G. Caldarelli

E. Arcaute

M. Barthelemy

M. Batty

C. Gershenson

D. Helbing

S. Mancuso

Y. Moreno

J. J. Ramasco

C. Rozenblat

A. Sánchez

J. L. Fernández-Villacañas

A complexity-science approach to digital twins of cities views them as self-organising phenomena, instead of machines or logistic systems.


We argue that theories and methods drawn from complexity science are urgently needed to guide the development and use of digital twins for cities. The theoretical framework from complexity science takes into account both the short-term and the long-term dynamics of cities and their interactions. This is the foundation for a new approach that treats cities not as large machines or logistic systems but as mutually interwoven self-organizing phenomena, which evolve, to an extent, like living systems.

The role of complexity for digital twins of cities

Complex digital cities