A UAE minister called for greater recognition of domestic investors in driving industrial growth on day three of Make it in the Emirates 2026, as leaders gathered to explore how AI and advanced technology are reshaping the country’s manufacturing future.
His Excellency Mohamed Hassan Alsuwaidi, UAE Minister of Investment, told delegates that AI is already attracting more investment than any other sector in UAE history — and growing fast.
He introduced a new framing for how the UAE should think about capital: “It’s not FDI anymore — it’s DDI: Domestic Direct Investment. We need to do a better job elevating local investors and their role in society.”
He added that the scale of AI-driven projects is unlike anything the country has seen before. "Data centers alone cost more than a port or an airport. You’re talking hundreds of billions of dollars."
64% of UAE workers using GenAI
In a session on ‘Accelerating Industrial Technology Adoption at Scale’, industry leaders agreed that globally, adoption is lagging, warning that companies still wrestling with basic connectivity are already falling behind.
Stressing the importance of human capital in tech adoption, Maitha Al Suwaidi, Chief Strategy Officer at Microsoft, noted that the UAE ranks first globally for AI adoption, with 64% of the working-age population now using generative AI tools.
"One of our biggest assets in the UAE is people," she said. "We have the right workforce and we’re leading in that way."
AI already transforming industry on the ground
The real-world impact of AI was brought into sharp focus by Musabbeh Al Kaabi, CEO of ADNOC Upstream, who said the company has used AI to cut shutdown times — among the costliest disruptions in the energy sector — by almost 50%.
"But we’re just scratching the surface," he added. "The potential for AI to significantly transform our business is huge."
Onoud Al Marzooqi, Director of Industrial Development at ADIO, said the UAE’s technology adoption agenda supports national priorities outside of industrial growth: “We are enabling Emirati talent in AI while aligning with sustainability and Net Zero 2050 — it’s all integrated.”
In a session on how technology has enabled rPET in the UAE, Yousef Mohamed Al Marzooqi, Director of Standards and Technical Regulations at MoIAT, reframed the role of regulation in driving industrial growth.
"Clear regulation reduces and accelerates investment," he said, adding that even areas like packaging are being approached as economic opportunities: "It’s not just an environmental opportunity, but an investment opportunity."
Closing the day’s program, His Excellency Matar Ali Al Romaithi, Director General of the Planning and Procurement Directorate at Tawazun Council for Defence Enablement, discussed plans for a first-of-its-kind facility designed to help companies establish themselves and build local supply chains.
“Our focus is building a local supply chain with sovereignty, and also helping international companies position themselves within the region,” he said.
Make it in the Emirates 2026 is hosted by the Ministry of Industry and Advanced Technology (MoIAT), in collaboration with the Ministry of Culture, the Abu Dhabi Investment Office, the ADNOC Group and L’IMAD, and organized by the ADNEC Group.