In January 2026,  the TreeCity project (2026–2027) officially launched. Led by the FinEst Centre for Smart Cities (TalTech) and bringing together academic and public partners from Estonia, Finland, and Belgium, the project aims to model and simulate urban tree root systems using AI and integrate them into city digital twins. FARI – AI for the Common Good Institute (VUB & ULB) is part of the consortium as a scientific and technical partner. 

About TreeCity

TreeCity is a one year smart city pilot project running from January 2026 to December 2027, aiming to model, simulate, and integrate urban tree root systems into city digital twins. 

– Algorithmic and AI-driven 3D models of tree root systems; Predictive root growth simulations based on species, soil, water, and underground infrastructure 

– Interoperable outputs (CityGML / CityJSON / GIS / BIM formats) 

– A web-based visualization and simulation platform integrated with city data 

– An AR mobile application for getting new data about Tree’s based on photography. 

The project aims to make underground tree roots visible, predictable, and actionable for urban planning, infrastructure works, climate resilience strategies, tree protection, and biodiversity. It tries to address conflicts between trees and underground utilities to support better decision-making in dense urban environments. 

Led by the FinEst Centre for Smart Cities at TalTech (Tallinn University of Technology) in Estonia, the project brings together a consortium of academic and public partners, including the City of Tallinn (Estonia), the City of Helsinki (Finland), and the Brussels-Capital Region via Paradigm (Belgium). The consortium also includes FARI – AI for the Common Good Institute (Brussels, Belgium) and the Université de Liège in Belgium, whichcontribute research and technical expertise to the project. 

FARI’s Involvement

FARI is involved as a technical and scientific partner, contributing to web and mobile integration, AI development, and interoperability efforts. While FARI is not part of the dedicated interoperability team, it activelysupports and contributes to this work. In addition, FARI acts as a bridge between research, public authorities, and operational deployments, helping translate scientific knowledge into practical, real-world applications. 

Contacts 

– Henna Fabritius Senior Researcher – FinEst Centre for Smart Cities / TalTech: henna.fabritius@taltech.ee 

– Lita Akmentina: Cities Expert & Researcher – FinEst Centre for Smart Cities / TalTech lita.akmentina@taltech.ee 

– Lauri Lemmenlehti: Commercialisation Team Lead & Natural Environment Virtualization Expert – City of Helsinki: lauri.lemmenlehti@hel.fi 

– Kristiina Kupper: Empirical data collection from the pilot areas Team Lead – FinEst Centre for Smart Cities / TalTech: Kristiina.Kupper@taltech.ee 

– Roland Billen: Data types, standardisation and interoperability Team Lead – Université de Liège: rbillen@uliege.be 

– Martin Canter: Modelling and software development Team Lead – FARI -AI for the Common Good: martin.canter@fari.brussels 

This project is part of the Smart City Challenge, an initiative led by TalTech aimed at co-creating innovative solutions in collaboration with academic and industrial partners. The implementation of pilot projects is funded by the European Regional Development Fund and the Estonian Ministry of Education and Research through the project “FinEst Targa Linna tippkeskuse piloodiprogramm”