GITEX Tech Week Gears Up For Over 100,000 Tech Enthusiasts

Technology events GITEX Technology Week and GITEX Future Stars are preparing for over 100,000 tech enthusiasts and business leaders, attending from over 140 countries. With Middle East and North Africa (MENA) IT spending expected to reach USD 160 billion in 2019, the 39th edition of GITEX Technology Week and the fourth edition of GITEX Future Stars will feature all-new sections on lifestyle tech and future mobility – trends which will embody a world of ubiquitous devices and driverless, next-generation transport.

Across its 1.4 million square foot venue, GITEX Technology Week will welcome over 4,800 exhibitors from over 140 countries, and host 290 hours of content over five days, while GITEX Future Stars, the leading event for tomorrow’s brightest technological minds, will feature over 750 international startups and corporate accelerators, and more than 1,500 investors and corporate buyers.

AI is expected to contribute almost 14 percent of the UAE’s GDP by 2030, equivalent to USD 96 billion, and in preparation for this shift, GITEX will see AI global tech powerhouses show how the world will be redefined by self-driving vehicles, intelligent robots and effective cybersecurity solutions.

World-leading AI expert and GITEX keynote speaker Dr Ben Goertzel, Chairman and Chief Scientist of Singularity Studio, and CEO and Founder of SingularityNET Foundation, will reveal how AI will merge with blockchain to create deep value for businesses and society, increase human life expectancy and support medical research. Dr Goertzel is well-known in the technology world as the former chief scientist of Hanson Robotics, creator of social humanoid robot Sophia.

Device sales are expected to reach USD 26.9 billion in MENA and GITEX’s new lifestyle tech segment will feature sneak peeks at products from tech companies that are yet to be launched in the UAE.

Nearly a decade in the making, 5G is finally becoming a reality and is set to transform the Middle East’s economy. GITEX’s 5G countdown conference agenda will explore how 5G will revolutionize Industry 4.0, smart cities and autonomous vehicles, as well as getting to the bottom of 5G security concerns.

MENA is set to be at the center of the 5G revolution, with 30 million 5G mobile subscriptions expected in the region by 2024, and all six GCC countries expected to launch 5G mobile services in the next two years. GITEX will include 5G players including China Mobile, Cisco, du, Etisalat, Nokia and STC.

“GITEX 2019 is about showing tomorrow, today. The UAE is amongst the first countries in the world to launch 5G. This year at GITEX we will launch our 5G services,” said Osman Sultan, CEO, du.

Leaders Of Tomorrow: GITEX Future Stars
GITEX Future Stars will spotlight the transformative impact of generation Z with the introduction of its NXG Stage. The latest generation of digital natives, Gen Z are at the forefront of the digital economy, with a buying power of USD 44 billion. With 60 percent of the MENA region population under the age of 25, GITEX will provide a platform for the future’s technology leaders, developers and consumers on the dedicated Gen Z stage.

GITEX Future Stars will see the Government of Abu Dhabi looking to make its mark on the event, with the emirate’s innovation prospects including Hub71, Abu Dhabi Global Market (ADGM), Start AD, Krypto Labs, Department of Health Abu Dhabi, all aiming to put Abu Dhabi on the map as the innovation hub of the future.

Abu Dhabi has pledged AED 535 million into Hub71, a new initiative supported by Mubadala Investment Company, Microsoft, SoftBank Vision Fund and ADGM, to attract startups to set up shop in the UAE capital.

GITEX Future Stars will give startups the chance to pitch their ideas against one another across a packed agenda of competitions. The GITEX Future Stars Supernova Challenge will be spread across 11 categories, including the NXG category, awarding the latest innovation from a Gen Z startup. There will also be innovation competitions from the Department of Tourism and Commerce Marketing in partnership with Accenture, and Department of Health Abu Dhabi.

“GITEX Technology Week is an international confluence of the greatest minds in technology, global business leaders in the industry and rising stars from the tech ecosystem. GITEX Future Stars has already built a reputation as the definitive platform in the Middle East and North Africa for startup content, and this year will spotlight just how Gen Z will define our future,” said Trixie LohMirmand, Senior Vice President, Events and Exhibitions, Dubai World Trade Centre.

Held under the theme ‘Synergizing the Mind and Technology Economy’, the 39th annual GITEX Technology Week and GITEX Future Stars will be hosted at Dubai World Trade Centre from October 6-10, 2019. GITEX will focus on ways to optimize the potential in the relationship between next-generation technology and the power of human thought and creativity for augmented societal good.