Dubai AI Week 2026 to convene government and tech leaders
Dubai AI Week attracted 30,000 participants in inaugural 2025 edition
#UAE #DubaiAIWeek2026 – Dubai Centre for Artificial Intelligence, overseen by Dubai Future Foundation (DFF), has announced the second edition of Dubai AI Week, to take place from 6-9 April 2026 under the patronage of Dubai Crown Prince H.H. Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of Defence and Chairman of the Board of Trustees of DFF. The four-day event focuses on six core pillars: empowering societies, governing the future, accelerating infrastructure, sustaining the planet, expanding frontiers of knowledge and reimagining health, bringing together government entities, senior officials, leading technology companies and global AI pioneers. Dubai AI Week 2026 will deliver a diverse programme including the AI Retreat, Dubai Assembly for AI, Dubai AI Festival, the Machines Can See Summit and specialised events designed to engage all segments of society, whilst reinforcing Dubai’s position as global hub for future technology and leading platform for shaping the future of AI.
SO WHAT? – The annual event aligns with objectives of the Dubai Universal Blueprint for Artificial Intelligence and supports the Dubai Economic Agenda (D33). However, it is also a global meeting for AI leaders from around the world and the increasing numbers of AI startups that have made Dubai their base. Dubai AI Week presents a significant opportunity for AI companies from the UAE and internationally to contribute to advancing the role and impact of AI across the digital economy through partnerships, agreements and collaborative initiatives between government, private sector, investors and start-ups.
Here are all the details about Dubai AI Week 2026:
Dubai Centre for Artificial Intelligence, and Dubai Future Foundation (DFF), has announced the second edition of Dubai AI Week, to take place from 6-9 April 2026 under the patronage of Dubai Crown Prince H.H. Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of Defence and Chairman of the Board of Trustees of DFF.
The inaugural edition of Dubai AI Week attracted over 30,000 participants and experts from around the world including major global technology companies and leading emerging start-ups, spanning 10 major activities across Dubai with more than 500 sessions and activations featuring over 700 speakers.
More than 30 partnership initiatives and agreements between government, private sector, investors and start-ups, were announced at last year’s event.
Experts participating in Dubai AI Week 2026 will address impact of AI across sectors, future jobs and skills, AI tools in education and research, AI’s role in leadership and governance, responsible AI and future of media among areas shaping societies worldwide.
The event features specialised meetings bringing together Chief AI Officers from public and private sectors to accelerate adoption and integration of advanced technologies across sectors, alongside developer convenings to spotlight technical contributions to building tools of the future.
The event presents opportunity for decision-makers, chief executives, technology pioneers and leading global companies to discuss current and future opportunities for AI tools, applications and use cases, highlighting potential to enhance government performance and quality of life for communities.
Dubai AI Week will bring together the following events and programmes:
Dubai AI Festival (7-8 April 2026) - Organised by Dubai AI Campus in partnership with DIFC, last year’s event attracted from 10,000 delegates and visitors from over 120 countries.
Global Prompt Engineering Championship (dates TBC) - The first championship was held in Dubai during May this year, with 40 finalists selected to showcase creative solutions evaluated by a panel of 12 experts. Organised by Dubai Future Foundation and Dubai Centre for Artificial Intelligence, the championship has a prize pool of AED 1 million ($270k)
Machines Can See (7-8 April 2026) - The 2026 edition of the world-class AI conference organised by Polynome in partnership with the UAE AI Office.
Dubai Assembly for AI (dates TBC) - A collaborative forum of ministers, CEOs and AI leaders. Held at at AREA71, organised by Dubai Future Foundation and Dubai Centre for Artificial Intelligence
Dubai AI Retreat (date TBC) - An exclusive gathering of AI leaders and decision-makers. Held at the Museum of the Future (Level 7) and at AREA71, organised by Dubai Future Foundation, Dubai Centre for Artificial Intelligence and the National Programme of Artificial Intelligence.
[Written and edited with the assistance of AI]
LINKS
Dubai AI Festival - 7-8 April, 2026
Global Prompt Engineering Championship - dates TBC
Machines Can See - 7-8 April 2026
Dubai Assembly for AI - date TBC
Dubai AI Retreat - date TBC
AI Innovations Conference - 22-24 April 2025
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