Why startup ecosystems have no rulebook

Dubai: In today’s innovation economy, geography matters less than connectivity. Every city that has tried to copy Silicon Valley has learned the same lesson: there is no rulebook. Startup ecosystems cannot be engineered by formulas or copied from one another. What works in one place will not work in another. Each city must identify its own strengths, find its own advantage and connect deliberately to the world.

We live in a borderless world. Blockchain ignores geography. AI has no passport. And talent can build, scale and fundraise from anywhere. That is why startup ecosystems that try to grow in silos are destined to fall behind. The ones that succeed are those that embrace openness and operate across borders.

The new center of innovation is not a single city but a corridor, stretching across Asia, the Middle East, Europe and the United States. These regions are no longer competing in isolation; they are increasingly interconnected through flows of capital, trade and talent. Positioned at the heart of this corridor, Abu Dhabi is uniquely placed to act as a global connector, enabling startups to reach across three continents with ease.

Abu Dhabi is taking the same borderless approach, with its own distinct advantages. The Emirate has a built a diverse, globally connected community of founders, investors and partners, one that thrives on collaboration rather than competition. The city’s tech startup community now brings together talent from dozens of nationalities and engages in an expanding network of cross-border partnerships.

Just as importantly, Abu Dhabi’s Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreements (CEPAs) with countries such as India, Türkiye and France give startups based in the UAE direct access to some of the world’s fastest-growing and most dynamic economies. These agreements are not just trade policies; they are launchpads for global expansion. This openness and connectivity gives the Emirate an edge, positioning it as a bridge between established global markets and the emerging corridors of innovation.

Singapore offers a compelling example. Despite its small domestic market, it ranks among the world’s top startup ecosystems, not because it followed a prescribed model, but because it embedded global connectivity into its DNA.

Partnerships are what unlock this potential. Startups do not scale alone, and neither do ecosystems. Corporates, investors and government partners are the accelerants that transform promising startups into global unicorns. Abu Dhabi has prioritized these partnerships, and the results are tangible: attracting larger, more advanced startups, raising larger rounds of capital, entering international markets and addressing challenges with solutions that resonate far beyond the region.

The lesson is clear. The winning hubs of the next decade will not be those that try to replicate existing models, nor those that measure success by scale alone or the ones with the loudest branding. They will be the ones that are borderless and purposefully connecting corridors of talent, capital and opportunity.

That is the bet Abu Dhabi has made. And it is already paying off, as the city develops into a hub where ambitious founders scale globally. Abu Dhabi is not following someone else’s rulebook, but building on an ecosystem designed for the future.

- The writer is Head of Growth & Strategy, Hub71