TRANSPORT-
#1- Your Mall of the Emirates commute is about to get smoother: Dubai’s Road and Transport Authority (RTA) and Majid Al Futtaim Group are partnering to widen and improve the entrances and surrounding streets of the Mall of the Emirates at a total cost of AED 165 mn, according to RTA’s website. The planned improvements include establishing a 300 m, single-lane bridge on Sheikh Zayed Road to provide direct access to the mall’s parking from Abu Dhabi and Jebel Ali, lowering travel time from 10 minutes to just one minute.
#2- UAE’s Air Chateau is getting flying electric taxis from Crisalion Mobility: Dubai-based private aviation operator Air Chateau signed a pre-order for ten Integrity eVTOL aircraft with Madrid-based sustainable transport solutions startup Crisalion Mobility, according to a statement on Thursday. The partnership sees both companies working together to advance flying electric taxis in UAE’s major cities, including Abu Dhabi and Dubai. Air Chateau’s pre-order brings Crisalion’s pre-order book to 125 aircraft. It also marks the company’s first entry into the Middle East and private aviation markets. Financial details were not disclosed.
#3- State-owned ports developer and logistics giant DP World has opened 51 new freight forwarding offices across the Asia Pacific, expanding its end-to-end supply chain services in the region, according to a statement released on Friday. The move looks to help businesses form resilient supply chains amid increasing geopolitical and economic uncertainty impacting global trade, says Asia Pacific CEO and Managing Director Glen Hilton. The offices offer a range of services including port handling, freight management for both ocean and air, customs clearance, bonded warehousing services, and order and origin oversight.
MEDIA-
#1- Elevision to install digital ad network across Dubai: Advertising agency Elevision has partnered with Dubai World Trade Centre to install a digital out-of-home (DOOH) advertising network across commercial and residential developments operated by the latter, according to a statement picked up by Zawya. Some 72 elevator screens and 83 large format and lobby screens will be installed in locations such as One Central, Convention Tower, Sheikh Rashid Tower, and Expo Village Residences, the statement read.
What is DOOH? DOOH is similar to traditional out-of-home (OOH) advertising, except for the fact that it uses digital means to display ads — think digital billboards and screens vis-à-vis conventional billboards and posters.
INS.-
Galaxy Ins. Broker had its license revoked by the Central Bank of the UAE for failing to comply with regulatory obligations, Wam reports.
FINANCE-
Moneta Markets sets up shop in Dubai: South Africa-based online forex trading broker Moneta Markets has opened its first office in Dubai, after partnering with homegrown Sterling Financial Services to bring its services to the UAE, Founder and CEO of Moneta David Bily told Finance Magnates.
What’s next? Moneta Markets plans to introduce customized products to meet the local market’s demands, in addition to its current offerings of over 1k FX pairs, indices, commodities, share CFDs, cryptos, bonds, and ETFs. Bily also said he expects the company to obtain several “tier 1 licenses” by mid-2025.
TECH-
G42 launches AI services platform in partnership with Qualcomm: State-run cloud services provider G42 launched its new AI services platform Compass 2.0 in partnership with US chipmaker Qualcomm Technologies, according to a statement from the Abu Dhabi Media Office. The platform — powered by Qualcomm’s Cloud AI 100 Ultra inference accelerators — offers several pre-optimized services, such as generative AI, embeddings, computer vision, and natural language processing models. It also provides access to open-source models, including JAIS (Arabic LLM), Llama3, and Azure OpenAI GPT-4.
Background: Core42 soft-launched Compass 2.0 back in January, the statement showed. The platform has since processed around 150 bn tokens.
REAL ESTATE-
Aldar unveils new residential project in Abu Dhabi: Abu Dhabi’s Aldar Properties has announced the soft launch of its latest residential development in Abu Dhabi The Arthouse, it said in a statement. The Arthouse’s official launch is slated for 31 July, offering one-, two-, and three-bedroom apartments in three buildings in the Saadiyat Cultural District. Construction is scheduled to kick off in 1Q 2025.
SUSTAINABILITY-
Ghafa partners with Atsuya to develop sustainability solutions: Homegrown Ghafa Sustainability and Energy Solutions has signed an MoU with Indian IoT firm Atsuya Technologies to leverage the latter’s technology in improving energy and water saving solutions, Al Etihad reports.