The number of companies operating in Dubai Internet City increased by 10 per cent annually in the first half of 2024, boosting the number of professionals in the district that is home to market players providing services for emerging technologies, its managing director said.
There were more than 3,500 organisations, comprising Fortune 500 companies, tech majors and start-ups in the district in the six months through June, Ammar Al Malik told The National at the Gitex Global technology conference in Dubai on Monday. That has resulted in the number of professionals at Dubai Internet City topping 30,000, an increase of more than 5 per cent compared with the same period in 2023, said Mr Al Malik, also executive vice president of commercial leasing at Dubai Internet City's parent Tecom Group.
"There are large corporations setting up base in the country. We're seeing the number of companies and talent growing, and we are also seeing some movements as start-up funding starts to come back as well," he said.
Additionally, Dubai Internet City plans to add premium office spaces across more than 46,000 square metres at its expansion developments, as it seeks to support the growing number of businesses setting up operations in the emirate. The Grade A facilities are part of the second and third phases of Dubai Internet City's Innovation Hub, which aims to boost the emirate's business fundamentals and infrastructure.
Tecom in August completed the acquisition of new commercial and industrial assets, which was part of a Dh1.7 billion ($462.8 million) development plan announced in May, in conjunction with plans to develop premium office spaces worth Dh340 million at Dubai Internet City. That brought the total value Tecom's investments in 2024 to more than Dh2 billion, after earlier investments of Dh966 million to acquire commercial and industrial assets from Dubai Holding Asset Management and allotting Dh689 million for to develop Grade A offices at Dubai Design District.
As a result, Tecom's gross leasable area of high-quality commercial assets is now 929,000 square metres, with its land leasing portfolio rising to 16.6 million square metres. The new offices will cater to research and development labs, innovation centres and multinationals "to ensure the ecosystem continues to have the necessary infrastructure to help [companies] in their future expansion", Mr Al Malik said.
"This is a continuation of our efforts in order to attract the best talent and best companies to set up and to make the UAE their base going forward."
The number of start-ups at Dubai Internet City's incubator, in5, has passed 1,000 and have so far raised Dh8 billion since it was formed in 2013. The district was where successful home-grown start-ups including “super app” Careem and e-commerce platform Souq.com, which was bought and now operates as Amazon, emerged.
Careem is also only one of four UAE unicorns – start-ups with a valuation of at least $1 billion – alongside, Kitopi, Swvl and Emerging Markets Property Group. The Dubai government, under its D33 economic agenda, set forth plans to make the emirate home to 30 unicorns by 2033 – a figure that could be passed, Mr Al Malik said.
"Whether we reach it or not, it's too early to say at this stage. But we have set up the right infrastructure for these 30 start-ups and maybe even more by the deadline that we have," he added.
Start-ups play a crucial role in economies, as they are able to provide smart services that are essential to daily business and personal activities, tapping into the latest technologies to reach a wider set of users. The UAE has emerged as a prominent hub for start-ups, underpinned by government support through business accelerators, financing services and sponsorship programmes to attract entrepreneurs from around the world.
Overall, the small and medium enterprise sector in the UAE has continued to experience notable development and growth, with various companies established in the country evolving into successful businesses within a short span of time, the Ministry of Economy said.
"The talent pool is changing. Dubai is becoming more advanced as more students come in, there are more research and development facilities being built and larger corporations moving into and establishing businesses," Mr Al Malik said. "But then we have start-ups moving into and coming out of this region, and most successful start-ups are located in Dubai. This is a reflection of the talent and we are optimistic about what we see in the future when it comes to that."
Dubai Internet City was established in 1999 and is part of Tecom Group’s portfolio of 10 sector-specific business districts – Dubai Media City, Dubai Studio City, Dubai Production City, Dubai Knowledge Park, Dubai International Academic City, Dubai Science Park, Dubai Industrial City, Dubai Outsource City and Dubai Design District.
KILLING OF QASSEM SULEIMANI
House-hunting
Top 10 locations for inquiries from US house hunters, according to Rightmove
- Edinburgh, Scotland
- Westminster, London
- Camden, London
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- Islington, London
- Kensington and Chelsea, London
- Highlands, Scotland
- Argyll and Bute, Scotland
- Fife, Scotland
- Tower Hamlets, London
Company%20profile
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Veere di Wedding
Dir: Shashanka Ghosh
Starring: Kareena Kapoo-Khan, Sonam Kapoor, Swara Bhaskar and Shikha Talsania
Verdict: 4 Stars
The Outsider
Stephen King, Penguin
THE CLOWN OF GAZA
Director: Abdulrahman Sabbah
Starring: Alaa Meqdad
Rating: 4/5
AUSTRALIA SQUAD
Aaron Finch, Matt Renshaw, Brendan Doggett, Michael Neser, Usman Khawaja, Shaun Marsh, Mitchell Marsh, Tim Paine (captain), Travis Head, Marnus Labuschagne, Nathan Lyon, Jon Holland, Ashton Agar, Mitchell Starc, Peter Siddle
Turkish Ladies
Various artists, Sony Music Turkey
More from Janine di Giovanni
Avatar: Fire and Ash
Director: James Cameron
Starring: Sam Worthington, Sigourney Weaver, Zoe Saldana
Rating: 4.5/5
What is a Ponzi scheme?
A fraudulent investment operation where the scammer provides fake reports and generates returns for old investors through money paid by new investors, rather than through ligitimate business activities.
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On sale: Now
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.”
Did you know?
Brunch has been around, is some form or another, for more than a century. The word was first mentioned in print in an 1895 edition of Hunter’s Weekly, after making the rounds among university students in Britain. The article, entitled Brunch: A Plea, argued the case for a later, more sociable weekend meal. “By eliminating the need to get up early on Sunday, brunch would make life brighter for Saturday night carousers. It would promote human happiness in other ways as well,” the piece read. “It is talk-compelling. It puts you in a good temper, it makes you satisfied with yourself and your fellow beings, it sweeps away the worries and cobwebs of the week.” More than 100 years later, author Guy Beringer’s words still ring true, especially in the UAE, where brunches are often used to mark special, sociable occasions.
Recycle Reuse Repurpose
New central waste facility on site at expo Dubai South area to handle estimated 173 tonne of waste generated daily by millions of visitors
Recyclables such as plastic, paper, glass will be collected from bins on the expo site and taken to the new expo Central Waste Facility on site
Organic waste will be processed at the new onsite Central Waste Facility, treated and converted into compost to be re-used to green the expo area
Of 173 tonnes of waste daily, an estimated 39 per cent will be recyclables, 48 per cent organic waste and 13 per cent general waste.
About 147 tonnes will be recycled and converted to new products at another existing facility in Ras Al Khor
Recycling at Ras Al Khor unit:
Plastic items to be converted to plastic bags and recycled
Paper pulp moulded products such as cup carriers, egg trays, seed pots, and food packaging trays
Glass waste into bowls, lights, candle holders, serving trays and coasters
Aim is for 85 per cent of waste from the site to be diverted from landfill
