Mohammed Alabbar says his business is not real estate but the art of creating life through architecture

Abu Dhabi: Mohammed Alabbar, Founder and Chairman of Emaar Properties and Eagle Hills, has said his business is not selling property but creating life. He compared a developer’s role to that of a conductor, bringing together many different elements to create something greater.

Speaking in a live conversation session at LIVEX 2026, joining remotely, Alabbar said the residential product itself is "very boring". One-, two- and three-bedroom layouts have barely changed, he said, so the real work lies in everything around them: art, music, schools, wellness, landscaping, lighting and food.

Alabbar shared his experience across about 20 countries that taught him that a developer is always a guest in the community when asked about how developers can create lasting value.

respect for local culture, the environment, and the people who already live in a place. Developers enter communities as guests, he said, and should listen to local residents and authorities rather than assuming that one model will work everywhere.

Developers must also maintain what they build, he said, adding, "Don't be a cheater. Invest in the side parks.”

“I really think that we should balance between how much risk you're taking when it comes to putting an equity out and really assess markets well globally and read what's going on as much as you can,” he added.

He said good upkeep protects brand value and the quality of life of residents, for whom a home is the most important purchase of a lifetime.

Alabbar said his team now begins every project with "activation" before selling anything. In Belgrade, he said, explaining the concept, they cleared old ships from a 1.5-kilometre stretch of riverside and built cycling, walking and running routes, playgrounds and landscaped areas. Food containers were opened to the public.

These early investments of making a place useful and welcoming before building or selling homes there, which Alabbar called “activation”, helped bring people to the area before homes were built or sold. He said that over roughly nine years, property values there rose from about €1,700 to €6,000 per square meter.

Alabbar said technology and AI are making developers "smarter" and more efficient. He said the Maldives Waterfront and Marina project, which Eagle Hills announced last week, might not need a desalination plant, because advances in recycling water from air conditioning condensation, showers and sinks could remove the need.

The pace of planning is changing, too. Alabbar said that work once measured in months can now be completed in hours with in-house digital tools. 

He said master plans that once took about six months can now be produced in hours, and work once handed to outside consultants can now be done in-house.

However, his conversation returned to a more enduring principle: technology and speed matter most when they help create places people want to live in. The future community, then, is not defined by buildings or smart systems alone. It is shaped by thoughtful design, local character, responsible stewardship, and the everyday spaces that bring people together.