By Ahmad Hamad Bin Fahad, CEO of DUBAL Holding

The UAE’s growth journey is led by an unwavering focus on driving digital transformation, enhancing renewable energy capacity and promoting regulatory excellence. This is best reflected in the ‘Net Zero 2050’ strategy, which aims to create 200,000 jobs across the solar, battery and hydrogen sub-sectors, combining economic and sustainability goals. Digitalisation of the industrial sector will play an important role in realising this vision by paving the way for long-term industrial competitiveness and resilience.

Smart manufacturing, AI adoption and Industry 4.0

Across the UAE, factories are being installed with smart manufacturing systems that integrate IoT sensors, predictive analytics and real-time data environments. These optimise energy usage, reduce downtime and minimise material waste, turning sustainability into a measurable, operational outcome rather than an abstract concept.

Furthermore, digitally connected factories can track emissions at every stage of production, benchmark efficiency and automate corrective actions. This is crucial to achieving the goals of ‘Operation 300bn’ and positioning the UAE as a global hub for future industries.

According to the Ministry of Industry and Advanced Technology (MoIAT), Industry 4.0 tools can increase the nation’s industrial productivity by up to 30 per cent while reducing operational costs by nearly 20 per cent through wider structural transformations. Moreover, AI adoption is set to contribute AED 335 billion to the UAE economy by 2031, as reported by the UAE Council for AI and Blockchain.

Artificial Intelligence is also redefining how industrial assets function, from power plants and smelters to logistics centres and material processing facilities. AI-enabled algorithms can even forecast equipment failures, balance energy loads and simulate entire production cycles to identify carbon-saving interventions. AI also helps enhance transparency and enforce operational discipline, promoting both sustainability and profitability.

Role of advanced automation in redefining industrial operations

Advanced automation, from robotics to autonomous transport systems, is driving sustainability by eliminating key bottlenecks that cause higher emissions. Furthermore, automated systems ensure enhanced precision, enabling industries to streamline energy usage, optimise supply chains and accelerate circular-economy practices such as recycling, material recovery and waste-to-value processes.

However, automation does not replace human capability; it merely enhances it, enabling operators to move on to high-value digital roles. It efficiently tackles repetitive, energy-intensive tasks, creating a more resilient, low-carbon industrial ecosystem. A key enabler of this transition is the rise of strategic, government-aligned investments in digital-first industrial ventures. These investments are the backbone of the nation’s industrial future as they help build advanced manufacturing platforms, AI-driven optimisation technologies, smart mobility solutions and digital energy-management systems.

By investing in companies that integrate digital tools into core industrial operations, the UAE is accelerating technology adoption at scale. These investments further position digital transformation as a strategic imperative for fulfilling the UAE’s sustainability goals while boosting economic competitiveness.

Way Forward: Shaping a resilient industrial economy

The UAE’s wise leadership remains committed to fostering an ecosystem that rewards digital innovation and AI adoption. Moreover, by directing long-term strategic capital towards transformative technologies, the nation is building an industrial sector that is both future-ready and climate-aligned.
Amid this shift, digitalisation stands out as the most critical tool for building a sustainable, net-zero industrial economy. Aligning with this, companies must embrace forward-looking strategies that can positively shape the future of the industry.

Technology is one of those fields that keeps getting more competitive every year, requiring upskilling and talent. Building a company in this environment requires clear focus and the ability to pilot high-stakes rooms where scrutiny often exceeds performance metrics. For some founders, that means bringing perspectives that aren’t always part of the standard playbook. Women leading in tech often navigate these spaces while balancing awareness of how decisions are perceived, not what they achieve. That perspective can shape product design and team culture in ways that sharpen execution and drive innovation.

The World Economic Forum’s Global Gender Gap Report 2024, released last year, showed that women now hold 30%  of technology roles in the UAE, above the global average of 25%. This number is only increasing as women take on headstrong roles in tech. According to reports, the software and app development segment sees a slightly lower share of women globally, around 22%, highlighting deeper gender gaps in coding‑intensive domains; however, that barrier is being broken down.

Christiana Maxion, the founder and CEO of MAXION, an app empowering social connections in the UAE that operates as a hybrid SaaS platform, has been driving positive change in the social connections landscape through its AI-powered systems.

When asked about how she was able to build the business in a challenging app development market, particularly in a sector where women remain significantly underrepresented, as reflected in the figures stated above,

She shared, “I think the framing of the question in today’s society is part of the problem and needs to change. Asking women how they ‘managed’ to do it simply implies by default the expectation that we would not have been able to. I built MAXION the same way any serious founder would: by identifying a real problem, validating a model that worked, and scaling it through technology.” However, she adds that while the approach was no different from that of any business leader, the environment she navigated added unique challenges.

“The difference is that I also had to navigate rooms where I was often the only woman, while being judged on optics before outcomes. That requires an additional layer of awareness that is not always required of others in the room. But it also sharpens you in ways nothing else can,” she added. 

She further explains that the awareness and perspective gained from navigating high-stakes environments also directly informs how the platform is built.

MAXION is a hybrid SaaS platform designed to transform social connections in the UAE, prioritising real-world interaction over endless swiping. Since its launch, it has facilitated thousands of curated, in-person meetings and built a community of over 7,000 members, carefully selected to ensure confirmed positive outcomes. The platform leverages AI to streamline logistics, optimise scheduling, and enhance user experience, while its growth strategy targets high-density expat hubs with similar social dynamics.

With such a platform, privacy-first design and the protection of sensitive emotional and behavioural data are extremely important, as it deals directly with people and their emotions.  Safety issues, such as fear of scams or fake profiles or of being catfished on traditional platforms, often underscore the need for stronger protections and trust‑based design. 

MAXION is leading the way through Christiana’s vision and guidance. As a leader, she brings her business and tech expertise along with her empathic values in building a privacy‑first product.

The app uses advanced protection layers. Commenting on the importance, Christiana shares, “Social connection building platforms handle some of the most intimate data a person can share, including emotional patterns, desires, vulnerability. Most of the industry treats that as fuel for engagement. We treat it as something to protect. MAXION was designed with privacy in mind from day one. We minimise retention, reject invasive profiling, and personalise only what members have explicitly consented to. Our systems are built to suppress harassment, and discretion is non-negotiable.” She adds that female leadership shaped that standard, not as a policy layer, but as the foundation on which the entire product sits.

Today’s conversations about women leaders should be more than just what they have accomplished; they should also highlight their capabilities and drive, as well as their eagerness to develop new skills. Looking ahead, Christiana’s focus is on expanding her own skill set while scaling the business.

“Personally, I am focused on becoming a stronger capital allocator. Building a product is one skill set, but scaling a company sustainably across markets is another entirely. That is the growth edge I am leaning into right now,  financial discipline, governance, and the leadership required to take MAXION from a regional platform to a global one.”

In terms of the business, Christiana’s focus is execution. “We have the thesis. We have the traction. Now it is about operational precision, making every release, every hire, and every partnership move us closer to the outcome we are building toward. The vision is clear. The work is in the detail.”

As AI and digital platforms handle increasingly sensitive personal data, privacy-first design, ethical product decisions, and operational rigour are becoming essential benchmarks. Women in leadership roles are influencing this evolution, bringing perspectives that prioritise safety, transparency, and intentionality in user experience. Across the sector, these values are shaping how technology is built, scaled, and trusted by users globally.

Give to Gain in action: $15,000 in funding to back women-led AV startups.

Alex Kemanes and Dino Drimakis, long-standing leaders in the global AV and technology ecosystem, have announced the launch of the Women in AV & Tech Startup Prize, a global call designed to identify and back early-stage founders building practical, execution-ready solutions for the AV ecosystem and closely related fields. The competition is built as a long-term platform open to early-stage women founders.  Announced during the International Women’s month and supported by, The Audiovisual and Integrated Experience Association (AVIXA) Women’s Council, a global community committed to supporting and empowering women in the technology and AV industry.

In 2024, female-only founding teams received 2.3% of the $289 billion invested globally in venture capital around $6.7 billion underscoring the scale of the funding gap this initiative aims to address

“This is about taking action, not just having conversations,” said Alex Kemanes, Partner at Midwich Ignite and Regional Managing Director, MESEA at Midwich Group, who is personally supporting and funding the initiative. “If we want to see more women leading and building in our industry, we have to create practical pathways for them. The Women in AV & Tech Startup Prize is one way we are doing that. At the same time, we are backing founders who can execute, people who understand their market, define real problems, and have a credible path to building sustainable businesses.”

Submissions open 8^th of March 2026. Founders can apply from anywhere in the world, whether they’re involved directly with AV innovations or part of the AV ecosystem. The criteria to be selected is not based on revenue from the business, or a finished product; it’s rather solving a problem, market viability, and intent to build a lasting solution.

To enter, applicants submit a pitch deck (maximum 20 slides) and a short founder video. What matters is not designing polish, but thinking: the problem and who it affects, what’s being built and why it’s better, who the customer is, how the business makes money, and what stage it’s currently at, idea, prototype, pilots, users, revenue.

“This isn’t a pitch-polish contest,” said Dino Drimakis, Director, Strategic Development, MESEA, Midwich Group who is also personally backing the initiative. “We’re looking for clear thinking, real-world problem selection, and credible pathways to market. Fundamentals beat hype.”

The winner will receive a $15,000 cash prize, awarded and announced on 22^nd of April 2026. Any follow-up engagement is at the discretion of the jury and sponsors.

Submissions will be collected via the official competition platform and undergo an initial eligibility and quality review. Shortlisted applications will then be evaluated by an independent jury panel. Judging will focus on problem relevance, solution credibility, market understanding, founder insight, and execution potential.

To maintain the integrity of the program and its participants, the jury reserves the right to withhold the award if no submission meets the required standard. In such cases, feedback may be provided, or the prize may be carried forward to a future edition.

Key dates

• Call for submissions opens: 8^th March 2026
• Submission deadline: 6^th April, 2026
• Winner announcement: 22^nd April, 2026
• To apply: Women in Tech Startup