Connect with us

Tech News

Abu Dhabi to Host Ai Everything Global 2026: Accelerating the UAE’s Ambition as a Global Hub for AI Innovation and Investments

Published

on

The UAE’s journey of spearheading AI progress worldwide has marked another milestone, with the announcement that Ai Everything Global Summit & Expo will be hosted in Abu Dhabi in 2026. This launch reinforces the UAE’s commitment to becoming a premier global hub for AI excellence.

Abu Dhabi aims to become the world’s first fully AI-powered government within the next two years, driven by the newly announced Abu Dhabi Government Digital Strategy 2025-2027. The UAE is already a leading global hub for AI talent, second only to the United States.

The announcement was made on the opening day of the inaugural Ai Everything Global Summit at St. Regis Saadiyat Island Resort in Abu Dhabi, the largest gathering of AI and tech leaders. The 2026 launch announcement comes amid major global AI investments, the rise of new AI models, and shifting dynamics in the global AI race. Ai Everything Global is the cross industries fully AI-focused forward-looking event of GITEX GLOBAL, the largest tech and startup show in the world. The first edition of the event opened to an oversubscribed full house audience with delegates from over 149 countries.

Organised by KAOUN International, the international events company of Dubai World Trade Centre (DWTC) and the organiser of GITEX GLOBAL – the world’s largest tech show taking place in the UAE, Ai Everything Global will be hosted at the ADNEC Centre Abu Dhabi, part of ADNEC Group, in strategic partnership with the Abu Dhabi Department of Culture and Tourism (DCT). It will annually converge international influential brokers from private and public sectors to catalyse the development of a future economy powered by AI under the bold and visionary UAE leadership.

His Excellency Faisal Al Bannai, Adviser to the UAE President & Secretary General of the Advanced Technology Research Council (ATRC), said: “In Abu Dhabi and the UAE, our commitment to AI innovation, advanced technologies, and R&D underpins a dynamic ecosystem that empowers talent and drives strategic progress. Today, we are proud to support Ai Everything Global in Abu Dhabi – an annual gathering that brings influential AI shapers and innovators to our capital to challenge conventions and explore synergies in the safe development and deployment of AI, strengthening the UAE’s role as an architect of future intelligence-driven economies.”

Humaid Matar Al Dhaheri, Managing Director and Group Chief Executive Officer of ADNEC Group, said: “Bringing Ai Everything Global to Abu Dhabi is a testament to ADNEC Group’s commitment to positioning the capital as a global hub for technological innovation and artificial intelligence. This event aligns with our vision to foster cutting-edge advancements, attract world-class expertise and drive meaningful dialogue on the future of AI. By hosting Ai Everything Global, we are creating a platform that empowers industries, governments and innovators to harness AI’s transformative potential, reinforcing Abu Dhabi’s leadership in shaping the future of technology and digital economies.”

Trixie LohMirmand, CEO of KAOUN International and EVP of Dubai World Trade Centre, said: “Ai Everything in Abu Dhabi and the UAE stands as the pivotal convergence of innovative advances in AI thinking, solutions, and global outcomes. The annual event compels stakeholders to reflect, recalibrate, and reset to respond to new challenges and paradigms, competitively yet collaboratively. Ai Everything Global Summit & Expo shall emerge as an international force in the global AI economy to influence policies, advanced tech developments, R&D, and investments; powering fast yet responsible adoption in governments, businesses, and civic societies. Building on the UAE’s already robust digital infrastructure fabric, Ai Everything Global ramps up its transition towards a human-centred AI knowledge economy.”

In partnership with all stakeholders, Ai Everything Global is committed to advance cross continental collaborations, enabling the transition of worldwide governments towards robust AI frameworks, optimising international talent development and deployment, harnessing the creation and responsible large-scale adoption of AI across industries, fostering R&D, and augmenting the power of AI for socio-economic growth.

The new home of Ai Everything Global, ADNEC Centre Abu Dhabi, is a world-class,
multi-award-winning venue, purpose-built to host major global events. Its state-of-the-art facilities, interconnected campus, and six onsite hotels make it a premier setting for high-level AI collaborations, cutting-edge technology showcases, and international policymaking forums.

This partnership with DCT Abu Dhabi underpins Abu Dhabi’s position as a thriving nexus for global AI dialogue and investment, fostering collaboration between public and private sector leaders to shape a future economy powered by AI.

UAE – The Rising AI Force

With AI projected to contribute $100 billion in national GDP contributions by 2030, Ai Everything Global 2026 will accelerate new tech infrastructure projects and sector-wide AI applications. The event aligns with the UAE National Strategy for Artificial Intelligence 2031 and the Abu Dhabi Government Digital Strategy 2025-2027, reaffirming the country’s role in shaping AI-driven economies.

Further solidifying its commitment to AI leadership, the UAE is actively engaged in global AI initiatives, including MGX’s participation in the $500 billion Stargate AI Consortium – the largest AI infrastructure, and the launch of the ADQ Growth Lab, committed $27 million to fund R&D testbed projects and accelerate AI adoption through proof-of-concepts and pilot programmes. In Dubai, a first-of-its-kind public-sector initiative has seen the appointment of several Chief AI Officers across government entities, ensuring AI integration remains at the forefront of policymaking and public service innovation.

Meanwhile, the UAE continues to drive AI talent development through its ambitious ‘One Million Arab Coders’ initiative, training and equipping the next generation with essential AI and coding skills to future-proof the region’s workforce.

Examining the winds of change in the ‘AI in Everything’ era

Inspired by GITEX GLOBAL, Ai Everything Global 2025 is taking place on 4 February in Abu Dhabi and 5 to 6 February in Dubai, opening with the Summit themed ‘Big Winds of Change: It’s AI in Everything’. As the year’s largest public-private global AI gathering, the event dives into the changing and unpredictable AI dynamics with 200+ speakers, alongside groundbreaking showcases, industry applications and use-cases from 500+ global tech enterprises and award-winning startups from over 70 countries.

World’s leading tech powerhouses will present how they are spearheading the interconnected AI revolution, with participation from ASUS, Alibaba Cloud, AWS, Dell, e&, Fortinet, G42, HP, and IBM to Intel, Lenovo, Nokia, Oracle, Palo Alto Networks, Red Hat, Technology Innovation Institute (TII), and Zoom. Over 500 Chief AI Officers (CAIOs) and Tech Executives will participate alongside 150 most-active global investors managing $70 billion in assets.

Tech News

IT services spend in MENA set to reach up to 28% of total IT budgets as services-led transformation accelerates

Published

on

The Middle East and North Africa (MENA) is entering a decisive, services-led growth phase in its IT sector, as enterprises and governments accelerate large-scale digital transformation initiatives. Investments in cloud computing, artificial intelligence (AI), data centres, and cybersecurity are reshaping technology priorities, with implementation, integration, and managed services gaining prominence over traditional software-led models.

Industry analysis by Grand View Research (GVR) reveals that IT services currently account for around 21–22% of total IT spending across MENA, a share expected to rise to between 26 and 28% by the end of the decade. The region’s professional IT services market, valued at USD 33.9 billion (Dh124.5 billion) in 2024, is forecast to grow to nearly USD 58.3 billion (Dh214 billion) by 2030, registering a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of approximately 9.5%.

Sourav Bhanja, Middle East Head of GVR, said: “Many B2B IT services firms in the region continue to underinvest in digital engagement. Professional platforms such as LinkedIn remain underutilised, while company websites often lack strong case studies, sector-specific storytelling, and clear positioning.”

Government-led digitalisation programmes, sovereign cloud deployments, smart city initiatives, and national data strategies, coupled with rising enterprise adoption across sectors such as banking and financial services, healthcare, energy, logistics, and public infrastructure, are driving this shift. As hyperscalers and global technology firms expand their regional footprint, demand for localised integration, migration, and managed services continues to accelerate.

Bhanja also emphasised the importance of leadership visibility in the region’s competitive IT market: “Technical capability alone is no longer enough. Firms that combine deep technical expertise with consistent marketing, strong leadership visibility, and clear communication of value are the ones most likely to succeed in the MENA market.”

The analysis highlights that with growing competition among IT services providers, market visibility and differentiation have emerged as critical growth drivers. Integrated, always-on digital marketing strategies are increasingly vital, as many B2B IT services firms underutilise channels such as LinkedIn, websites, thought leadership content, newsletters, blogs, infographics, and short-form video to engage decision-makers.

Market data also indicates a broader shift towards digital-first engagement. Digital advertising spend in the Middle East, estimated at USD 32 billion (Dh117 billion) in 2024, is projected to rise sharply to USD 81.4 billion (Dh298.9 billion) by 2030, growing at a CAGR of 16.7%. In contrast, the regional events and conferences market is expected to expand at a more modest 7.1% CAGR, reflecting changing enterprise marketing priorities.

Grand View Research concluded that IT services firms combining technical depth with strong market communication, data-driven marketing, and visible leadership will be best positioned to capture the next phase of growth across MENA.

Continue Reading

Tech News

Loylogic Shares 2026 Vision to Advance the Global Rewards Marketplace

Published

on

Advanced AI innovation, intelligent marketplace design, and trusted global infrastructure position Loylogic for continued leadership in rewards and loyalty commerce.

Gabi Kool, CEO, Loylogic

As the Middle East loyalty market is projected to reach $3.27 billion in 2025, expanding 16.3% year-on-year, and digital-first, personalized, and coalition-based models reshape the industry, brands face rising expectations around relevance and engagement. Against this evolving landscape, Loylogic, a leader in global loyalty rewards management, today shared its 2026 strategic outlook, outlining how the company is evolving its global rewards marketplace to support brands navigating rapidly changing loyalty expectations.


The company enters the year with a renewed focus on continued investment in AI-powered rewards marketplace intelligence, enhanced catalogue curation, and deeper integration capabilities designed to improve reward relevance, partner value, and member experience across industries and geographies. Rather than simply expanding choice, Loylogic’s approach centres on intelligent rewards marketplace design, aligning consumer relevance, operational efficiency, and long-term value creation within a single global platform.

To support enterprise scale deployment, Loylogic continues to operate under a robust compliance and security, compliance and governance framework. The company adheres to internationally recognised standards ISO 27001, GDPR, PCI DSS, and AES-256 encryption, ensuring secure and trusted data handling across every layer of its technology while maintaining alignment with the European Accessibility Act 2025 and WCAG 2.0. All platforms remain adaptable to regional data residency and regulatory requirements.

“As loyalty programs mature, brands are looking beyond scale alone,” said Gabi Kool, CEO of Loylogic. “They want reward ecosystems that are smarter, more relevant, and commercially sound. Our focus for 2026 is about advancing how global rewards marketplaces are designed, governed, and experienced, combining intelligence, trust, and flexibility.”

Advanced AI innovation is central to Loylogic’s next phase of growth. Loylogic continues to enhance its use of advanced analytics and machine learning to support smarter reward discovery, improved marketplace performance, and deeper insights for loyalty operators, while maintaining strict standards for privacy, security, and compliance.

“Our innovation efforts are focused on making rewards marketplaces more intelligent and adaptive,” said Amit Bendre, COO of Loylogic. “This means better insight, better decision support, and better experiences, without compromising on trust, transparency, or regulatory rigor.”


Looking ahead to 2026, Loylogic plans to deepen collaboration with global partners, engage more actively with industry stakeholders, and selectively strengthen capabilities across commercial, product, and technology functions, supporting a growing pipeline of enterprise clients across financial services, travel, and consumer sectors. With a proven global infrastructure, deep marketplace expertise, and a clear strategic direction, Loylogic continues to help leading brands transform everyday engagement into meaningful, long-term loyalty.

About Loylogic

Loylogic is a leader in global rewards marketplaces for loyalty and incentives management, enabling brands to deliver scalable, flexible engagement experiences through a modern commerce platform. Its global catalog and redemption marketplace support meaningful engagement across B2C, B2E, and B2B programs worldwide. With deep expertise in sourcing, fulfilment, and patented points-plus-cash innovation, Loylogic has enabled over 200 billion points and miles transactions, delivered more than $1 billion in commerce, and shipped experiences spanning 100+ categories across 190 countries to more than 10 million loyalty members worldwide.

Continue Reading

Tech News

Webook.com Strengthens UAE Footprint, Bringing World-Class Entertainment Experiences

Published

on

Webook.com, one of the fastest-growing platforms for booking lifestyle and entertainment experiences in the Middle East, is deepening its footprint in the United Arab Emirates following strong traction across the country.

Founded with a vision to transform how people discover and book experiences, webook.com continues to elevate convenience through a unified platform that brings together entertainment, dining, and leisure in a seamless digital journey.

Within the UAE, webook.com has rapidly expanded its user base while curating a lineup of world-class experiences. From comedy nights with Bassem Youssef to electrifying Teddy Swims concerts and the magic of Disney on Ice, webook.com continues to bring some of the region’s most unforgettable events to audiences across the UAE. Beyond these major hosted events, users can also book global entertainment experiences, including MDLBEAST, Riyadh Season, AFCON and other leading events happening across MENA.

Commenting on the expansion, Nadeem Bakhsh, CEO of webook.com, said: “Webook.com was built to curate the experiences that matter most, from front-row access to world-class entertainment to discovering hidden local gems. Expanding our footprint to the UAE allows us to bring a carefully selected lineup of events and experiences to the region. Our goal is to continue providing variety, quality, and seamless access to unforgettable moments.”

As the platform widens its presence across the UAE, it continues to strengthen partnerships with top entertainment brands, cultural institutions, and iconic venues, enabling users to access an unmatched selection of events and experiences.

Webook.com’s technology has proven itself across multiple markets, handling millions of transactions during major events, tournaments, and high-demand ticket releases. With real-time queueing, robust infrastructure, and flexible integration, webook.com delivers landmark events with unmatched reliability and scale.

With momentum accelerating in the UAE, webook.com aims to transform how people discover, plan, and enjoy experiences, turning every booking into the start of a memorable story. Beyond expanding its presence, webook.com is shaping a movement centered on connection, culture, and the joy of shared moments.

Continue Reading

Trending

Copyright © 2023 | The Integrator