The region’s key stakeholders will gather for the sixth edition of the ArabNet Digital Summit - the exclusive digital conference on April 30-May 1, at the Madinat Jumeirah Conference and Events Center in Dubai.

This year, the summit will feature a number of key talks and sessions across five separate forums, AdTech; Smart Economy; Money (Powered by NextMoney); Investment and Real Estate Tech. It expected to bring together over 100 speakers, 75 exhibitors, 1800 attendees.

 

On April 30th, the AdTech Forum will feature two full tracks covering the latest trends in digital media and advertising, including the AdTech Showcase - a convergence of new advertising and media technologies from around the world. The participating agencies and companies include some of the best in the sector such as Twitter, Google, Ford, IBM, The Coca-Cola Company and Facebook.

On the same day, the newly-introduced Money Forum (powered by NextMoney) will explore the trends and opportunities in fintech, banking, and transactional businesses. Experts speaking at the forum will include Zubair Ahmed, Chief Information Officer of Emirates Islamic and Raja Al Mazrouei, Executive Vice President at FinTech Hive, Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC). Meanwhile, Xische Academy will be holding a private Blockchain Masterclass, designed to help leaders make decisions to transform organizations.

Good news for data enthusiasts, because on the second day of the event, ArabNet will announce the launch of its third edition of “The State of Digital Investments in MENA (2013-2017)” report. Also, the event will also witness the launch of “AI in the Middle East” report in partnership with Xische.

For the second time in a row, the summit will host the Startup Championship, which is the culmination of the winning startups from local rounds of ArabNet’s Startup Battle. In this competition, 18 startups from Beirut, Kuwait, Riyadh, Casablanca, Muscat, and Dubai are expected to pitch their businesses for a shot at $20,000 in prizes, and other in-kind prizes. The Digital Summit will also be hosting for the 3rd consecutive year, the Smartpreneur Competition final pitches and awards ceremony, organized by Dubai Chamber of Commerce, with the aim of elevating Dubai into a global platform for innovation-focused businesses.

On May 1st, there will be a new addition to the summit, which is the Real Estate Tech Forum, that will highlight how technology is impacting the real estate sector. The forum will feature experts including, Fadi Nwilati, CEO of KAIZEN Asset Management Services and Lynnette Abad, Partner ‑ Head of Property Monitor at Cavendish Maxwell.

Similarly, the Investment Forum will feature a full track for investors, with high-level discussions on fund closures, governance and initiatives supporting the growth of the investment ecosystem. Investor speakers of the forum will include Kavita Gupta, Founding Managing Partner at ConsenSys Capital and Omar H. Al-Madhi, Board Member of Abdul Latif Jameel (ALJ) and Co-Founder and Venture Partner at Iliad Partners.

Simultaneously, the Smart Economy Forum will propose visionary outlooks for creative cities of the future. Global experts who will be speaking at the event include Eldar Tuzmukhametov, Head of Smart City Moscow and Ger Baron, Chief Technology Officer of the City of Amsterdam.

To learn more about ArabNet Digital Summit, go to:  ArabNet: ArabNet Digital Summit 2018