Dubai AI Festival 2026 brings global AI leaders together | DIFC

2026-10-26 · Dubai

Hosted by DIFC, Dubai AI Festival 2026 convenes global artificial intelligence leaders, investors, and policymakers over two days in Dubai to examine the next era of AI.

Dubai AI Festival 2026 brings together global policymakers, technology leaders, investors, founders, and innovators to explore the forces shaping the next era of artificial intelligence. The event features over 150 speakers, 500 investors, and 200 exhibitors across discussions on AI adoption, governance, investment, infrastructure, and ethics.

Founder brief

Who should attend

Founders building in AI and machine learning will find direct value here, particularly those seeking capital, enterprise partnerships, or regional expansion in the Middle East. Tech executives navigating AI governance, corporate adoption, and digital infrastructure should plan to attend.

What happens

Programming spans two days under the theme Where Intelligence Meets Opportunity. Sessions explore AI adoption, governance, investment, infrastructure, and ethics through panel discussions, workshops, and more than 50 roundtables, alongside a dedicated exhibition floor featuring over 200 demo tables.

Who's in the room

DIFC Authority Chief Executive Officer Arif Amiri hosts more than 150 speakers, including Glean founder Arvind Jain, ElevenLabs co-founder Mati Staniszewski, and G42 Group CEO Peng Xiao. Over 500 investors, enterprise leaders, and government policymakers from more than 100 countries fill the venue.

How to prepare

Target your investor pipeline early given the volume of capital in attendance, and refine a concise description of your technical architecture. Arrive ready to engage actively during roundtables and workshops, and test your product demonstrations thoroughly before setting up at the exhibition tables.

Organizer: Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC)

Register

At a glance

Format
Includes roundtables, workshops, and panel discussions.
Theme
Where Intelligence Meets Opportunity
Attendance
Attendees from over 100 countries expected, alongside 150+ speakers, 500 investors, 200 exhibitors and 50+ roundtables and workshops · 500 investors attending
Sectors
Ai ml

Speakers, judges and hosts

  • Arif Amiri — Chief Executive Officer, DIFC Authority (Host)
  • Arvind Jain — Founder and Chief Executive Officer, Glean (Speaker)
  • Duddilla Sridhar Babu — Cabinet Minister for Information Technology, Electronics & Communications, Industries & Commerce, and Legislative Affairs, Government of Telangana (Speaker)
  • Hussain Sajwani — Founder and Chairman, DAMAC Properties (Speaker)
  • Mati Staniszewski — Co-Founder & CEO, ElevenLabs (Speaker)
  • Paul Newman — Founder & CEO, Oxa (Speaker)
  • Peng Xiao — Group Chief Executive Officer, G42 (Speaker)
  • Qubad Talabani — Deputy Prime Minister, Kurdistan Regional Government (Speaker)
  • Salem Humaid Al Marri — Director General, Mohammed Bin Rashid Space Centre (Speaker)
  • Sanjog Gupta — Chief Executive Officer, International Cricket Council (Speaker)
  • Trevor Thompson — Global Managing Director, Scale AI (Speaker)

Sponsors and partners

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