World’s largest gathering of futurists convene in Dubai on Nov 27

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Dubai Future Forum commences on November 27 and will run for two days.

Organised by Dubai Future Foundation (DFF), the forum is taking place at the Museum of the Future.

The forum is showcasing four main themes: reimagining nature, empowering future generations, the human-machine relationship, and transformations in human life.

More than 150 speakers from the UAE and around the world will participate in 70 panel discussions and keynote speeches, in addition to workshops covering areas such as space, sustainability, environment, energy, food, health, medicine, education, technology, artificial intelligence, digital economy, governance, and others.

The forum will be attended by more than 2,500 futurists from 100 countries, in addition to around 100 international institutions.

Activities at the Dubai Future Forum

The first day of the two-day forum will host panel discussions, keynotes, fireside chats, workshops, and more, bringing together Ambassador Majid Al-Suwaidi, director general and special representative of the UAE COP28 Presidency; UAE astronauts Dr Sultan Al Neyadi and Hazza Al Mansouri from Mohammed Bin Rashid Space Centre, NASA astronauts Stephen Bowen and Warren Hoburg; and Paul Savo, assistant professor at Stanford University.

The speakers will discuss topics such as the currency of the future, innovations in the energy sector, the role of strategic foresight in developing future policies and preparing for the era of artificial intelligence.

Ohood Al Roumi, UAE Minister of State for Government Development and Future, will start the second day with a keynote address on how to develop effective, sustainable policies.Another keynote speech will follow from Dr Mary Lou Jepsen, CEO, founder and chairwoman of Openwater, in which she will discuss disease diagnosis and cures.

The second and final day of the Dubai Future FOrum will also host Professor Marc Buckley, regenerative futurist, ALOHAS Regenerative Foundation; Whurley (William Hurley), founder and CEO of Strangeworks; Professor Matthew Agarwala from the University of Cambridge, Laurel Patterson from UNDP; Daniel Blume from the OECD and Dr Grzegorz Ombach from Airbus; in addition to several artists.

They will discuss quantum computing, how nations will define success in the future, how nature and tech will change city planning, how we can foster ethical algorithmic decision-making, and what travel will look like in 2071.

A workshop on day two will also see the launch of the UNICEF Youth Foresight Playbook.

On the sidelines of the Dubai Future Forum, Dubai Future Labs and its partners at Japan Science and Technology Agency and the MIT Senseable Dubai Lab will showcase work across robotics, automation, and data to better understand the urban landscape.

Another activation will present visitors an opportunity to safely taste cultivated meat, and chocolate created in a lab, as well as eggs and milk produced completely animal-free.