The Dubai International Financial Centre will establish an artificial intelligence and Web 3.0 centre with a goal of attracting more than 500 high-tech companies by 2028 as the UAE expands its knowledge economy and seeks to boost its technology sector.
The Dubai AI & Web 3.0 Campus will be the largest cluster of such companies in the Middle East and North Africa region, the Dubai Government Media Office said on Monday.
This initiative is designed to bring in $300 million in funds and create more than 3,000 jobs in the next five years.
“AI is expected to inject Dh103 billion [$28.04 billion] into the UAE economy by 2035 and contribute 14 per cent to the country’s GDP [gross domestic product] by the end of the decade,” Essa Kazim, DIFC's governor, said.
“The Dubai AI & Web 3.0 Campus will significantly contribute to this growth as a global nexus for R & [research and development], investment and innovation.”
Web3 is the emerging third generation of the World Wide Web, with blockchain, decentralisation, openness and greater user utility among its core components.
Spread across 100,000 square feet, the campus will be located at the DIFC Innovation One premises.
It will focus on the use of AI and Web 3.0 in the financial services industry and support DIFC's 2030 strategy, the statement said.
DIFC’s 2030 strategy is centred on driving the future of finance through technology, innovation and partnerships.
FinTech and innovation is the fastest growing sector in the DIFC with 686 associated firms, which raised more than $615 million last year.
Since the onset of Covid-19, people have turned to online banking services and other contactless technology to transfer money and pay for e-commerce transactions.
The industry is expected to double in size to about $270 billion in 2027, from more than $135 billion in 2021, in the wider Middle East, Africa and South Asia region, according to the DIFC FinTech Hive 2022 report.
Globally, digital payments are expected to grow to $8.26 trillion by 2024, from $4.4 trillion in 2020, according to Statista's data.
The Dubai AI & Web 3.0 Campus will be home to entrepreneurs, disrupters and engineers who are working in the fields of emerging technologies, the statement said.
It will offer physical and digital infrastructure including R&D facilities, accelerator programmes and collaborative workspaces, to attract, build and scale AI companies.
The new campus will act as a “catalyst for growth by attracting global innovators, start-ups, venture capitalists, and industry leaders”, Arif Amiri, chief executive of DIFC Authority, said.
“By nurturing a collaborative environment, the Dubai AI & Web 3.0 Campus will accelerate the development of future-forward technologies and empower organisations to unlock the true potential of AI and Web 3.0.”
Dubai is taking several steps to boost the use of new technologies such as AI and Web 3.0, especially in the public sector.
Special task forces within 30 government entities in Dubai have been formed to use AI to transform operations and services, the media office said on Tuesday.
This announcement came at the first meeting convened by the Dubai Centre for Artificial Intelligence, which was recently inaugurated by Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed, Crown Prince of Dubai and chairman of the Executive Council and the Dubai Future Foundation.
The task forces will play a “pivotal role in supporting the implementation of various initiatives and projects launched by the DCAI, ensuring collaboration and knowledge-sharing between the entities, as well as co-operation with local and global partners in the private sector”, the statement said.
The teams will include AI-skilled national talent from different government entities in Dubai.
They will study ideas and projects that government entities will develop in co-operation with the centre, Saeed Al Falasi, director of DCAI, said.
“They will also explore flexible and appropriate regulatory frameworks and policies for the uses of AI in the government sector in line with current and future needs,” said Mr Al Falasi.
Brief scores
Toss India, chose to bat
India 281-7 in 50 ov (Pandya 83, Dhoni 79; Coulter-Nile 3-44)
Australia 137-9 in 21 ov (Maxwell 39, Warner 25; Chahal 3-30)
India won by 26 runs on Duckworth-Lewis Method
Brief scoreline:
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Keita 5', Firmino 26'
Porto 0
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Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.
Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.
“Within the next two to three years, we are looking at reaching $2 to $3 billion as a conservative estimate and we do see an opportunity to do so,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.
“We have buying power. We can negotiate on their (client’s) behalf with asset managers to provide them lower fees than they otherwise would have to get on their own,” he added.
Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.
From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.
Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.
BCG is forecasting MEA wealth will rise to $12tn by 2021, growing at an annual average of 8 per cent.
Drivers of wealth generation in the region will be split evenly between new wealth creation and growth of performance of existing assets, according to BCG.
Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.
“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.
“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.
“In this environment, we have seen a de facto increase in the risk that clients are taking in things like illiquid investments, private equity investments, infrastructure and private debt, those kind of investments were higher illiquidity results in incrementally higher returns.”
The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”
Match info
What: Fifa Club World Cup play-off
Who: Al Ain v Team Wellington
Where: Hazza bin Zayed Stadium, Al Ain
When: Wednesday, kick off 7.30pm
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Power: 252hp @ 5,500rpm
Torque: 353Nm @ 2,500rpm
Transmission: Nine-speed automatic
Fuel consumption, combined: 7.4L / 100km
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Fund-raising tips for start-ups
Develop an innovative business concept
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