Dubai set to be hub of metaverse, blockchain ecosystems

Gulf Today, Staff Reporter

The metaverse and blockchain ecosystems are set to transform Dubai as a hub of innovation and giving impetus to its great strides to become a pioneer and build on its smart city status.

Aimed at seeking to adopt creative solutions, improve peoples live and introduce positive socio-economic changes, Dubai’s metaverse strategy will boost regional and global economies besides bringing in innovation to attract new firms and projects to the hub of modern technology city.

Courtesy its meticulously drafted regulatory framework, Dubai has already positioned itself as the Global Capital of Web 3.0 with its new metaverse and blockchain technology.

The metaverse has indefinite potential to conduct activities in the digital space and is thus the future of technology while the blended experience of augmented reality (AR), virtual reality (VR), spatial computing and sensorial tech has enormous potential to bring the world to our fingertips.

“From retail shopping to healthcare and manufacturing, the metaverse is becoming pervasive in countless industries. It is transforming industries by expediting virtual operations seamlessly and offering business opportunities for investors,” Pratik Rawal, Managing Partner, Ascent Partners.

The global market size of metaverse will reach $1.6 trillion by 2030. Moreover, international companies like Meta (Facebook), Microsoft, Google, and Nvidia are just a few organisations with considerable investments in the metaverse. Mubadala, one of the substantial wealth funds globally, is also proactively investing in the blockchain industry.

The UAE is already a budding space for the metaverse, with over 1,000 company headquarters in this sector being located in the country. Dubai metaverse strategy plans to target $4billion of the country’s GDP in the coming five years and will offer over 40,000 virtual jobs in the metaverse and blockchain sectors by 2030. The sector currently generates around 500 million dollars for the UAE’s national economy and is predicted to increase significantly in the coming years. Dubai World Trade Center (DWTC) is a comprehensive zone dedicated to virtual assets.

Metaverse, an avant-garde creation of the blockchain development world, even though being in its early innings, promises to deliver a trailblazing experience for millions of users and shake the world’s economy and innovative landscape. The market opportunity for launching the metaverse may bring an annual revenue of over $1 trillion.

Empowering other technologies, blockchain creates a vibrant symbiosis of advanced tech. From a buzzword to a global financial and industrial game changer — it has undisputedly become part of everyday life. Transparency, immutability, security, privacy — all the benefits of blockchain & crypto are on high demand, and are constantly discussed both at a developer’s desk and at a regulator’s office.

Ascent Partners is a UAE-based business set-up advisory firm built with the aim of facilitating entrepreneurs and investors to build and grow their businesses in the UAE and worldwide. With a combined experience of 70+ years, Ascent Partner’s expert consultants provide reliable and unparalleled guidance through all the strategic phases of a business set-up, ranging from company formation and expansion to market floatation and exit.

Meanwhile, Expected to bring together 300 delegates and more than 40 global organisations, the Dubai Metaverse Assembly, organised by the Dubai Future Foundation (DFF), will cement the city’s global status as a forerunner in the adoption of emerging technologies, leading UAE companies said today.

Majid Al Futtaim, Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC), Digital Dubai, the Virtual Assets Regulatory Authority (VARA) and DAMAC are among a cohort of businesses claiming the flagship event, which will feature more than 30 key leaders, experts, and decision-makers across more than 25 sessions and workshops, will be a quantum leap for the country’s private sector.

The event cements Dubai’s position as a major player in metaverse and web 3.0 technologies, providing a platform to explore how immersive digital worlds will reshape the future of business, society and human interaction.

Helal Saeed Almarri, Chairman of VARA, said, “Dubai Metaverse Assembly, organised by Dubai Future Foundation, under the leadership of H.H. Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Crown Prince of Dubai and Chairman of Dubai Executive Council, is a flagship launch that signals Dubai’s readiness to move forward with its Metaverse strategy - and industry engagement is at the core of its success.”