Dubai, United Arab Emirates: Step Dubai 2026 will host nearly 100,000 hours of AI-focused narratives including business insights, dialogue and applied knowledge as the region’s leading technology and startup event, held in partnership with Dubai Internet City, aligns its 14th edition with the UAE’s National Strategy for Artificial Intelligence 2031.

Taking place on 11-12 February at Dubai Internet City, the Middle East’s leading tech hub and part of TECOM Group PJSC, the event reflects the UAE’s long-term vision to become a leading global centre for AI innovation, adoption and talent, embedding artificial intelligence at the centre of its future economy. Underscoring the AI dedicated and digital focus, this year’s event sees Dubai Chamber of Digital Economy join as Strategic Partner.

Unveiled in 2017, the UAE’s National Strategy for Artificial Intelligence 2031 sets a clear national framework to accelerate government performance, stimulate economic growth, build future-ready skills and position the nation as a global benchmark for AI-led transformation. Central to this vision is the ambition for artificial intelligence to contribute significantly to the UAE’s non-oil GDP, alongside the development of a globally competitive AI ecosystem, spanning startups, enterprises, research institutions and the public sector.

Step Dubai is an annual technology and startup event held at Dubai Internet City and is a cornerstone of the region’s innovation ecosystem. Now in its 14th edition, Step Dubai 2026 brings together founders, investors, scaleups, corporates, government and public sector stakeholders and ecosystem partners to exchange knowledge, build connections and explore emerging opportunities across the technology and startup landscape. The 2026 edition represents a significant evolution for the event as organisers unveil a fully AI-dedicated programme, supporting national priorities around AI adoption, entrepreneurship and economic diversification.

Under the 2026 theme Intelligence Everywhere: The AI Economy, Step Dubai is expected to welcome more than 8,000 attendees, including over 400 startups and more than 100 companies and speakers from across the region and internationally including a plethora of speakers from Silicon Valley. The programme focuses on how artificial intelligence is reshaping business, finance, technology and creative industries, while providing access to an active investor community representing more than USD 12.6 billion in deployable capital. Through this focus, Step Dubai 2026 reinforces the UAE’s commitment to translating national AI strategy into measurable economic impact and globally scalable innovation.

The success stories of such innovators from in5, Dubai's leading start-up incubator established by TECOM Group, will feature at Step Dubai this year alongside D/Quarters, which will join as an Ecosystem Partner marking its inaugural participation. D/Quarters, which provides flexible open co-working spaces for professionals, and companies of all sizes, will present an outdoor co-working space at Step Dubai, underscoring its contributions to Dubai's business landscape.

Commenting on the event’s direction, Ammar Al Malik, Executive Vice President of Commercial at TECOM Group & Managing Director of Dubai Internet City, said, “AI is increasingly strengthening the digital economy’s contributions towards long-term prosperity. Step Dubai is returning in Strategic Partnership with Dubai Internet City to unite global minds and regional pioneers to explore how AI will unlock new opportunities for entrepreneurs, innovators, and future-focused thinkers. As the region’s leading tech hub aligned with Dubai Economic Agenda ‘D33’, and contributing to 65% of Dubai’s technology sector GDP, Dubai Internet City will continue to champion tech-led innovation and empower the digital economy through such platforms.”

Echoing this sentiment, Ray Dargham, Co-Founder & CEO of Step, said, “Artificial intelligence is no longer a vertical or a niche, it is the economic infrastructure of the future. Step Dubai 2026 is designed to reflect the UAE’s clear and ambitious vision for AI, as it leads the charge regionally, by bringing together the builders, investors and decision-makers who are actively shaping how intelligence is embedded across every industry and sector.”

Dargham added, “The UAE has been one of the earliest nations to recognise the strategic importance of AI, from launching its National AI Strategy in 2017 and appointing the World’s first Minister of AI is His Excellency Omar Sultan Al Olama to setting ambitious targets for economic contribution and company creation. Our role at Step is to act as a bridge between policy, innovation and execution - creating a platform where ideas turn into companies, and companies scale into global leaders from the UAE.”

Saeed Al Gergawi, Vice President of Dubai Chamber of Digital Economy, commented: “Step Dubai’s focus on artificial intelligence highlights the growing shift from testing AI tools to deploying AI at scale across products, services, and operations. As a Strategic Partner of Step Dubai 2026, Dubai Chamber of Digital Economy is focused on supporting startups and fast-growing digital companies by strengthening their access to partnerships and growth opportunities from Dubai. The chamber remains committed to advancing the emirate’s AI ambitions by helping innovation translate into adoption, value creation, and long-term competitiveness.”

The agenda is structured around four dedicated tracks; Founders & Funders, The AI Stack, AI in Finance and Human First, reflecting the breadth of sectors prioritised within the UAE’s AI strategy. Together, these tracks address the future of entrepreneurship, advanced technologies, regulated industries and human-centric innovation, highlighting the cross-sector role of AI in driving sustainable growth, competitiveness and productivity.

The Founders & Funders track brings together leading entrepreneurs, investors and ecosystem builders to explore how AI is reshaping startup creation, capital formation and global scale. Conversations focus on unicorn development, scaling strategies, exits and the evolution of venture capital, particularly in emerging and high-growth markets. By connecting founders and builders with venture capital firms, angels, LPs, corporate leaders, accelerators and policymakers, the track supports the UAE’s ambition to attract and nurture thousands of AI-driven companies.

The AI Stack track examines the foundational technologies enabling the AI economy, from large language models and intelligent agents to robotics, cloud infrastructure and developer platforms. Curated by Ash Kumra who is a global leader at the forefront of business transformation, technology innovation, and strategic investment, the track explores how advanced AI systems are being built, deployed and scaled responsibly across industries. It attracts AI founders, engineers, enterprises, researchers and infrastructure providers, aligning closely with the UAE’s focus on strengthening national AI capabilities, research excellence and industrial readiness.

Not to be missed at The AI Stack, a featured panel led by Justin Li, Co-Founder and Chief Architect of Genspark, will explore the shift from AI-assisted workflows to autonomous agentic systems in the enterprise, with a focus on governance, trust, and enterprise-scale value creation. Genspark is a Palo Alto-based AI company building an all-in-one AI workspace where autonomous agents transform business intent into finished deliverables for global knowledge workers. The company is recognised by OpenAI and Anthropic as a strategic partner, with case studies highlighting production use of advanced AI models and no-code agent workflows. At OpenAI Dev Day 2025, Sam Altman cited Genspark among a small group of companies operating at a trillion-token scale.

The AI in Finance track reflects the strategic importance of financial services within the UAE’s economy and its role as a regional and global financial hub. Bringing together fintech founders, financial institutions, regulators and investors, the track explores how AI is transforming investment, lending, compliance, wealth management and risk. Discussions span FinAI, wealth intelligence, crypto and autonomous banking, highlighting the balance between innovation, regulation and trust required for responsible AI adoption in regulated sectors.

Human First is Step Dubai’s reimagined digital media and creativity track, curated and hosted by Luca Allam - entrepreneur, public speaker, communication coach and host of Luca’s Insight Track, a top 10 podcast in the region. This track puts humans right at the centre of the conversation, focusing on the human aspect of the new artificial intelligence world, exploring human-AI co-creation, trust & technology, the evolving role of creativity in an algorithm-driven world, and emotion as a fundamental requirement to build connection. Sessions examine creativity in the age of automation, the ethics of AI-generated content and how brands, creators and audiences are redefining authenticity and engagement, reinforcing the UAE’s emphasis on human-centric and culturally grounded AI innovation. All sessions on Human First track will also put the audience at centre of the track’s engagement

Supporting the startup ecosystem at the heart of the event, Atlassian joins Step Dubai 2026 as the Startup Basecamp Sponsor. The Australian-founded global software company specialises in team collaboration and productivity tools for software development, IT, and business teams, known for products like Loom     , Confluence, and Trello, helping over 300,000 companies align work, track projects, share knowledge, and work better together.

With a global footprint and more than 25,000 clients who utilise its unique AI approach to customer service, Intercom will also participate as an exhibitor, showcasing how AI-powered customer communication platforms are evolving to support modern, fast-growing businesses.

Concluding, Dargham said, “Step Dubai 2026 is not just about discussing the future of AI, it’s about building it, here in the UAE. By convening global AI leaders alongside regional founders, enterprises and public sector stakeholders, we’re helping turn national ambition into real-world outcomes that support long-term economic growth and global relevance.”

Taking place from 11–12 February, tickets for Step Dubai 2026 are currently available via stepdxb.com, with early booking incentives available for a limited time.

About Step Dubai

Step Dubai is an annual technology and startup event held at Dubai Internet City, the city’s innovation and technology hub. Now in its 14th edition, Step Dubai 2026 brings together founders, investors, scaleups, corporates, government and public sector stakeholders, and ecosystem partners to exchange knowledge, build connections, and explore emerging opportunities across the tech and startup landscape.

Under the 2026 theme Intelligence Everywhere: The AI Economy, the event is expected to welcome more than 8,000 attendees, including over 400 startups, 100+ companies and speakers from across the region and internationally. The program focuses on how artificial intelligence is shaping business, finance, technology, and creative industries, alongside access to an active investor community representing more than USD 12.6 billion in deployable capital.

The agenda is structured around four dedicated tracks; Founders & Funders, The AI Stack, AI in Finance and Human First and these tracks span multiple industries, addressing key topics influencing the future of technology, entrepreneurship, and work.

Taking place from 11–12 February, tickets for Step Dubai 2026 are currently available via stepdxb.com, with early booking incentives available for a limited time.

About Step

Step is a global tech and startup platform bringing founders, investors, and operators together through high-impact live events. Best known for Step Dubai and Step San Francisco, Step creates environments where early-stage and scaling companies engage with capital, talent, and market opportunities.

With a founder-first approach, Step’s events combine practical programming, curated networking, and immersive experiences in an open, collaborative setting. Operating across the Middle East and the United States, Step supports the development of startup ecosystems by bringing communities together around innovation and entrepreneurship.

Driven by a vision to expand globally and nurture startup ecosystems worldwide, Step is more than just an event organiser - it’s a catalyst for change.

About Dubai Internet City

Dubai Internet City, one of TECOM Group PJSC’s 10 business districts, is the cornerstone of the dynamic regional digital economy. The pioneering hub has fostered a vibrant community of more than 31,000 professionals since its establishment in 1999. Driving innovation across diverse sectors, Dubai Internet City has served as a strategic uniting platform for multinational firms, Fortune 500 leaders, and agile start-ups for 25 years by enabling collaboration, cutting-edge advancements, and sustained growth.

For more information, please visit www.dic.ae.