Hangzhou is honored with the Sustainable Cities and Communities Award at the 3rd BRICS Urban Future Forum "Cloud City". [Photo/hangzhou.com.cn]

Hangzhou has been honored with the Sustainable Cities and Communities Award at the 3rd BRICS Urban Future Forum "Cloud City", which recently concluded in Moscow.

The city was recognized for its City Brain 3.0 intelligent urban management system and leadership in building a global digital economy hub.

The award honors outstanding contributions toward the UN Sustainable Development Goals in areas such as smart cities, climate initiatives, AI, and digital healthcare. Hangzhou's award was presented by Rae-kwon Chung, advisor to the UN Secretary-General on Climate Change and winner of the 2007 Nobel Peace Prize.

This year's forum, themed around robotics and artificial intelligence, brought together 29 delegations from 21 countries, including China's largest contingent of over 50 senior officials and experts representing major cities and provinces.

Hangzhou's City Brain urban management system stood out with its continuous evolution — from version 1.0, focused on digital governance, to 2.0, building large-scale urban management systems, and now 3.0, emphasizing intelligent central operations, digital twins, and data-driven governance.

Through AI assistants on police services, public medical insurance, and government affairs, Hangzhou has integrated smart governance, public services, and healthcare into citizens' daily lives.

These intelligent tools showcase how Hangzhou's model of digital-to-intelligent-to-smart transformation is shaping the future of urban innovation — offering a world-class example of sustainable and human-centered city development.