22 October: Shenzhen: The Worlds Most Futuristic City

It’s widely considered to be one of world’s most advanced and futuristic cities. In Shenzhen, people can pay for things with the palms of their hands. Take-aways are delivered by drones, driverless taxis shuttle travellers to their destinations and hotels are cleaned by ’service robots’.

Here, a network of extensive surveillance cameras not only records people’s movements, they are capable of analysing behaviours and immediately signalling anything suspicious to the police. According to official figures, crimes in public spaces fell 80% in the first 15 years following the cameras installations. But this omnipresent technology has also enabled the Chinese authorities to consolidate their power, making public dissent virtually impossible.