Exclusive: Dubai’s Digital Government chief says speed trumps spending in AI efficiency race

When Dubai launched its State of AI Report in April 2025, revealing over 100 high-impact AI use instances, the emirate wasn’t simply showcasing technological prowess—it was making a calculated wager that speed, not spending, would decide which cities win the worldwide race for AI-powered governance.

In an unique interview, Matar Al Hemeiri, Chief Executive of Digital Dubai Government Establishment, revealed how Dubai’s strategy to AI authorities efficiency differs basically from each its regional opponents and established Asian tech hubs—and why the emirate believes its mannequin of fast deployment paired with binding moral frameworks affords a blueprint different governments will finally comply with.

The DubaiAI benefit: 180 companies, one digital assistant

While neighbouring Abu Dhabi introduced a $4.8 billion funding to turn into the world’s first absolutely AI-powered authorities by 2027, Dubai has taken a unique path. “Abu Dhabi’s funding is concentrated on constructing an end-to-end AI-powered authorities infrastructure,” Al Hemeiri defined. “Dubai’s mannequin is to embed AI ethics, interoperability, and explainability right into a scalable governance framework.”

The outcomes are already seen. DubaiAI, the citywide AI-powered digital assistant, now gives data on greater than 180 public companies—a determine that represents one of the vital complete authorities AI chatbot deployments globally. The system handles 60% of routine authorities inquiries whereas reducing operational prices by 35%.

But Al Hemeiri pushed again towards the narrative that AI automation inevitably means job losses. “Automation frees our workforce from repetitive, informational duties,” he stated. “Employees are being reskilled and redeployed into higher-value roles equivalent to AI oversight, service design, and strategic coverage work.”

The timing couldn’t be extra important. Dubai’s inhabitants development has created an “immense spike in demand for presidency companies,” in keeping with Al Hemeiri, making AI-driven efficiency not only a aggressive benefit however an operational necessity.

Speed as technique: From pilot to deployment in months

What units Dubai aside in AI authorities efficiency isn’t simply what it builds—it’s how rapidly it deploys. “In Dubai, as soon as an AI initiative is introduced, it’s swiftly activated, shifting from pilot to deployment inside months, far quicker than the worldwide norm,” Al Hemeiri emphasised.

The numbers again this declare. In 2025, over 96% of presidency entities had adopted a minimum of one AI resolution, and 60% of surveyed customers most well-liked AI-supported companies. 

Dubai benchmarks itself towards main good cities like Singapore, Berlin, Helsinki, and Tallinn, however argues its integration of AI ethics immediately into procurement and deployment gives a decisive edge.

“Our aggressive edge lies in the speed with which Dubai operationalises its ethics,” Al Hemeiri stated, addressing a standard criticism that AI governance frameworks are purely theoretical. “The AI Policy shouldn’t be a theoretical framework; it’s a binding set of ideas and technical necessities utilized to each AI deployment throughout authorities.”

This strategy builds on the Ethical AI Toolkit launched in 2019, making Dubai one of many few cities globally the place moral compliance is embedded from procurement to efficiency analysis.

Beyond chatbots: Healthcare, power, and predictive companies

While DubaiAI captures headlines, Al Hemeiri pointed to less-publicised implementations delivering measurable impression. AI fashions are actually detecting power situations equivalent to diabetes at earlier levels, whereas predictive algorithms enhance auditing programs throughout the Dubai Health Authority. 

In power infrastructure, good grids powered by real-time AI forecasting instruments are optimising consumption and decreasing environmental impression. The most bold challenge at the moment in growth is Dubai’s predictive public companies platform, which is able to use built-in knowledge and AI to anticipate citizen wants—from automated license renewals to preventive healthcare notifications. 

“We have begun efforts on constructing this challenge, with full rollout focused for the early 2030s,” Al Hemeiri revealed. Elements of this imaginative and prescient are already being examined by way of AI-enabled city planning instruments and citywide digital twins that simulate coverage outcomes earlier than implementation.

Data sovereignty: A hybrid mannequin between China and GDPR

Dubai’s strategy to knowledge governance affords a center path between China’s strict localisation necessities and the EU’s GDPR framework. “Dubai’s mannequin affords a hybrid—anonymised citizen knowledge stays inside Dubai’s jurisdiction below strong sovereignty legal guidelines, however will be securely shared throughout entities with the consumer’s consent for presidency companies, by way of the nation’s official digital id platform: UAE PASS,” Al Hemeiri defined.

A key differentiator is Dubai’s embrace of artificial knowledge frameworks. “They permit us to develop and take a look at AI programs at scale whereas preserving privateness and sustaining compliance with Dubai’s knowledge sovereignty necessities,” he stated. This strategy permits quicker innovation cycles whereas addressing privateness issues which have hampered AI growth in different jurisdictions.

The startup sandbox: Real integration, not simply regulatory reduction

Dubai positions itself as a testing floor for AI startups, however Al Hemeiri argued the emirate affords greater than regulatory flexibility. “Dubai’s AI sandboxes mix regulatory flexibility with direct entry to authorities datasets and real-world testing environments,” he stated.

One healthcare diagnostics startup piloted inside Dubai’s sandbox has already built-in its AI triage device into Dubai Health Authority companies. 

“Because our ecosystem operates as an interconnected digital working system, startups in our sandboxes can take a look at options that seamlessly combine with different metropolis companies, from mobility improvements just like the Dubai Loop and eVTOL air taxis to healthcare AI diagnostics,” Al Hemeiri defined.

Converting international consideration into financial returns

Dubai AI Week 2025 attracted contributors from 100 nations and partnerships with Meta, Google, Microsoft, and OpenAI. But Al Hemeiri insisted the emirate is concentrated on changing consideration into tangible outcomes. 

“We have established post-event working teams with every of those companions to establish and speed up joint tasks,” he stated, citing AI upskilling packages, R&D collaborations, and pilot deployments in healthcare, mobility, and concrete planning.

These partnerships feed immediately into Dubai’s D33 Economic Agenda, which goals to generate AED 100 billion yearly from digital innovation. The State of AI Report tasks AI may contribute over AED 235 billion to Dubai’s economic system by 2030—a determine that represents almost 20% of the emirate’s focused financial growth.

Quiet wins and future dangers

When pressed about initiatives that ship worth with out media fanfare, Al Hemeiri highlighted the UN Citiverse Challenge, co-led by Digital Dubai and international companions, which brings collectively innovators to design AI-powered options for inclusive public companies and sustainability. 

He additionally pointed to Dubai Future Foundation’s autonomous supply robotic, already being piloted on Dubai streets to enhance last-mile supply efficiency whereas decreasing congestion and emissions.

On dangers, Al Hemeiri was direct: “The biggest danger is scaling with out adequate oversight.” Dubai mitigates this by way of steady system audits and a requirement for explainability in all public sector AI. 

Al Hemeiri added that guaranteeing ROI “is essential for us when deciding to construct an AI use case. We calculate this when planning a challenge, and solely transfer forward as soon as we’re satisfied we will attain the anticipated ROI for town.”

The five-year take a look at

Asked what would represent failure 5 years from now, Al Hemeiri stated that it “would imply fragmented AI adoption with out enhancing citizen belief, efficiency, or high quality of life.”

Success, conversely, could be “when AI-powered public companies are seamless, anticipatory, and inclusive, easing the lives of residents and residents, and naturally turning into a blueprint replicated by different governments globally.”

It’s an bold imaginative and prescient—one which positions Dubai not simply as a quick follower in AI authorities efficiency, however as a possible mannequin for the way cities can deploy transformative know-how at speed with out sacrificing moral oversight or public belief.

Whether that mannequin proves replicable past Dubai’s distinctive governance construction and sources stays the central query. But with 96% of presidency entities already adopting AI options and deployment timelines measured in months relatively than years, Dubai is testing that speculation in real-time—and betting that in the race to construct AI-powered governments, velocity issues as a lot as imaginative and prescient.

(Photo by David Rodrigo)

See additionally: UAE to teach its children AI

Want to study extra about AI and massive knowledge from trade leaders? Check out AI & Big Data Expo going down in Amsterdam, California, and London. The complete occasion is a part of TechEx and is co-located with different main know-how occasions, click on here for extra data.

AI News is powered by TechForge Media. Explore different upcoming enterprise know-how occasions and webinars here.

The submit Exclusive: Dubai’s Digital Government chief says speed trumps spending in AI efficiency race appeared first on AI News.