Seoul calls for outstanding smart-city innovation projects from around the world until May 30thA total of 21 prizes in three categories: Projects (Human-Centered & Technological Innovation Projects), Leadership, and Special Mention.Awards ceremony to be held in conjunction with Smart Life Week (SLW) 2025 from September 30 to October 1, with international mayors and experts in attendanceWinners will gain opportunities for international promotion, including exhibitions and capacity-building programs

SEOUL, South Korea, March 28, 2025 /PRNewswire/ — The Seoul Metropolitan Government (SMG) has announced that applications for the 3rd Seoul Smart City Prize are open until May 30. The competition is open to city governments, institutions, corporations, and individuals worldwide to recognize outstanding smart city innovation policies.

Now in its third year, the Seoul Smart City Prize was established in 2023 by the Seoul Metropolitan Government in collaboration with the World Smart Sustainable Cities Organization (WeGO). Leveraging Seoul’s world-class digital government capabilities, the award aims to present a vision for the future of smart cities and promote the global adoption of smart-city ideas.

In the first competition in 2023, 240 entries were submitted from 93 cities across 47 countries, including Los Angeles (USA), Madrid (Spain), and São Paulo (Brazil). Last year, a total of 216 projects incorporating various innovative technologies such as Artificial Intelligence (AI), the Internet of Things (IoT), and Digital Twins were submitted by 123 cities from 58 countries, including London (UK), Helsinki (Finland), and Abu Dhabi (UAE).

Last year’s winners: the gold prize was awarded to two projects — ‘BIAG’, a health governance system from Baguio, Philippines, and ‘Improving the School System through Digital Transformation’ from Reykjavik, Iceland.

This year’s competition features a total of 21 awards across three main categories: Projects, Leadership, and Special Mention. Specifically, there are 16 awards in the Project category (8 for human-centered projects and 8 for technological innovation projects), 2 awards in the Leadership category, and 3 awards in the Special Mention category.

PRIZE CATEGORY

Human-Centered: Projects that are designed to prioritize digital inclusion in smart city development, thereby overcoming or mitigating the digital divide, and that aim to serve specific target groups among the citizen population, such as the elderly, youth, and the disabled.Tech-Innovation: Projects that focus on integration of innovative policies and technologies in all sectors of society and domains ranging from mobility, safety, welfare, environment, energy, culture and governance.Leadership: Individuals that have demonstrated leadership in developing or promoting the innovative use of technology and data to impact the lives of global citizens.Special Mention: Projects selected together with a partner organization or corporation of WeGO on the basis of the project’s alignment with the values and missions of the partner organization or corporation.

Applications must be submitted by May 30, 2025, through the official Seoul Smart City Prize website (https://seoulsmartcityprize.com).

More information on the application process, evaluation criteria, and other relevant details is available in the Seoul Smart City Prize 2025 Guidelines on the website.

The awards ceremony will take place on September 30 at COEX, in conjunction with Smart Life Week (SLW) 2025. Approximately 300 participants, including mayors from around the world, experts, and scholars, are expected to attend the ceremony, making it a key platform for sharing excellent smart-city projects and facilitating policy exchange.

Winning cities will receive various benefits and support to enhance their global reputation and promote their best practices worldwide. The benefits include a dedicated exhibition booth at the SLW International City Pavilion and access to a smart city capacity-building program.

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SOURCE Seoul Metropolitan Government

– Top 99th percentile
– Named ‘Industry Mover’
– Among ‘Top 5% S&P Global CSA Score’

MELBOURNE, Australia, March 28, 2025 /PRNewswire/ — Firstsource Solutions Limited (NSE: FSL) (BSE: 532809), an RP-Sanjiv Goenka Group company, today announced its inclusion in the prestigious S&P Global Sustainability Yearbook for the second consecutive year—this time with an even greater impact, earning recognition as an ‘Industry Mover’ and achieving a ‘Top 5% S&P Global CSA Score’ for FY2025. Further solidifying its ESG leadership, Firstsource achieved an S&P Global Sustainable1 ESG Score and CSA Score of 81—a significant 19-point increase from 2023—featuring in the top 99th percentile, and a top performer in the ‘Professional Services’ category.

Companies that demonstrate an improvement of at least five percent in their S&P Global Corporate Sustainability Assessment (CSA) Score – representing the strongest performance enhancement within their industry – are considered ‘Industry Movers’. In addition, the ‘Top 5% S&P Global CSA Score’ recognition is awarded to companies whose scores rank within 1% to 5% of the industry’s top-performing organization.

Dr. Sanjiv Goenka, Chairman of RPSG Group and Firstsource, shared, “Being recognized in the top 99th percentile, as an ‘Industry Mover’ and ranking in the ‘Top 5% S&P Global CSA Score’, among those featured in the S&P Global Sustainability Yearbook is a proud moment for Firstsource. This achievement reaffirms our commitment to embedding sustainability at the core of our business strategy – where responsible growth, innovation, and long-term value creation go hand-in-hand.  As we continue to advance our ESG initiatives, from climate action to stronger governance and social impact, we remain focused on driving meaningful change for our clients, employees, communities, and the environment.”

At Firstsource, sustainability is embedded into their operations through FirstConscious—their holistic ESG framework that drives responsible growth and long-term impact. Over the past year, Firstsource has accelerated its ESG journey by achieving key milestones, including:

Strengthened GHG Inventory & Assurance – Enhancing transparency and accountability in emissions reportingComprehensive Climate Risk Assessment – Evaluated climate risks across geographies to build resilienceCommitted to SBTi and achieving NetZero emissions by 2050, with validation process currently underway.Adopted the Taskforce on Climate related Financial Disclosures (TCFD) framework to ensure transparency in climate-related risks and opportunities.Strengthened ESG Policies & Processes – Embedding sustainability deeper into governance and operationsAligning towards UN Global Compact’s Ten Principles on human rights, labor, environment, and anti-corruption

The S&P Global Sustainability Yearbook identifies industry leaders demonstrating outstanding corporate sustainability performance. Companies are rigorously evaluated through S&P Global’s Sustainable1 Corporate Sustainability Assessment (CSA), and only the top performers within each sector earn a place in the Yearbook. Out of over 7,690 companies across 62 industries that were assessed for this year’s Sustainability Yearbook, only 780 are Yearbook Members.

The S&P Global Sustainability Yearbook is a trusted benchmark for corporate sustainability, assessing companies across environmental, social, and governance dimensions. For more details on the S&P Global Sustainability Yearbook 2025, visit https://www.spglobal.com/esg/csa/yearbook/

About Firstsource

Firstsource Solutions Limited, an RP-Sanjiv Goenka Group company (NSE: FSL) (BSE: 532809) (Reuters: FISO.BO) (Bloomberg: FSOL:IN), is a global leader providing transformational solutions and services spanning the customer lifecycle across Healthcare, Banking and Financial Services, Communications, Media and Technology, Retail, and other diverse industries. With an established presence in the US, the UK, India, Mexico, Australia, South Africa, and the Philippines, we make it happen for our clients, solving their biggest challenges with hyper-focused, domain-centered teams and cutting-edge tech, data, and analytics. Our real-world practitioners work collaboratively to deliver future-focused outcomes. (www.firstsource.com)

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The Group introduced its software brand Pleos and outlined plans for its software-centric ‘Cloud Mobility’ ecosystem at Pleos 25 developer conferenceProprietary vehicle OS unveiled to boost SDV performance and scalability based on E&E architecturePleos Connect next-generation infotainment system to launch in Q2 2026; will be applied to more than 20 million vehicles by 2030Pleos Playground, an open development platform, established to facilitate vehicle control and app development process and diversify the in-vehicle app ecosystemThe Group’s Next Urban Mobility Alliance introduced as a public-private partnership to connect and optimize the transportation environment Plans to expand SDV ecosystem unveiled, strengthening collaborations with Google, Uber, Samsung, Naver, SOCAR and Unity

SEOUL, South Korea, March 28, 2025 /CNW/ — Hyundai Motor Group (the Group) today introduced its new mobility software brand ‘Pleos’ at its ‘Pleos 25’ developer conference in Seoul, also unveiling plans for collaboration with global partners to enhance in-vehicle app ecosystems.

The inaugural event marked a significant step toward the Group’s evolution into a mobility tech company by sharing the development status of software-defined vehicles (SDVs) and revealing plans for creating an in-vehicle app market and ecosystem based on its next-generation infotainment system.

“In the rapidly changing automotive industry, the Group has been dedicated to SDV development since 2023. Today, starting with Pleos 25, we are transforming into a company providing software-centered mobility experiences,” said Chang Song, President and Head of Hyundai Motor and Kia’s Advanced Vehicle Platform (AVP) Division.

“Our ultimate goal is to achieve Cloud Mobility, where all forms of mobility are connected through software on the cloud, and continuously evolve over time. Pleos serves to create a connected mobility experience expanding from a vehicle to fleets, hardware to software, and ultimately to the entire mobility infrastructure and cities.”

Pleos is a mobility software platform that supports all devices in motion to move autonomously and be managed smartly. It connects transportation and infrastructure, including vehicles, to help users, businesses and cities establish a freer, more efficient mobility environment.

Pleos is a compound word combining the Greek word ‘Pleo’, meaning ‘more’, and ‘OS’ for ‘Operating System’. It embodies the Group’s commitment to evolving technology, adding user-centric value to the movement of people and objects to achieve increased freedom to move.

To achieve a software-centered mobility environment, the Group is advancing towards SDVs through innovations in electrical and electronic (E&E) architecture, alongside the development of the Group’s own vehicle OS and Pleos Connect. These advancements enable vehicles to serve as efficient and flexible software platforms, strengthening connectivity between vehicles and infrastructure.

Through its software-defined everything (SDx) strategy, the Group plans to continuously connect all mobility solutions, services and devices, allowing everyone to universally enjoy the freedom to move.

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SOURCE Hyundai Motor Group