Anthony Townsend

Dr. Anthony Townsend is an internationally-recognized expert on the future of cities and urban technology. As Senior Research Associate at Cornell Tech's Urban Tech Hub, he leads the development of multi-disciplinary research collaborations partnering university researchers with stakeholders in industry, government, and civil society. Anthony is the author of two books, Ghost Road: Beyond the Driverless Car (2020) and Smart Cities: Big Data, Civic Hackers and the Quest for A New Utopia (2013), both published by W.W. Norton & Co. Major projects Anthony leads include:

• Cornell Initiative on Aging and Adaptation to Extreme Heat— integrative research, across clinical medicine, public health and the built environment sectors, using urban tech and digital tools as levers, on interventions to reduce risk and harms related to extreme heat in cities.
• RethinkAI—a collaboration with New America Foundation, The Burnes Center for Social Change at Northeastern University, and Emerson College Engagement Lab to develop ambitious new AI pilots with city and community leaders; and then translates learnings from those efforts into concrete guidance and policy recommendations.
• Urban Tech Summit: Intelligence for Climate Adaptation—a two-day leadership retreat at Cornell Tech's Roosevelt Island campus to explore how AI and machine learning (ML) can address critical challenges like extreme heat, flooding, renewable energy, building systems, and urban logistics.
• Local Infrastructure Hub: Technology and Innovation Center Series—a monthly webinar series exploring opportunities for technology and innovation in federal infrastructure programs, delivered in partnership with U.S. Digital Response and Bloomberg Philanthropies.
• The Atlas of Urban Tech—a collection of case studies created by Cornell Tech students analyzing how city governments and city makers are using digital technology to make cities stronger, fairer, and more resilient.