The company invites visitors to enter the next digital universe with the soft launch of its virtual world — e& universe &, formerly known as Etisalat Group, is set to enthral visitors at Gitex Global 2022 by inviting them to enter the next digital universe with the soft launch of its virtual world — e& universe. Hatem Dowidar, Group CEO, e&, said this move marks a significant achievement in the group’s transformation journey to a global technology and investment conglomerate, as it takes its first steps into the metaverse. “Metaverse technology may be in the early incubation stages, given that it needs high-bandwidth and low-latency communications to work at scale. Still, telcos must consider harnessing its potential for the betterment of lives, whether it is a virtual playground or shopping destination, or even using it as a training ground for smarter, more efficient AI and industrial manufacturing processes. To get it to work at the grand scale we all envision will...

UAE: 'Golden Pension' announced for expats to help boost gratuity National Bonds has launched the first-of-its-kind Golden Pension Scheme in the UAE to ramp up its suite of financial planning solutions for nationals and residents. The UAE’s leading Shariah-compliant savings and investment company said the pension scheme is developed in line with increasing de...

DMCC rolls out full suite of sustainability projects to drive decarbonisation and sustainability in Dubai  DMCC – the world’s flagship free zone and Government of Dubai Authority on commodities trade and enterprise and master developer of the JLT District – has announced a range of sustainability projects to accelerate the decarbonisation of the Jumeirah Lakes Towers (JLT) community, in line with the Dubai Clean Energy and Net Zero Carbon Strategy 2050.   Following the announcement of the project earlier this year, DMCC signed a 20-year agreement with Etihad ESCO, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Dubai Electricity and Water Authority (DEWA) the Water, Energy, Technology and Environment Exhibition (WETEX) 2022 that will see the majority of the JLT Cluster’s car parking areas provided with solar car shades. Making JLT home to one of the UAE’s largest district solar car shade installations, the project will result in a significant reduction in DEWA tariffs for the distric...

Dubai Airport Freezone Authority. Dubai Airport Freezone (DAFZ), part of Dubai Integrated Economic Zones Authority (DIEZ), is set to be the latest company to join the metaverse in Dubai. It has announced the launch of METADAFZ, which aims to provide the free zone’s clients with a smooth digital experience in the metaverse. DAFZ will make the official announcement at GITEX 2022 , which will take place from October 10-14 at the Dubai World Trade Centre. Metaverse in Dubai strategy The launch of this initiative aligns with the directives of Dubai’s Metaverse Strategy, which was announced by H.H. Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Crown Prince of Dubai and Chairman of Dubai Executive Council, to  advance Dubai’s metaverse economy . The initiative aims to attract foreign direct investment (FDI) and businesses to the free zone, by uncovering DAFZ’s unique offerings, products, and solutions to advance the Emirate’s leading position as a hub for competitive and constructive ...

Lender's estimate for Emirates' non-oil economy has been revised upward to 4.7% in 2022 from 4.1% Aerial view of Abu Dhabi. Business activity in the UAE's non-oil private sector economy has bounced back strongly in 2022. Courtesy: DCT Abu Dhabi Emirates NBD has raised its economic growth forecast for the UAE to 7 per cent for 2022, due to a higher estimate for the energy industry's output and the "robust growth" of its non-oil sector, setting up the country for its fastest annual expansion in over a decade. The latest revision from Dubai's biggest lender compares with an earlier 5.7 per cent estimate and would be the highest since 2011, when the economy grew by 6.9 per cent. Last week, Abu Dhabi Commercial Bank raised its UAE growth forecast for this year to 6.2 per cent from an earlier 6.0 per cent estimate, largely on the back of strong real non-oil GDP growth. The UAE economy is expected to grow by 5.4 per cent and 4.2 per cent in 2022 and 2023, respect...

Salik debuts listing and trading of its shares on Dubai Financial Market              Salik debuts listing and trading of its shares on Dubai Financial Market DUBAI, 29th September, 2022 (WAM) -- Dubai Financial Market (DFM) today welcomed the listing of shares of Salik Company (PJSC), the leading company in the field of traffic tariff systems at the regional level and the exclusive toll gates operator in Dubai. This is the third public offering and listing on the DFM in 2022 to date, as part of the accelerated steps to implement Dubai’s strategy to develop financial markets, which includes offering shares in ten leading entities. Mattar Al Tayer, Chairman of Salik, rang the DFM market opening bell to celebrate the listing, in the presence of Helal Al Marri, Chairman of the DFM, Ibrahim Sultan Al Haddad, Chief Executive Officer of Salik and Hamed Ali, CEO of the DFM and Nasdaq Dubai, as well as senior executives from both sides. The Company's shares be...

  Abu Dhabi's Kizad signs lease with NWTN for electric vehicle assembly plant Abu Dhabi's Kizad signs lease with NWTN for electric vehicle assembly plant Khalifa Industrial Zone Abu Dhabi (Kizad) signed a lease agreement with green mobility technology company NWTN to establish an electric vehicle assembly plant in Abu Dhabi. Under the agreement, NWTN plans to initially operate a 25,000-square-metre manufacturing, research and development, vehicle testing and logistics facility constructed by Kizad, which is part of  AD Ports  Group, Abu Dhabi Media Office said on Tuesday. The facility will have an annual capacity of 5,000 to 10,000 units for the assembly of semi-knocked-down electric vehicles. The first phase is due to be completed in the fourth quarter of 2022. In the second phase, NWTN plans to introduce several new electric vehicle models and expand capacity to 50,000 units annually.

Abu Dhabi unboxes the Middle East's first quantum supercomputer Abu Dhabi unboxes the Middle East's first quantum supercomputer Achieving a temperature 100 times colder than deep outer space is about to become possible in  Abu Dhabi   – and in August. But this isn’t about escaping the summer heat. Quantum physicists at the capital’s Technology Innovation Institute have begun building the Middle East’s first  quantum computer. “This will put the UAE on the map to be a known entity for research on such a topic. And that’s a big achievement for the entire Arab world,” Boulos Alfakes, a senior researcher, told  The National . For the “brain” of  the supercomputer  to work, the one-by-one centimeter chip must operate in an extremely chilled environment. Two dilution refrigerators, which can supply the constant deep freeze, arrived from Finland in massive wooden crates marked “extremely fragile scientific equipment”. The aluminum that will hold the quantum chip, ...

  The gigantic moon hotel that could be built in Dubai Moon on Earth:  Moon World Resorts wants to build a series of gigantic dome-like hotels resembling the moon. Here's an artistic rendering of what a Dubai-based iteration of Moon World Resorts could look like, pictured where the Burj Khalifa is in real life. Courtesy Moon World Resorts Inc. (CNN) —  Whether it's a  blast into suborbital space  or a  hotel stay among the stars , space tourism entrepreneurs believe one day we'll all be opting for out-of-this-world vacations. The team behind Moon World Resorts reckon so too -- sort of. They want to build a series of gigantic dome-like hotels resembling the moon, sitting here on planet Earth. More precisely, in Dubai. Each sphere will be a 360-degree recreation of the moon on a grand scale, complete with realistic-looking craters and texture. Each recreated moon could tower 735 feet high (224 meters) with a 2,042 foot circumference, depending on location and...