In China, the 15 years plan points out that developing smart eco-cities strategic plan – maximizing the conservation of energy, water, land and materials, reducing pollution, optimizing the transportation, protecting the environment, and improving building comfort, health and safety – is a critical stage for accelerating industrialization, urbanization and rural development providing great opportunities. It is estimated that between 2010 and 2025, around 250 million citizens will move from rural areas into cities. By 2030, 1 billion people out of 1.4 billion in China will live in cities, from 3 to 13 megalopolises built. The "China Smart Cities" has 12 Megacity subgroups including Chengdu, Fuzhou, Shanghai, Kunming, Qingdao, Chongqing, Tianjin, Hangzhou, Nanjing, Ningbo, Wuhan, Wuxi, Shenzhen.

The commitment to smart cities and smart towns was firmly established under the Ministry of Housing and Urban-Rural Development nu the China Ministry Science & Technology and the National Science Foundation of China (NSFC), project numbers 71461-137-115 and 71461-137-020. Party by the Chinese government in its 12th Five-Year Plan issued in 2011. In the years since, Shanghai, Beijing, Guangzhou, Xi'an, Yinchuan and Hangzhou have become notable examples of older urban areas that have received smart city makeovers. Of the 1,000 smart city projects that are currently being built worldwide, China is home to half of them. China is fully engaged in implementing smart city initiatives as a way to increase the efficiency and effectiveness of its rapidly growing cities, providing citizens with improvements in transportation, communication, environmental management and crime prevention.