The EdaraLab Digital Conference was held at Abu Dhabi Global Markets on Wednesday morning, and brought together regional leaders in business and digital sectors to discuss how increasing digital transformations were impacting on and affecting traditional industries, and how these industries can respond in the face of increasing online disruption, and use it as an opportunity.
The CEO of Abu Dhabi Global Market’s Registration Authority, Dharer Bin Dhaher Almheiri, opened the conference and welcomed the attendees to Abu Dhabi. He noted the important changes which digital technologies had on traditional industries as a whole, and spoke of his own experience within the financial sector as to the influence that these technologies continue to have. He spoke of his expectation of the results of the conference.
Speaking at the conference, Dharer Bin Dharer Almheiri said: “ADGM is pleased to be hosting such a trailblazing conference that explores global digital initiatives and offers insight into the digital transformation journey of organizations and the economy as a whole.
“The success of the nation has been due to its ability to adopt and explore digital technologies that have led to transformation in government practices, business models and society in general. Abu Dhabi is a prime example of this with its increased adaption of digital strategies in various projects and initiatives such as FinTech, Smart Cities, and the wide-scale E-government platform.”
The conference was addressed by Sunil Gupta, professor of Business Administration and Chair of the General Management Program at Harvard Business School, who discussed with the conference the findings of his extensive research amongst traditional and start-up businesses. He highlighted the need for corporations to adapt their business model, given the level of competitive disruption, and urged the gathered audience to rethink how they approached traditional problems in the digital age. His talk was based on his research into the activities of companies such as Amazon and Best Buy, and he noted how their business operations had not only been facilitated through the internet, but fundamentally shaped by it. His discussion was warmly received by the conference attendees.
Saleh AlHashemi, the CEO of Algorhtyma, discussed how his company has led the revolution of bringing big data capacities into the education sphere. He emphasised the benefits of the use of big data within school and universities, noting that through using such technologies, students have an improved performance, improve student’s learning experience, predict student’s best career paths, alongside improving the learning experience of students. He did note that whilst the application of such facilities and capacities within the educational context can be difficult, but he advocated the benefits of using big data.
Brigadier Khaled Alrazooqi, General Manager of the General Management of Artificial Intelligence at Dubai Police, spoke to the conference about how law enforcement in Dubai was integrating digital capacities into their core operations. He shared the process of developing ‘Smart Police Stations’, or SPS, which look to cater towards the needs of the general public through offering digital capacities.
Citizens can enjoy the benefits of a staffed police station around the clock through digital technologies, and with the additional application of AI in aerial surveillance and police robots, the residents of Dubai can enjoy being situated in one of the most smartly policed cities in the world.
