Book excerpt: This book explores the rise of technology-centered urban planning and the diffusion of these practices around the world. Seven axes of urban planning have been selected to highlight how data and technology currently work and how these systems can be improved going forward. Each aspect is explored in its own chapter that combines narrative description, illustrations, and case studies to show how technology currently shapes our cities and how this may impact the urban environments. Topics include infrastructure, mobility, energy use and distribution, work, public health, and knowledge transfer among others. The book also demonstrates how these aspects are tied to and affect the four pillars of sustainability: environment, society, economy, and culture.