Center (AIEC) before deployment. Systems that fail the required testing are not permitted to be launched for public services, helping prevent AI-related security risks at the source. Director Chen emphasized that technology should ultimately serve citizens, while safety must never be compromised. The development and adoption of AI in municipal governance can only progress sustainably when it is built on a foundation of citizen trust.
In recent years, New Taipei City Government has received numerous international awards for its smart city initiatives, and 2026 has been another year of strong international recognition. In August, the “Public Venue Rental System” received a Silver Award at the Asia-Pacific Sustainability Action Awards. In September, the project “Leading the New Era of Digital Government: New Taipei City’s AI Governance Guidelines and Innovation Validation Framework” received the WITSA Global AI Award for Public Policy. In the same month, New Taipei City’s “New Taipei City’s AI Governance Guidelines and Innovation Validation Framework” once again gained international recognition by winning the Outstanding City – Overseas Cities Award at the WSCE 2026 Awards. These achievements demonstrate New Taipei City’s commitment to embedding the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs 9, 11, and 16) into its urban governance. Looking ahead, New Taipei City Government will continue to place citizens’ needs at the center of its digital transformation and AI governance efforts. The City will also further share its AI trust ecosystem and standardized testing modules with other cities and counties in Taiwan and international cities, working with global partners to build a smarter, safer, more inclusive, and sustainable technological metropolis.
The World Smart City Expo (WSCE) in South Korea is one of Asia’s largest and most influential smart city events. The theme of WSCE 2026, “Beyond Smart City, Into AI City,” focuses on innovative solutions addressing digital transformation, the climate crisis, and AI technologies, bringing together government leaders, cybersecurity professionals, and technology experts from around the world. This year, WSCE presented awards across eight categories, with a total of 33 awards. Competition for the “Outstanding City – Overseas Cities” category was particularly intense, with only three awards available. An expert judging panel evaluated submissions based on five key criteria: project feasibility, operational innovation, governance excellence, effectiveness and competitiveness in addressing urban challenges, and sustainability. New Taipei City stood out among numerous international cities with its comprehensive AI governance framework, once again demonstrating the international recognition of its smart city development.
At the award ceremony, Director Chen Fu-Tien noted that as Taiwan’s most populous special municipality and the city government with the largest number of government agencies, New Taipei City faces a high level of governance complexity when introducing AI to transform operations and administrative processes. As generative AI becomes increasingly widespread, government agencies are rapidly adopting AI applications to pursue digital transformation and improve administrative efficiency. However, without a unified risk management framework, the pursuit of AI innovation could create new risks, including personal data breaches, algorithmic bias, and system failures. As a leader in AI governance in Taiwan, New Taipei City invited experts from the central government, including the Ministry of Digital Affairs, as well as leading experts from industry, government, and academia to jointly review the “New Taipei City AI Governance Guidelines” during its development. The guidelines also reference the EU Artificial Intelligence Act (EU AI Act) and establish a rigorous four-level risk assessment mechanism. The framework covers all 489 government agencies and approximately 2,000 information systems across the City Government. In addition, high-risk AI systems are required to undergo comprehensive verification at the City Government’s AI Evaluation Center (AIEC) before deployment. Systems that fail the required testing are not permitted to be launched for public services, helping prevent AI-related security risks at the source. Director Chen emphasized that technology should ultimately serve citizens, while safety must never be compromised. The development and adoption of AI in municipal governance can only progress sustainably when it is built on a foundation of citizen trust.
In recent years, New Taipei City Government has received numerous international awards for its smart city initiatives, and 2026 has been another year of strong international recognition. In August, the “Public Venue Rental System” received a Silver Award at the Asia-Pacific Sustainability Action Awards. In September, the project “Leading the New Era of Digital Government: New Taipei City’s AI Governance Guidelines and Innovation Validation Framework” received the WITSA Global AI Award for Public Policy. In the same month, New Taipei City’s “New Taipei City’s AI Governance Guidelines and Innovation Validation Framework” once again gained international recognition by winning the Outstanding City – Overseas Cities Award at the WSCE 2026 Awards. These achievements demonstrate New Taipei City’s commitment to embedding the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs 9, 11, and 16) into its urban governance. Looking ahead, New Taipei City Government will continue to place citizens’ needs at the center of its digital transformation and AI governance efforts. The City will also further share its AI trust ecosystem and standardized testing modules with other cities and counties in Taiwan and international cities, working with global partners to build a smarter, safer, more inclusive, and sustainable technological metropolis.
