What are the smartest cities in the world? It can be a murky thing to define, but Boyd Cohen at Fast Company's Co.Exist has compiled a list based on extensive research on smart city initiatives around the globe.

Cohen acknowledges that the term can be ambiguous, but defines smart cities as ones that use information and communication technologies (ICT) to be more intelligent and efficient in the use of resources, resulting in cost and energy savings, improved service delivery and quality of life, and reduced environmental footprint - all supporting innovation and the low-carbon economy.

According to the survey, the cities on this list will spend roughly $40 billion on smart-cities technologies by 2016. They are also expected to become real-estate gold because they are attractive to the educated work force.

So what's the smartest city of them all? Click start to view the top 10 smartest cities on the planet.

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