Dubai By : Khaled Hassan
Dubai will transform into the ultimate digital epicentre of the world next month, as the UAE hosts the world’s largest tech show, converging the most advanced companies and best minds to deep dive into the making of the Web 3.0 economy.
From 10-14 October 2022 at the Dubai World Trade Centre, GITEX GLOBAL returns, its largest ever edition featuring 5,000 companies spanning 26 halls and two million sq. ft of exhibition space, at an extraordinary 25 percent year-on-year increase, pushing its capacity limit at the venue.
The GITEX 3.0 edition, in its 42nd year presents the most empowering curation ever with seven multi-tech themes experimenting in the metaverse, a decentralised future of the internet, and a sustainable global digital economy.
Scale of GITEX GLOBAL 2022 reflects digital ambitions of UAE and the region
The five-day event’s record size and continued expansion mirrors the ambitions of the UAE and region’s digital transformation movement, as government initiatives such as the National Program for Coders, the Dubai Metaverse Strategy, and Next GenFDI propels the UAE to the forefront of the global digital economy.
This is amplified by new GITEX GLOBAL 2022 launches of X-VERSE sponsored by TMRW Foundation in collaboration with Decentraland, one of the world’s most immersive metaverse journeys featuring 28 experiential brands; and Global DevSlam, the Middle East’s largest ever coder and developer meetup, both of which sold-out to a global audience within two months.
UAE companies also held the lion’s share of a record-breaking US$2.6 billion in start-up funding across the Middle East and North Africa in 2021, figures that underscore an additional hall and 30 percent increase to 1,000 exhibitors at GITEX GLOBAL’s start-up event, North Star.
His Excellency Omar Al Olama, Minister of State for AI, Digital Economy & Remote Work Applications, who delivered the welcome note at the official GITEX GLOBAL 2022 press conference today, said: “GITEX this year is bigger than ever. It spans two million sq. ft. with over 5,000 exhibitors from more than 90 countries, which makes this truly the biggest tech show in the world. This year, my office has partnered with GITEX to ensure that we’re not just showcasing technology, but actually inventing and developing technology.”
In his speech H.E. also highlighted that the Global DevSlam event is poised to be one of the biggest developer events in the world. He concluded by thanking each and every single person that has believed in the UAE’s mission and who has supported the UAE.
Trixie LohMirmand, Executive Vice President of Events Management at Dubai World Trade Centre, GITEX GLOBAL’s organiser, added: “GITEX is not just a big gathering of people. It’s the super-connector humanising the virtual and digital economies.
“GITEX serves a profound purpose of enabling and accelerating the digital economies of UAE and many of its alliance partners through connecting earnest stakeholders with outstanding minds from the world, and materialising these connections into actionable partnerships.”
Global interest accelerates UAE and region as a rising tech hub of the world
GITEX GLOBAL 2022 will welcome an unprecedented 52 percent new exhibitors this year choosing the show and the UAE as the first-choice partner in their market access strategies.
The influx of global interest will see North Star hosting the biggest Unicorn meetup of the year in Dubai, with 35 Unicorns from 15 countries looking to explore new opportunities and expand in one of the world’s fastest-growing markets.
The ‘Africa Fast 100’ programme presents the largest ever gathering of African start-ups to be hosted outside Africa, as the African tech companies have been touted as the next ones to watch by global investors.
Debut international exhibitors such as Binance, Ooku, AMD, Tencent, and ByteDance, are seeking to extend their brand reach to a global audience through GITEX, along with FTX Exchange, one of the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchanges with a five million-plus global customer base and an average daily trading volume of US$12 billion.
“We are thrilled to announce our first ever participation in GITEX, the world’s most prominent technology exhibition. It is great testament to Dubai, the UAE and the vision of its leadership in embracing technology and Innovation” said Mohammad Hans Dastmaltchi, Chairman of the Supervisory Board, FTX Exchange, which this year was licensed to establish and operate Virtual Asset Exchange and Clearing House services in Dubai by the Virtual Asset Regulatory Authority (VARA).
“FTX is looking forward to this exhibition, and seeing industry leaders, innovators and entrepreneurs sharing the same stage. We are excited to be interacting with a diverse audience and showcasing what FTX stands for as a brand and our ambitious plans for Dubai and the region.”
Influential UAE entities inspire R&D in transformative technologies
UAE companies are shaking up the global tech scene with their bold undertakings and commitments in tech R&D and inventions, including Technology Innovation Institute (TII) a leading global scientific institution and the applied research pillar of Abu Dhabi’s Advanced Technology Research Council.
TII will have a significant presence at GITEX GLOBAL showcasing AI and Digital Science, Directed Energy, and Autonomous Robotics Research. Dr. Ray O. Johnson, CEO of Technology Innovation Institute, said: “We are delighted with our significant presence at GITEX GLOBAL, billed as the largest tech event in the world.
“Working at the intersection of discovery science and advanced technology, our research centres have announced, within the last two years, multiple research breakthroughs that give Abu Dhabi and the UAE greater tech sovereignty. Our journey has just begun. Research today is a collaborative field, and we look forward to the networking opportunities with the technology world’s leaders to accelerate our breakthroughs in the years to come.”
G42, a champion of AI and cloud technologies, will create a high-impact visitor experience showcasing powerful capabilities through its group of four companies. “There couldn’t be better time to showcase G42 than at the 42nd edition of GITEX, the world’s largest tech and start-up event,” said Hasan Al Hosani, CEO of Bayanat, a G42 company. “G42 has multiple businesses and expertise and it is often a challenge to explain the breadth and depth of the Group’s offering.
“At GITEX, we aim to get some of our flagship companies to come under one roof and give a better sense on the spectrum of our offering under the theme 'The Answer is Yes'. We are looking forward to meeting our peers from the tech industry – from the region and beyond, and inviting them to experience the holistic offering of the G42 ecosystem.”
e&, the region’s largest telecom operator is another prominent GITEX GLOBAL exhibitor. Earlier this year, the carrier was ranked as the world’s strongest telecom brand by Brand Finance, becoming the first in the MEA region to achieve this milestone. GITEX GLOBAL 2022 will be the first major exhibition for e& (previously Etisalat) since the launch of its new brand identity earlier this year.
Hatem Dowidar, Group CEO of e&, said: “Given the e& transformation journey we embarked on earlier this year, the 2022 edition of GITEX GLOBAL is truly special for us, as it is the first major global technology event where we will showcase the strides we’re taking to progress into a global technology and investment group that creates technology to empower every person and organisation to stride into a great wide-open future.
“GITEX GLOBAL is the place where many futuristic ideas and solutions come to life, demonstrating the limitless possibilities technology advancements open up and inspiring participants with the immense opportunities that lay ahead.”
Added Dowidar: “This is in line with our ambitious strategy to drive a brighter, digital future that will transform societies in meaningful ways. We look forward to showcasing our diverse portfolio and growth aspirations covering the metaverse, fintech, cybersecurity, AI, cloud computing, and so much more.”
World’s largest Public-Private Partnership creation platform
GITEX unifies the participation of 250 government entities leading strategic digital projects and public-private partnerships, with Digital Dubai Authority and Abu Dhabi Digital Authority among the UAE government bodies advancing smart city and digital projects.
H.E. Tariq Al Janahi, Acting CEO, Digital Dubai Authority, said: “Following the vision of H.H. Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Prime Minister and Vice President of the UAE, and Ruler of Dubai, to digitalize life in the city, this year Digital Dubai’s participation at GITEX GLOBAL 2022, in partnership with 32 government and seven private sector partners, will showcase the latest digitalization solutions built by Dubai Government, also displaying future plans to build a holistic city-wide digital ecosystem ensuring Dubai becomes a global benchmark for building digital economies.”
H.E. Mansoor Al Marzooqi, Executive Director, Strategy & Innovation Sector, at Abu Dhabi Digital Authority, pointed out that the Abu Dhabi Government Pavilion at GITEX will be an advanced digital technology platform bringing together more than 30 government and academic entities, showcasing more than 100 innovative projects that highlight the Abu Dhabi government's key achievements in the field of digital transformation.
“GITEX Global 2022 is a global tech platform that gives the Abu Dhabi government the opportunity to showcase new digital initiatives in government services, digital government solutions, data and artificial intelligence, cybersecurity, and digital enablement, all of which have been carefully developed to further strengthen Abu Dhabi’s digital capabilities, enabling, supporting and delivering a digital government that is proactive, personalized, collaborative and secure,” said H.E Al Marzooqi.
GITEX is renowned for its prolific MoU engagements and critical enterprise partnerships between the public sector and private companies, with enduring business relationships having originated at the hyper-connector event over the last four decades.
Huawei, GITEX GLOBAL’s Diamond Sponsor and a world-leading innovator in next-generation networks, is among the multinationals establishing long-lasting collaborations, and will this year showcase its newest end-to-end products and advanced ICT solutions focusing on AI, digital power, cloud, 5G, cybersecurity, and industry applications.
Alaa Elshimy, Managing Director and Senior Vice President of Enterprise Business Group, at Huawei Middle East, said: “GITEX GLOBAL provides us with a golden opportunity to network with our customers, partners, industry leaders and experts from the Middle East region and around the world to explore how to more effectively unleash digital productivity, promote the digital economy, and build up stronger digital ecosystems.
“We will share insights on steps we are taking to advance digital development across a wide range of industries, highlight technological updates that can address climate change and drive clean energy development, and further release new innovative connectivity solutions and cloud services for the region markets.
“Using its connectivity, computing, and cloud technologies, Huawei will continue to work with its partners to drive ongoing industry innovation and multi-tech synergy, creating scenario-based solutions for diverse customer needs. This will create greater value and make it easier for customers to go the ‘last mile’ of their digital transformation.”
Microsoft, the omnipresent tech giant, will also present its most elevated GITEX GLOBAL involvement yet, participating in all tech sectors including Global DevSlam and X-VERSE.
“At GITEX GLOBAL 2022, our focus is on mixed reality and the impact it can have on industry specific scenarios,” said Naim Yazbeck, General Manager of Microsoft UAE. “We recently announced the availability of the industry-leading HoloLens 2 mixed reality headset in the UAE.
“Backed by the reliability, security, and scalability of our cloud, this state-of-the-art holographic device provides the most intuitive and immersive mixed reality experience which we will showcase at the event and demonstrate how mixed reality can support a wide variety of industry applications and use cases.
“Microsoft comes to GITEX GLOBAL 2022 fresh from the anniversary celebration of our UAE cloud data centres,” added Yazbeck. “Through the trusted, versatile, flexible Microsoft Cloud, we have empowered enterprises that think big to deliver on their ambitions, and we pledge continued support for all such innovators across the region.”
GITEX unveils world’s first public flight of eVTOL flying car X2
XPENG, a leading tech company and EV manufacturer that designs, develops, manufactures and markets intelligent mobility solutions, has chosen GITEX GLOBAL 2022 to host an exclusive world’s first public flight of its pioneering eVTOL flying car X2 with the support of official partner, the Dubai Chamber of Commerce.
The avantgarde two-seater eVTOL flying car X2 is equipped with an intelligent flight control system and autonomous flight capabilities, and is the latest generation of flying cars developed independently by XPENG’s affiliate XPENG AEROHT.
Dr. Brian Gu, Vice Chairman and President of XPENG, said the X2 produces zero carbon dioxide emissions during flight, and is designed with low-altitude city capabilities in mind, reaching a maximum flight speed of 130kms per hour.
“We’re delighted to be holding the first global public flight of the XPENG X2 at GITEX GLOBAL 2022, showcasing our pioneering in-house R&D and proprietary manufacturing capabilities to push the e-mobility industry forward,” said Gu, who is speaking at GITEX GLOBAL’s mainstage conference programme about mapping the future of mobility. “We believe this advancement takes us one step closer to the future of short-distance city journeys taking advantage of this technology, including sightseeing and medical transportation.”
The GITEX 3.0 edition features seven tech themes: North Star Dubai start-ups, Ai Everything, Future Blockchain Summit in association with VARA, Fintech Surge, Marketing Mania and two sell-out new launches of GLOBAL DevSlam and X-VERSE.
“2022 is associated with many transformative trends like Metaverse and third generation web technologies that are unknown, amorphous and bourgeoning,” added LohMirmand. “These and other frontier techs can only finally impact our societies when there’s large scale expert discourses, collaborations and experimentations by protagonists and detractors. This is GITEX 3.0, where the decentralisation of the economy puts the power in the hands of every delegate in GITEX to participate in the shaping of our urban future.”
