Dubai establishes Higher Committee for Future Technology and Digital Economy

Under the directives of His Highness Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President, Prime Minister and Ruler of Dubai, to make Dubai a leading global economic hub and in line with the launch of the Dubai Metaverse Strategy by Sheikh Hamdan Bin Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Crown Prince of Dubai and Chairman of Dubai Executive Council, the Dubai Government has formed the Higher Committee for Future Technology and Digital Economy.

Chaired by the Crown Prince of Dubai, the Higher Committee aims to help shape the future of artificial intelligence (AI) by investing in the metaverse and establishing partnerships to boost Dubai’s digital economy.

Commenting on the launch of the Higher Committee, Sheikh Hamdan said that Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid’s far-sighted vision consolidated the status of Dubai as a leading global hub for innovative new concepts and disruptive economic and technological models by deploying advanced technology in vital sectors to improve people’s standard of living.

Sheikh Hamdan said Dubai is a global test-bed for technology and future business models aimed at creating new economic opportunities, establishing Dubai as a hub for the global digital economy.

He added, "We are working as a team to enhance Dubai’s position as a global birthplace and research laboratory for future technologies and one of the world’s top 10 metaverse economies, in line with the Dubai Metaverse Strategy."

The members of the Higher Committee for Future Technology and Digital Economy include Omar Bin Sultan Al Olama, Minister of State for Artificial Intelligence, Digital Economy and Remote Work Applications, Chairman of Dubai Chamber of Digital Economy, and Vice Chairman of the Committee; Helal Saeed Al Marri, Director-General of Dubai’s Department of Economy and Tourism; Hamad Obaid Al Mansoori, Director-General of Dubai Digital Authority; Khalfan Belhoul, CEO of Dubai Future Foundation; Ahmed Bin Byat, Vice Chair of the board of Dubai Chamber of Digital Economy; Malek Al Malek, Director-General of Dubai Development Authority; Arif Amiri, CEO of DIFC Authority; and Maha Al Mezaina, General Rapporteur of the Committee.

The Committee will design policies and analyse trends for the digital economy and future technologies, including the metaverse, AI, blockchain, Web3, virtual reality (VR), augmented reality (AR), the Internet of Things (IoT), data centres and cloud computing in Dubai. The Committee will supervise the implementation of strategies related to the digital economy and future technologies in Dubai.

The Committee will work to identify the future skills needed for the digital sectors and advise the economic sectors about the digital economy. The Committee will also follow up on the digital economy’s performance and ensure that its contribution to the economy of Dubai is on a par with global benchmarks.

The Committee will also plan to attract international companies and conferences specialising in future technologies and the digital economy. Further, it will build strategic partnerships with entities working in the field of digital economy worldwide.

Sheikh Hamdan launched the Dubai Metaverse Strategy to position Dubai among the world’s top 10 metaverse economies. The strategy aims to make Dubai a global hub for the metaverse community and build on Dubai’s achievement of attracting more than 1,000 companies in the fields of blockchain and metaverse. It also promotes Dubai’s ambitions to support more than 40,000 virtual jobs by 2030. This would further boost Dubai’s economy and support the UAE government’s vision of increasing the number of blockchain companies by five times the present number.

WAM