The idea of
simulating an entire city on the computer has been around since at least 1987, when Maxis Software was founded and began releasing their popular Sims series. IBM now takes the idea a step further, with CityOne — a software simulation that places the user in the role of city planner, dealing with real issues facing growing cities (banking, energy distribution, retail and water management, among other examples). Potential solutions offered include smart-grids, environmental policies, micro-lending, improved I.T., and mobile payments. IBM presumably factors in the equation themselves, as they’re invested in many of these solutions in the real world.
Washington D.C. based Pegasus Global Holdings approaches city simulation from another angle, investing $200 million in a project called “The Center” consisting of a 20 square mile ghost town built in New Mexico. 
The unpopulated city will serve as a test-bed for engineers and researchers. With a combination of old and new structures, testing is possible on everything ranging from home security products to solar panels to new wireless technologies, observing how they function in real-world settings. Pegasus CEO Bob Brumley says the project will initially employ about 350 people, but believes it could create as many as 3,500 jobs “outside the fence.” The Center will make money by charging its users operation and maintenance fees, selling energy it produces back to the grid, and by subleasing some of its state land for development of hotels, restaurants, and office buildings.
All of this makes me want to incept myself in the matrix on the thirteenth floor by running a copy of CityOne in a virtual machine running on my laptop while I’m hanging out in The Center.
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