The Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC) launched the “DIFC Metaverse Platform” on Monday. The DIFC’s metaverse platform intends to attract and nurture worldwide talent in new technologies while also securing Dubai’s position as a global metaverse leader. An accelerator programme with a studio for metaverse technologies will be critical to the development. It will also serve as a hub for Dubai’s growing metaverse community, as well as a repository for metaverse rules and regulations.
The DIFC’s metaverse platform is in line with the Dubai Metaverse Strategy, which seeks to add $4B to Dubai’s GDP, sustain 40,000 virtual employments by 2030, and recruit 1,000 blockchain and metaverse enterprises. The platform also contributes to the recently declared Dubai Economic Agenda D33 goal of generating AED 100B ($27B) in economic value from digital transformation each year.
H.E. Omar bin Sultan Al Olama, Minister of State for Artificial Intelligence, the Digital Economy, and Remote Work Applications, Chairman of the Dubai Chamber of Digital Economy, and Vice Chairman of the Dubai Higher Committee for Future Technology and Digital Economy, stated that the UAE adopts cutting-edge technologies in order to keep up with global changes and reflect the directives of its leadership in transforming the nation and Dubai to become a leading hub for utilising the internet of things. According to Al Olama, this metaverse platform is the first in a series of efforts aimed at strengthening Dubai’s position as a worldwide platform for the newest digital trends and speeding up the pace of achieving the Dubai Metaverse Strategy’s objectives.
Arif Amiri, CEO of DIFC Authority, said, “The Dubai government has shown great foresight in introducing a metaverse strategy that has the objective of making the emirate a global hub for technology and innovation. “The development of the integrated DIFC Metaverse Platform will accelerate the achievements of Dubai’s aspirations in this sector. The initiative is a natural extension of our Innovation Hub proposition that has shaped the technology and innovation landscape in the Middle East, Africa and South Asia region,” according to Arabian Business.
The DIFC Metaverse Platform includes three key initiatives:
1. The first is an accelerator programme with a dedicated physical studio for metaverse technology that will promote the development of a creator community and venture building.
2. The platform will also address the metaverse policy development and legislation on open data, digital identity and company law frameworks in the metaverse.
3. Furthermore, the initiative will foster the development of a metaverse community that will explore ways to enhance the metaverse experience for customers.
The first programme created under the platform’s umbrella, the Metaverse Accelerator Programme, will begin taking applications this month. In the future years, the programme hopes to attract more than 500 applicants, select 50 of the program’s most potential graduates, and encourage investment possibilities to assist the industry flourish.
The initiative displays DIFC’s commitment to assisting creative metaverse start-ups by connecting them with the region’s most powerful players. The programme also assists businesses in exploring collaborations, gaining investor exposure, gaining access to a regulatory sandbox, and obtaining marketing support.
DIFC FinTech Hive, the region’s first and biggest FinTech Accelerator, conducted its annual Investor Day on the Metaverse Platform in early November, providing the region’s financial ecosystem with first-hand exposure with the technology. DIFC Fintech Hive also collaborated with Emirates NBD to build and co-create their own Metaverse Accelerator programme, which attracted over 100 international candidates.
The Metaverse Accelerator Programme will last six months, during which time the cohort of start-ups will be exposed to training and workshops to help them upskill and reskill in both technical and intrapersonal components of the metaverse. The initiative also intends to foster collaborations between start-ups and corporations in order to develop proof-of-concept and novel metaverse solutions.
