Chamber discusses healthtech growth, investment prospects

Dubai Chamber of Digital Economy (DCDE), one of the three chambers operating under Dubai Chambers, hosted the ninth session of its regular digital industry workshops, focusing on the healthtech industry.

The workshop brought together some of the brightest and most driven healthtech industry leaders to explore opportunities and challenges in this critical market.

In his opening remarks, Ahmad Bin Byat, Vice Chairman, Dubai Chamber of Digital Economy, highlighted the emergence of Dubai as a leading healthtech hub with abundant opportunities. He said: “Dubai has positioned itself as a healthtech center for both international investors and medical tourists by emphasising the role of cutting-edge technology advancements in healthcare, and innovative digital health solutions in creating a world class healthcare ecosystem that will cement Dubai’s position as a leading digital health hub.”

Dubai’s healthcare market is worth more than $4.63 billion annually and is expected to play a pivotal role in catapulting Mena’s healthcare sector growth to $243 billion this year.

National strategies including aggressive AI investment have positioned Dubai as a leader in healthcare AI and tech regionally.

Ahmad Bin Byat added: “The emirate has a remarkable high-tech medical infrastructure and hosts a rising number of public and private healthcare companies, including globally renowned hospitals, outpatient medical centres and diagnostic laboratories. This has made the emirate a global healthcare and healthtech hub as well as a medical tourist destination.”

According to a report by the Dubai Healthcare City Authority, the Mena’s healthtech startup ecosystem is currently valued at over $1.5 billion, a 22x increase since 2016. Participants discussed indicators of healthtech growth which give rise to key trends and new investment opportunities in this market such as AI investment opportunities in health in line with global trends in addition to growth in demand for healthcare software development.

For instance, the Internet of Medical Things will transform the way healthcare providers and patients interact and this in turn will result in new opportunities for manufacturers and suppliers to invest in connected healthcare technologies and services. Furthermore, with Dubai’s much more refined data-centric approach to most economic sectors including healthcare, Big Data will drive a significant part of healthcare investments in the coming years.

Dubai Chamber of Digital Economy works with stakeholders across all digital sectors to promote innovation, collaboration, and growth in the digital economy.

Dubai Chamber of Digital Economy, one of three chambers operating under the umbrella of Dubai Chambers, aims to strengthen Dubai’s position as a global leader in digital economy, attract specialised talent, leading companies and new investments and create a stimulating environment that supports the growth of digital companies.

Meanwhile earlier the Dubai Chamber of Digital Economy (DCDE), one of the three chambers operating under Dubai Chambers, has brought together top executives, business leaders, and entrepreneurs in the metaverse and crypto industry for a new edition of the chamber’s digital industry workshop series.

The workshop was attended by Ahmad Bin Byat, Vice Chairman of Dubai Chamber of Digital Economy, and board members of Dubai Chamber of Digital Economy Hind Seddiqi, Fadi Ghandour and Dany Farha.

The workshop discussed ideation, opportunities, challenges, and ways to drive progress in the metaverse and crypto fields.

Bin Byat said, “Dubai has a healthy and vibrant digital ecosystem welcoming digital companies across various economic sectors, and the adoption of the metaverse is rapidly growing.” “The workshop on the metaverse and crypto industry is part of a series of digital industry workshops we continue to host. It is a great platform for connecting like-minded leaders to discover the latest developments and providing a space for meaningful discussions.”

Dubai launched the Dubai Metaverse Strategy with the ambition of Dubai becoming one of the world’s top 10 metaverse economies and hubs. The strategy aims to attract more than 1,000 blockchain and metaverse companies to Dubai to develop Web3 technology and its applications for Dubai.

Dubai has introduced its virtual asset regime and established Dubai’s Virtual Asset Regulatory Authority (VARA) to provide a secure and progressive operating framework for the virtual asset sector. Recently, VARA announced its entry into the metaverse by establishing its metaverse HQ in the virtual world of ‘The Sandbox’, thus becoming the world’s first regulator to debut.

Major global crypto players such as Binance, Crypto.com and Bybit have all already moved their leadership to Dubai, favouring the emirate’s ‘light touch’ approach to regulation.