Photos: Hamdan bin Mohammed attends Dubai Metaverse Assembly at the Museum of the Future

Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Crown Prince of Dubai, visits Dubai Metaverse Assembly at Emirates Towers in Dubai. 28th September 2022. The inaugural two-day Dubai Metaverse Assembly opened on Wednesday at the Museum of the Future with a call to place people at the heart of the virtual world.

Sheikh Hamdan graced the event and tweeted: “More than 500 global experts are in Dubai to design the future of the metaverse and explore its potential applications. Dubai remains a global hub for testing and developing future technologies.”

“We are constantly working to foster the development of technological tools and applications to raise the community’s quality of life. In the coming years, the metaverse will shape a new digital future for humanity and Dubai will consolidate its status as a testbed for innovation in this emerging technology,” he added.

The UAE Ministry of Economy has announced the opening of its new address - which it can be ‘visted’ from anywhere in the world as it is located inside in metaverse. The announcement was made by Abdulla bin Touq Al Marri, UAE Minister of Economy, during a panel discussion on the opening day of Dubai Metaverse Assembly at the Museum of the Future on Wednesday.

Earlier in the day, Khalfan Belhoul, CEO of Dubai Future Foundation, gave the welcome address and said embracing the metaverse is about creating a digital environment that is safe for humans and to do this, “humans should be put at the heart of it”.

Metaverse is an online, 3D, virtual universe connecting users in all aspects of their lives. Like the internet, it connects multiple platforms through a single browser. The metaverse is not yet fully in existence but it is dubbed as the future iteration of the internet that will allow users to work, meet, game, and socialise in these 3D virtual spaces. Above, exhibitors at Microsoft stand at the Dubai Metaverse Assembly at Emirates Towers in Dubai.

Metaverse is still at its nascent stage and many do not understand how it will develop or how it can change the world. For starters, one can think of online network games where players from around the world play the same game together as a simple example of the metaverse.

Belhoul described the metaverse as a “quantum transformation” and said adaptation to this evolving technology is a must. “There will be many challenges,” he noted, adding: “We must focus more on the opportunities. We cannot take for granted this growing digital economy.”

From an economic perspective, Belhoul pointed out metaverse has a great potential as it will contribute up to $5 trillion to the global economy by 2030 and will infiltrate every sector in the coming years, with the market opportunity estimated at over $1 trillion in yearly revenues.

Belhoul also underscored the world today is mostly driven by technology and this shift has been more pronounced during the pandemic. “Humans have always adapted to changes and transformation. Collaboration is the key to understanding the challenges and exploring the possibilities of the metaverse,” he added.