“Usually, the gap between [industrial] revolutions is around 100 years,” says H.E. Khalfan Belhoul, CEO of the Dubai Future Foundation (DFF). But with the Fifth Industrial Revolution (5IR) following only 10-20 years from the fourth, “the delta is much smaller.”

This accelerating pace of change is taking place against a backdrop of unprecedented challenges to humanity: climate change, aging populations, and the impact of AI.

The DFF is “Dubai’s lab,” says Belhoul, where futurists convene to tackle these megatrends head-on. First, by anticipating what’s coming. Second, by nurturing innovative solutions through a combination of agile regulation, funding, and partnerships.

The end-goal is to transform Dubai into the flagship city of the future – a hotbed of futurist thinking where impossible ideas become reality, so that they can spread across the world.

Mapping the future

“Before we do anything, we need to understand where the future’s heading,” says Belhoul.

The DFF’s “best-in-class, in-house team” of researchers work regularly with international peers through its Global Futures Society program – the world’s largest futurist network, comprising major international institutions concerned with future design and strategic planning.

The DFF also hosts the annual Dubai Future Forum, convening “futurists, foresight practitioners, thought leaders and experts from academia and various industries” from over 100 countries.

“The sky's the limit on how much Dubai can contribute to a better future.”

— H.E. Khalfan Belhoul, CEO of Dubai Future Foundation

Belhoul cites “the usual suspects” like AI, autonomous mobility, blockchain and climate change as topics currently occupying futurists.

But he also stresses the “massive opportunity with materials,” in particular, reducing plastic waste – in part by innovating new, safer materials by harnessing 3D printing and nanotechnology.

The insights yielded from DFF work are disseminated to inform public policy and business strategy – but perhaps most importantly, to inspire innovation.

Incubating ideas

The foundation is active in creating an environment conducive to inventors, entrepreneurs and investors seeking to solve the challenges of the future – what Belhoul calls “launchpad for ideas.”

And that starts with “friendly regulations,” he says.

Too much oversight can stifle innovation, while too little risks letting underdeveloped solutions loose before they’re ready. Dubai has adopted an agile approach, creating space for experimentation, but within supervised environments.

Part of the Dubai Economic Agenda, 'D33' - which aims to double the emirate's GDP within a decade - is flagship initiative Sandbox Dubai. The program connects startups with regulators to iron out compliance issues during development, and tailor future policy for launch.

“We actually invest directly into startups, but also anchor regional funds.”

— H.E. Khalfan Belhoul, CEO of Dubai Future Foundation

“How can we make last-mile drone delivery safe for people?” Belhoul offers as an example. “You need the aviation guys in the room, you need the regulators in the room, you need the investors and even the entrepreneurs that are building the drones.”

By joining the stakeholder dots from an early stage, the business can grow much faster – while ensuring the necessary guardrails are in place.

It’s all part of what Belhoul says is a philosophy of having an “enabling government that is acting as a platform… that creates hope for innovators to really thrive and flourish.”

But there are two more key pieces of the enabling puzzle: capital and talent.

Catalyzing the solutions

With the Dubai Future Fund, the DFF uses its sizable capital to de-risk what can be a volatile area, so as to attract further private finance.

“We actually invest directly into startups, but also anchor regional funds,” Belhoul explains. “And we look at global funds that also have a bullish view on the region.”

The fund “catalyzes the innovation ecosystem,” he adds. As more success stories emerge out of Dubai, more international investors arrive – generating more success stories.

The DFF also brings talent to the emirate. Its Dubai Future Accelerators invites startups from around the world to solve public-sector challenges, ranging from automating residence visas to solar-powered water generation.

Successful participants work with regional partners to pilot, commercialize and scale their solution, building networks with likeminded peers and potential clients along the way.

And DFF education programs deepen the talent pool. Dubai Future Academy runs courses in future-focused topics like AI, robotics, and systems thinking.

One Million Arab Coders, meanwhile, provides free training to students across the Arab world in everything from basic digital literacy to app development and machine learnings.

“Starting from Dubai, but for the world”

Just as Belhoul sees the DFF as a catalyst in Dubai’s innovation ecosystem, he sees Dubai as a catalyst for global transformation. The goal is to scale the emirate’s innovations outwards. “Starting from Dubai, but for the world,” he says.

It begins with forward-looking policy, laser-focused on humanity’s biggest challenges; an agile, flexible regulatory framework; and the capital and skills required to develop and scale solutions.

“With this kind of mindset, I think the sky’s the limit on how much Dubai and the UAE can contribute to a better future,” Belhoul concludes.