Bob Bennett – Programming a Smarter City

Bob Bennett became the Chief Innovation Officer for the City of Kansas City, Missouri, in January 2016 after a 25-year career in the US Army. He leads the Smart City initiatives, a suite of projects including: data analysis, Public Wi-Fi, digital kiosk installation, and smart lighting programs in the city’s downtown core. Kansas City’s initiatives earned an Edison Award (Gold) for “Collective Disruption” and civic innovation in 2017, and Bob was named one of GovTech’s 25 Dreamers, Doers and Drivers in 2018. He is currently working on plans to extend Smart City infrastructure throughout the 318 miles of KCMO with an emphasis on Digital Inclusion and partnering with Avis on deployment of the first fully Connected Vehicle Fleet in a municipality.