Moscow, Keynote & Panel: Future Cities and AI Connectivity

At the BRICS Future Forum in Moscow, Dr Kate Barker served as a headline keynote speaker and returning panellist across the 2024 and 2025 editions of the event, joining ministers, investors, and technology innovators from across the BRICS+ economies.

Her address, “Future Cities and AI Connectivity,” explored how artificial intelligence and data infrastructure are redefining the design, governance, and human experience of emerging cities. Dr Barker examined how AI connectivity, urban foresight, and ethical governance can transform cities into intelligent, adaptive ecosystems that enhance sustainability, mobility, and human wellbeing.

Her sessions focused on aligning AI-enabled infrastructure with human systems design, drawing from her experience advising sovereign projects and giga-scale developments on integrating trust, ethics, and technology in urban planning.

Dr Barker’s contribution reframed the global dialogue on smart cities, arguing that the cities of the future will not simply be connected by data, but by shared intelligence, human purpose, and trust-by-design architecture.

The 2025 forum drew more than 100,000 delegates from 22 countries, with her session recognised among the event’s most influential conversations on AI, sustainability, and governance innovation.