Rotterdam is internationally among the frontrunners in creating the basic conditions for the Citiverse, with the world's first Chief Citiverse Officer, and was a finalist for the European Capital of Innovation Awards in 2026. The Municipality of Rotterdam starts from a continuously interacting social, physical, and digital reality. Rotterdam Citiverse is a citizen-centred, socio-physical-digital ecosystem built on trust, interoperability, and inclusion.
The Citiverse is the rapidly evolving, digitally, socially and physically interwoven environment in which cities and communities live, express themselves and function, where physical, digital and social realities flow seamlessly into each other.
Rotterdam is developing a vision and strategy for tomorrow's city: a city that does not merely react to digital change, but actively shapes it, on the basis of public values, citizen participation, and open digital infrastructure.
"Citi" — from citizen, not city. People first.
The Citiverse is developed along twelve thematic building blocks: the challenges Rotterdam faces, translated into opportunities for the digital city.
Labs are the Citiverse's experimentation environments: places where ideas are tested, knowledge is built, and prototypes are developed.
Every building block is examined from four angles that together provide an integrated view of the physical-social-digital city.
Rotterdam Citiverse in (inter)national press, podcasts and research platforms.
Events where Rotterdam Citiverse takes part or that it organises itself.
Rotterdam Citiverse is an ecosystem of partners: local, national and international.
Are you a business, knowledge institution, social organisation, or engaged Rotterdammer? Join the Citiverse: as a partner, researcher, or experiment participant.