work is licensed under a Creative Commons IGO 3.0 Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives (CC-IGO BY-NC-ND 3.0 IGO) license (http://creativecommons.org/ licenses/by-nc-nd/3.0/igo/legalcode) and may be reproduced with attribution to the IDB and for any noncommercial purpose. No derivative work is allowed.Any dispute related to the use of the works of the IDB that cannot be settled amicably shall be submitted to arbitration pursuant to the UNCITRAL rules. The use of the IDB's name for any purpose other than for attribution, and the use of IDB's logo shall be subject to a separate written license agreement between the IDB and the user and is not authorized as part of this CC-IGO license.Note that link provided above includes additional terms and conditions of the license.The opinions expressed in this publication are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of the Inter-American Development Bank, its Board of Directors, or the countries they represent. In recent years, Tel Aviv has developed a unique bottom-up approach toward its Smart City project, focusing its efforts on direct resident-oriented services rather than expensive, large-scale infrastructure. This case study explains Tel Aviv's strategy, demonstrating how a high level of smart urban services was achieved using decentralized, low-cost methods.The report provides details on the approach, such as its reliance on the local startup ecosystem, its creation of services using open municipal databanks and public-private partnerships, and its emphasis on lightweight services that interact directly with residents. The case study analyzes the strengths and weaknesses of Tel Aviv's approach, discussing the technologies, processes, and strategies that can be used to implement a cost-effective smart city initiative.JEL Codes: L86, L88, H72