NAIROBI, Kenya, May 28 – It is a well-known fact that Artificial Intelligence (AI) has been the “trend of the month” every month for the past decade. From chatbots and personalized shopping applications to self-driving cars and flying taxis, businesses are betting on AI everywhere. But we know that this is just the beginning for AI. To unlock the full potential of AI to reshape the landscape of cities, we need supportive governments providing the right infrastructure and regulations, a collaborative and symbiotic relationship between public and private institutions, and an ecosystem of AI startups and scaleups. Dubai stands out as a great textbook example to draw inspiration from.
Since 2000, Dubai has become a global leader in e-Government, leveraging the power of technology to improve and optimize public sector efficiency and performance. By implementing the Government Resource Platform system platform across all government agencies and reducing duplication of work, the Dubai Government saved over USD 1.3 billion between 2003 and 2015.
In 2021, Dubai achieved the targets outlined in the Dubai Paperless Strategy: 100% of government transactions are now digitised and fully paperless, reducing Dubai's CO2 emissions by more than 757,000 tonnes, saving 39,000 trees, 13 million work hours and more than US$270 million per year.
Since then, Digital Dubai – a government entity tasked with overseeing the formulation and implementation of policies and strategies governing all matters related to Dubai's information technology, data and digital ecosystem – has shifted its focus from building a digital government to building a digital city, embracing emerging technologies and private sector partners to achieve its goals, with AI becoming a key focus and pillar of its vision.
The Dubai Artificial Intelligence Centre, due to open in 2023, is Dubai's answer to rapid technological change as the government adopts new systems to test innovative AI technologies and harness them for societal benefit to deliver real impact. The centre is creating a blueprint to foster the growth of generative AI applications in the city's public sector.
Taking Dubai's AI ambitions a step further is DubaiAI, the digital city concierge powered by ChatGPT. It is essentially the government's flagship one-stop-shop app for all city services, hosting over 250 services from 35 government and semi-government agencies. Launched by Digital Dubai, DubaiAI provides valuable data on the city across a range of topics from both the government and private sectors, including health, education, tourism, investment and other areas. This unique platform is giving rise to new models for facilitating effective collaboration and futuristic ideas that fast-track sustainable economic growth and sustainable development.
This development is in line with Dubai Economic Agenda D33, which aims to contribute AED 100 billion (US$27.2 billion) annually to Dubai's economy through digital transformation projects.
Playing a leading role in digitizing life in Dubai and spearheading AI-powered urban planning, Digital Dubai is also testing Robotic Process Automation tools in day-to-day administrative tasks within Dubai Government Entities' HR, Finance and Procurement processes, improving efficiency and response times for government employees, citizens, residents and businesses.
At a sector level, various government entities across Dubai are also leveraging AI like never before, adopting a predictive and progressive approach to drive efficiency and innovation. For example, Dubai Electricity and Water Authority (DEWA) has developed several innovations that use artificial intelligence (AI) to improve the operational efficiency of Dubai's water network, monitor for cyber attacks, leaks and faults, and instantly identify and remediate them.
Meanwhile, robotics and automation will play an increasingly larger role in Dubai's burgeoning healthcare sector, sparking a new wave of innovation-focused investment from public and private sector stakeholders. Notable use cases include robotic-assisted surgery, robotic pharmacy services, robotic telemedicine and AI-powered biomedical research.
Meanwhile, Dubai’s Roads and Transport Authority (RTA) is using new AI-powered tools to:
While the company monitors and evaluates the performance of delivery bike riders operating in Dubai, it is also actively testing robotaxis, AI-enabled police patrols and developing Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) prototypes, all of which are expected to transform the city in the near future and enhance its status as a global smart city pioneering cutting-edge smart city technologies.
As a future-focused city, Dubai has always recognised the need to build a conducive, future-oriented entrepreneurial ecosystem where young businesses can thrive and grow. Sandbox Dubai, one of the key initiatives announced at D33, is a testament to Dubai's vision to become a preferred market for innovative companies and entrepreneurs to test and commercialise new technologies, solidifying the city's position as a leading innovation hub in the process.
The growing number of accelerators popping up across Dubai is a sign of the growing appeal and potential of the city's entrepreneurial ecosystem. Dubai AI Centre's accelerator programme alone has attracted 615 startups from 55 countries since its launch last year, supporting them in developing AI-based solutions to current and future challenges.
Meanwhile, Dubai's financial free zone, Dubai International Financial Centre, has collaborated with UAE Artificial Intelligence to launch groundbreaking artificial intelligence (AI) and coding licenses in 2023.
The license, the first of its kind in the UAE, advances the country's Artificial Intelligence Strategy 2031, which aims to boost the UAE's reputation in the sector by attracting AI companies and programmers from around the world.
These progressive developments complement the competitive advantages Dubai offers to innovative AI startups and scaleups, including 100 percent foreign ownership, a business-friendly regulatory environment, remote work visas, five-year entrepreneur visas, access to specialized tech talent and a mature venture capital environment.
By prioritizing PPPs, shaping regulations and policies for ecosystem growth, facilitating AI scale-up, and embracing the potential of AI and IoT, Dubai is not only shaping its own future, but also providing a roadmap for other cities around the world looking to leverage AI technologies and data as building blocks of hyperconnectivity, connecting all segments of government, business, and society to expand their innovation ecosystems.
