Tesla chief executive Elon Musk said the US needed to catch up with the UAE in a social media comment about Zayed International Airport in Abu Dhabi.
Mr Musk made his remark in response to a video showing the ease of checking in to the airport using facial recognition.
The comment on X, which the billionaire owns, was in reply to a clip from a TikTok user discussing the technology available at the airport.
“[The] US does need to catch up,” said Mr Musk.
The airport's Terminal A opened to passengers in November. Before then, it was first seen by a global audience when it was used as a location in the Tom Cruise action movie Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One.
Passengers who check in online can use the self-service desk at the terminal that will detect their biometric details using facial recognition.
The system does all the required checks on visas and data verification.
It was estimated that some passengers could get from the kerb outside the terminal to their gate in 12 minutes.
Terminal A was built to attract more airlines to start flights to the UAE capital and aims to “future-proof” operations by increasing its capacity to 65 million passengers in 10 years, up from 45 million currently, airport chiefs told The National last year.
The opening of the new terminal was soon followed by the renaming of the entire airport. Abu Dhabi International Airport officially changed its name to Zayed International Airport in February.
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Other ways to buy used products in the UAE
UAE insurance firm Al Wathba National Insurance Company (AWNIC) last year launched an e-commerce website with a facility enabling users to buy car wrecks.
Bidders and potential buyers register on the online salvage car auction portal to view vehicles, review condition reports, or arrange physical surveys, and then start bidding for motors they plan to restore or harvest for parts.
Physical salvage car auctions are a common method for insurers around the world to move on heavily damaged vehicles, but AWNIC is one of the few UAE insurers to offer such services online.
For cars and less sizeable items such as bicycles and furniture, Dubizzle is arguably the best-known marketplace for pre-loved.
Founded in 2005, in recent years it has been joined by a plethora of Facebook community pages for shifting used goods, including Abu Dhabi Marketplace, Flea Market UAE and Arabian Ranches Souq Market while sites such as The Luxury Closet and Riot deal largely in second-hand fashion.
At the high-end of the pre-used spectrum, resellers such as Timepiece360.ae, WatchBox Middle East and Watches Market Dubai deal in authenticated second-hand luxury timepieces from brands such as Rolex, Hublot and Tag Heuer, with a warranty.
