Exploring Geographic Variations in Urban Intelligent Development: A Tiered Analysis Based on City Business Attractiveness

Given the significant variability in economic development across geographic locations, this study has categorized cities into six distinct tiers based on the 2020 City Business Attractiveness Ranking, which considers five key indicators: concentration of commercial resources, urban hubs, urban population activity, lifestyle diversity, and future plasticity. A trend graph comparing the mean values of each tier demonstrates a consistent upward trend in the intelligent development of cities across all levels, with notable differences between tiers. Specifically, first-tier cities such as Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou, and Shenzhen exhibit significantly more advanced intelligent development compared to other regions, followed by new first-tier and second-tier cities, which have experienced a significant upward trend over the study period. Third-tier, fourth-tier, and fifth-tier cities, on the other hand, exhibit lower and more stable growth rates.