The Big Data for Smart Society Institute /Gate at the University of Sofia received the SEOUL SMART CITY PRIZE 2025 Award in the Tech -Innovacity – Institute, announced the Institute today.

The award, given by the World Sustainable Sustainable Cities Organization (WEGO) and the Metropolitan Government of Seoul, ranks Bulgaria among world leaders in smart town and technological innovation. Gate was distinguished for his work “Sofia’s digital twin”the first digital model of Bulgarian city, designed to support a more sustainable, open and smart urban development.

More than 220 applications from around the world have been filed for the competition, with Gate becoming the first Bulgarian institution to win this award.

“This recognition is the result of a vision, science and hard work of the entire Gate team and our partners”wrote the director of Gate, Professor Silvia Ilievain posting on social media. “The real joy will come when we return to Sofia and share it with all those who have contributed to this success. The award is also for Sofia, for its future as a city driven by technology, data and all its citizens. “he added.

The Seoul Smart City Award was established to promote an innovative and including a smart city with a strong human focus in the era of the 4th Industrial Revolution, fueled by information technologies and artificial intelligence. His mission supports the two categories of the award – Tech -Innovacity and Human -Centricity – reflecting Wego’s and Seoul vision that a smart city is more than simple technology. It combines the integration of innovative policies and technologies into all aspects of urban life with digital integration and support of vulnerable groups.

The Tech-Innovacity Institute, along with Tech-Innovacity Corporation, highlights the collective efforts needed to build smarter, more sustainable cities, as well as the importance of public and private partnerships uniting governments, companies and communities to provide innovative solutions.

The Seoul 2025 Smart City Award ceremony took place on September 30 at the Seoul CoEx Conference Center during the Smart Life Week (SLW) 2025 – a global platform for the exchange of knowledge, policies and innovations in the development of smart cities.