When we talk about “smart cities,” the conversation often drifts toward shiny new developments — urban utopias built from scratch, packed with cutting-edge tech and sleek design. But here’s the reality: most of us will spend our lives in buildings that already exist. Office towers from the 90s. Apartment blocks from the early 2000s. Malls, hospitals, schools — all aging, all consuming more energy than they should.

If we want to make real progress on climate goals and urban sustainability, we can’t just wait for new buildings. We need to retrofit the old ones.

That’s where the real challenge — and opportunity — lies.

In this episode, produced by Young Urbanists of Southeast Asia, we speak with William Temple, CEO and co-founder of Ampotech, about how Southeast Asia can tackle energy inefficiencies in existing urban infrastructure. William began his career in M&E consulting, where he saw firsthand how buildings are often designed based on assumptions and safety margins — resulting in oversized, inefficient systems from day one.

Now, he’s on a mission to change that — using smart technology to make buildings more responsive, efficient, and aligned with real-world usage.