GITEX
With device sales expected to
reach $26.9bn in the Middle East and
North Africa in 2019, it is clear to see
why these big technology guns are
exhibiting at the event.
In the Middle East alone, the smart
home technology market is expected
to reach $1.86bn by 2022, while the
consumer electronics market in the
UAE is set to climb 6% to reach nearly
$3.8bn this year.
Neither is the show a purely
transactional event. The GITEX
Artificial Intelligence Zone unleashed
five days of free learning sessions
and 10 hours of INSEAD-powered
AI workshops which covered ways
that AI is affecting agriculture,
construction, procurement, marketing,
factory automation and government.
GITEX saw Samsung provide
insights into the smart home of the
future and visitors got a chance
to take a first look at Samsung’s
newest mobile devices including the
Galaxy Note 10 5G and Galaxy Fold.
360-degree camera specialist Insta
360 launched its regional presence at
Lifestyle Tech, and also flaunted its
GO portable camera featuring auto-
intelligent editing and digital video
stabilisation.
Successful exhibitions can also
influence political strategy, and the
UAE set down a marker to be a world
leader in AI by appointing the world’s
first Minister of State for Artificial
Intelligence and launching an Artificial
Intelligence Strategy 2031.
Other evidence that the Middle East
has earned a reputation as a hotspot
for tech start-ups and disruptive
technologies includes Uber’s $3.1bn
w w w.exhibitionworld.co.uk
Dubai
World
Trade
Center
acquisition of Careem and Amazon’s
$580m acquisition of Souq.com.
The GITEX tradeshow also caters
for young talent, innovators and
entrepreneurs via its GITEX Future
Stars component which notched up
its 4th edition this year. 750 start-
ups and next generation innovators
from around the world joined the
programme this year, offering a
glimpse into the ways AI and young
innovators are shaping the future.
Alaa Elshimy, Vice-President and
Managing Director, Huawei Enterprise
Business Group, Middle East, was one
big name exhibitor seemingly pleased
with the results of the show: “GITEX is
the top technology exhibition in Asia,
Africa and the Middle East. We are the
biggest ICT player so it’s a great match
for us to be part of the biggest event
in the area. Last year we had 28,000
visitors at GITEX, 20% of whom were
C-level. Through these engagements
we create a lot of opportunities.”
GITEX now sets about rebranding
for its 40th anniversary edition as
‘GITEX Global’, which takes place
under the new brand, 27 September-1
October.
“In the
Middle East
alone, the
smart home
technology
market is
expected
to reach
$1.86bn
by 2022”
Growth at GITEX host venue
DWTC and the region’s MICE
sector and Dubai’s GDP are all
set to intensify over the next
2-3 years starting with the
opportunities presented by Expo
2020 which organisers expect
will attract 25m visits.
DWTC will develop the Expo
2020 site, the Expo Village
and the new Expo 2020 Dubai
Exhibition Centre (DEC), more
evidence of how it has evolved
from a pure venue into a multi-
dimensional business catalyst,
with a focus on events and real
estate management as well as
venue management.
Other major business events
on the horizon for Dubai include
Amway APAC Expo 2019 and
the MDRT Global Conference
2020, each expected to attract
approximately 10,000 delegates,
as well as the International
Astronautical Congress 2020,
the Global Symposium on
Health Systems Research 2020
and the World Congress of
Gastroenterology 2021.
Additionally, the city is set to
host the second edition of the
Dubai Associations Conference
(DAC) across two days during
December at DWTC, which
should give further impetus
to building the association
community in the region.
Issue 6 2019
25