Today's Edition
ABU DHABI (ALETIHAD)
Abu Dhabi will host two new Centres for the Fourth Industrial Revolution (C4IR), out of a total of five new institutions announced this year by the World Economic Forum (WEF), reinforcing the UAE’s growing role in shaping global technology governance and policy frameworks.
The centres are part of the World Economic Forum’s global Fourth Industrial Revolution (4IR) Network, a platform launched in 2017 to bring together governments, industry leaders and experts to ensure that emerging technologies deliver broad societal benefits while minimising risks.
The network focuses on translating innovation into practical, adaptable policy frameworks, pilots and governance models, particularly in areas such as artificial intelligence (AI), frontier technologies, the energy transition and cyber resilience.
According to the WEF, the five new centres — to be established in France, the United Kingdom, the United Arab Emirates and India — are designed to address regional priorities while strengthening international cooperation on the responsible development and deployment of advanced technologies. Collectively, they expand a growing network of national and thematic centres spanning Europe, the Middle East, Asia and the Americas.
The UAE additions comprise two Abu Dhabi–based institutions, both hosted by leading national research and academic bodies.
The Centre for Frontier Technologies, hosted by the Technology Innovation Institute (TII), will focus on advancing innovation in areas such as quantum technologies, robotics and space, while promoting public-private collaboration to accelerate the responsible deployment of frontier technologies.
The centre is expected to strengthen Abu Dhabi’s position as a global hub for advanced science and technology, translating cutting-edge research into real-world applications.
The Centre for Intelligent Future, hosted by Mohamed bin Zayed University of Artificial Intelligence (MBZUAI), will concentrate on advancing global AI excellence by strengthening capabilities in research, infrastructure, adoption and innovation.
It will convene leaders from government, business, civil society and academia to lead cross-sector initiatives, with a particular emphasis on how AI systems interact with people, institutions and economies.
With these two additions, the UAE now hosts three centres within the WEF’s C4IR Network.
Alongside the UAE announcements, the WEF revealed three other new centres this year.
In France, the European Centre for AI Excellence in Paris, launched in partnership with VivaTech, will work to accelerate responsible AI innovation and adoption.
In the United Kingdom, the Centre for AI-Driven Innovation in London, hosted by Imperial College London, will focus on the development and adoption of advanced AI across key UK sectors.
It will also explore the convergence of AI with frontier technologies such as quantum computing, biotechnology and generative AI to enable scalable, cross-sector impact.
In India, the Centre for Energy and Cyber Resilience, established in partnership with the Government of Andhra Pradesh, will promote innovation-led approaches to the energy transition while strengthening cyber resilience across industries.
The UAE’s first Centre for the Fourth Industrial Revolution was established in Dubai in 2019 by the Dubai Future Foundation in collaboration with the World Economic Forum.
The Dubai-based centre serves as a global public-private platform for the collaborative development of technology governance and policy protocols, contributing to international discussions on the responsible use of emerging technologies.
The addition of two new Abu Dhabi centres underscores the UAE’s expanding footprint within the global 4IR Network, positioning the country as a key convenor for dialogue and policy development around the technologies shaping the next phase of global economic and social transformation.
