RETHINKING URBAN INNOVATION: RESILIENT and DYNAMIC CITIES OF THE FUTURE

Investment is surging into our cities along a new set of 3’D’s:
Dig: Energy infrastructure. Investment in energy infrastructure currently stands at $2.4tn annually.
‍Digital: Smart cities. The smart cities technology market is valued at $1tn per year.
‍Design: Architecture and engineering. The architecture and engineering services market is reaching $400bn annually.

Of this $3.4tn, only $830bn of this targets retrofits, electric vehicles, and flexible energy grids. Sustaining cities’ prosperity will require an estimated $4.3tn of investment annually between now and 2030. This significant implementation gap demands rapid, innovative solutions.

Innovation funds bridge this gap. The European Union alone contributes €4bn annually to buildings, transport, and energy grids within its cities. I designed the Urban Agenda for the European Union's building decarbonisation partnership to exponentially scale investment through innovative funding mechanisms and policies, where €1 spent supports €100 in investment. As an independent expert, I've recommended €200m of EU spending in urban energy and greening technologies to make this ambition a reality.

‍Get in touch if you represent a city, real estate fund, energy network, financial institution, university, or startup eager to scale urban technologies with EU funding or EIB assistance.

The pace of change has never been faster. Now more than ever, human connection is a powerful force multiplier for economic growth. We are greater together than the sum of our parts. However, cities face new pressures. Air pollution from congested streets undermines public health and consumer confidence. Energy systems, once reliable, have come under supply shocks, while urban design often fails to promote environmental sustainability, economic inclusion and social cohesion. Do we continue to frame resilience within the same old structures in a bid to ensure survival in the face of natural and human-made disasters? Or should we aim higher and strive for something greater?
Stephen rethinks the role urban innovation can play, from facilitating mere existence to driving vibrant living in cities. Clean energy is the connective tissue in this process. It mobilises participation and action by improving health and wellbeing, reducing living costs, building community and enhancing property value. This is the resilient sweet spot for our cities of the future, where technology, ecology, and lifestyle converge.

“Cities are where the fight against climate change will be won or lost”

– Antonio Guterres

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URBAN INNOVATION: REIMAGINED

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RESILIENT
SWEET SPOT

TECHNOLOGY

LIFESTYLE

ECOLOGY

Resilient places are where
innovation meets the needs of
people and nature

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SERVING THE ENERGY, SMART CITIES, and AEC MARKETS

Decentralising energy is rapidly transforming the $2.4tn market, fostering participation and action, enhancing health and well-being, reducing living costs, and boosting property values. It represents the convergence of technology, ecology, and lifestyle in creating resilient future cities. The IEA reported in 2023 that smart grid investment will double from $300bn to $600bn annually by 2030. Following my Clean Energy Cities report, which benchmarked 14 global cities' capacity for flexible energy system investment, I served as an independent reviewer of the IEA analysis. Subsequently, I designed an introductory energy transition course for Apolitical’s Government Energy and Climate Campus, reaching 5,000 North American government officials.

‍Reach out if your city, real estate fund, multilateral development bank, or energy network requires a new strategy or leadership training to navigate the significant opportunities and risks of a digitalised, decentralised energy transition.

The architecture, engineering, and construction services market that designs our cities accounts for $400bn annually, with the proptech market already representing $40bn of this. I co-founded a venture capital-backed proptech startup and mentored early-stage founders in the Zinc and European Institute of Innovation and Technology programs. Furthermore, I established and managed London’s first public sector-funded startup accelerator, led workshops for 40 city mayors and startups at ChangeNOW, and advised ClimateKIC on its €1m annual investment in energy, transport, and proptech startups.

Contact me if you are a venture capital fund seeking leadership or go-to-market support for your portfolio, an investor requiring due diligence on an early-stage fund or startup, or a city needing a strategy or workshop to identify startups addressing your urban challenges.

The smart city technology market, digitalising urban services and data, stands at $1tn. I've been directly involved in shaping urban digital strategies, having drafted London's smart city plan for two mayors and built the case for £42bn in aggregated public sector procurement of services, data stores, and skill development, which now forms the basis of the London Office of Technology and Innovation. Beyond London, I've also developed C40 Cities’ European region business plan and the GSMA’s strategy for development assistance to Global South cities leveraging big data.

‍Connect with me if you are a city, international organisation, multilateral development bank, financial institution, or technology business seeking to design a smart cities strategy, workshop, or implementation programme.

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Steve brings two decades of experience in urban innovation, working at the intersection of the public, private, and academic sectors.

He has advised the public sector on how to invest in urban innovation across the private and academic sectors. He currently advises the European Commission on the decarbonisation of buildings, having designed a new thematic partnership across all sectors that started in 2025. An independent assessor of the Commission’s innovative action grants, he has recommended over €200 million in investments into urban energy transition and greening initiatives. At the Greater London Authority, he drafted the Mayor’s ‘Smarter London Together Roadmap’, the strategy for the digital transformation of public services and the development of the London Datastore.

Steve specialises in working with diverse teams and multiple stakeholders to conceptualise and implement new urban innovation projects. He founded the Clean Energy Cities programme at the Centre for Net Zero, part of Octopus Energy, in collaboration with C40 Cities and the World Resources Institute. As part of the founding team of the Connected Places Catapult, he helped establish the UK’s innovation accelerator for urbanism, transport, and infrastructure for the fourth industrial revolution. He also developed the business case for the London Offi ce of Technology and Innovation, enabling the Mayor of London and the city’s 33 boroughs to collaboratively test and procure digital public services.

He passionately advocates for cities as vibrant communities with advanced technology and a high quality of life. They are places that foster human connection and savvy, inspire curiosity and creativity, and broaden everyone’s perspectives and experiences.

testimonials

“Apolitical successfully collaborated with Dr Stephen Lorimer to develop an online course ‘Introduction to the Energy Transition for Policymakers’ as part of our Government Climate Campus. Stephen’s expertise was evident as he led the design phase, providing both a clear learning journey for public servants and theory and global case studies that enabled learners to take practical next steps in their work.”
– Nigel Smith, Strategist, Government Climate Campus.

“I worked with Stephen at the ChangeNOW International Summit in Paris in 2023. Stephen led a workshop with more than 30 elected officials from international cities on different complex themes such as decarbonisation, but also waste management, water and infrastructure, connecting concrete solutions to the needs and interests of each city. His expertise, dynamism and ability to address different audiences are essential qualities in this period of ecological transition.”
– Miriana Mengin, Head of Partnerships, Cities Program

services

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ADVISORY

Advice for asset management and startup ecosystems, from property investment strategies to building decarbonisation programmes and renewable energy contracts.

RESEARCH
collaborations

Interdisciplinary research collaborations across the academic, private and public sectors, covering the energy transition, economic development and investment.

BUSINESS
transformation

Startup fundraising, grant writing, corporate leadership training, and strategy workshops.

SPEAKING
engagements

Cities of the future: a new rhythm of life; The urban energy transition: where cars power buildings; Proptech innovation: reshaping property; Fast pivots: wild calls during Covid

research

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Urban Agenda for the European Union: Building Decarbonisation Thematic Partnership: Integrated Renovation Programmes and Local Heating and Cooling Plans

https://www.urbanagenda.urban-initiative.eu/partnerships/building-decarbonisation