Things beyond reality to marvel you at Dubai's Gitex Tech Week

Top Stories

Things beyond reality to marvel you at Dubais Gitex Tech Week
A promoter in Gitex Shopper at DWTC on Tuesday. Gitex Shopper till 6th of October. Photo by Shihab

Dubai - The five-day summit, from October 14-18, will feature around 4,000 exhibitors.

by

Angel Tesorero

  • Follow us on
  • google-news
  • whatsapp
  • telegram

Published: Sat 13 Oct 2018, 12:00 AM

Last updated: Sun 14 Oct 2018, 8:37 AM

Would you like to play basketball with a robot or experience jumping off from the top of Burj Khalifa via virtual reality? Or would you like to know how to build and operate robots?
These and more, including game-changing technologies such as 5G, virtual and augmented reality, will be celebrated under the tagline 'Experience Future Urbanism' at the 38th edition of Gitex Technology Week kicking off tomorrow at the Dubai World Trade Centre 
The five-day summit, from October 14-18, will feature around 4,000 exhibitors across 24 sectors from more than 100 countries exhibiting over 1.4 million square feet of floor space. It will also be held side by side with Gitex Future Stars (October 14-17), the region's platform for bringing award-winning 'techpreneurs' to investors, where over 850 international startups will have the chance to meet over 1,500 investors and corporate buyers.
What else can visitors expect at these back-to-back tech events? Well, think about living in the future: Think things beyond today's reality - AI that can interpret emotion through voice (Empath) or predict fashion trends (Stylumia); a wearable, real-time translation earpiece (Timekettle); or even Healthcare firm Bioniks, who have amalgamated robotics and 3D printing to create Iron Man style prosthetics. Developers of space tech will also be involved, shooting for the stars in the Mohammed Bin Rashid Space Centre's Innovation Cup - one of four industry - sponsored Innovation Cups.
Also, listen to and get valuable insights from big names in the tech industry, including Sir Tim Berners-Lee - the inventor of the World Wide Web. He will discuss the "re-invention" of the Internet with 'Inrupt' - his latest venture that will let internet users keep control of their own data instead of handing it over to giant digital media companies. Sir Tim will be addressing a public audience for the first time since the launch of Inrupt last week and be the first in the world to hear his big plans "to upend the internet and end the global domination of Facebook, Google and Amazon", according to industry sources.
Visitors can also get a first look at prototypes that range from car windows that also serve as entertainment-packed touchscreen video to X-ray scanning mirrors, sit-in pods that provide a full health check-up and the world's smallest and most lightweight robotic lunar rovers and lunar landers.
Gitex Tech Week and Gitex Future Stars will strongly focus on startups, AI and all those new age technologies that benefit the public and drive the future of transportation and mobility, retail, healthcare and education.
Trixie LohMirmand, senior vice-president of events management, Dubai World Trade Centre, organisers of GITEX, said: "Technologies, no matter how revolutionary they may be, offer no value to us unless they can create experiences to augment the well-being of the individuals and larger society. We are proud that Gitex enterprises, startups and government entities come together, striving to transform intricate tech talk into meaningful manifestations of happiness that are relatable, accessible and in reach of a truly inquisitive and intelligent audience."
angel@khaleejtimes.com
Did you know?
Around 100,000 visitors from 140 countries visited the 37th edition of Gitex Technology Week. Some of the government initiatives launched last year were flying taxi by the Roads and Transport Authority; Hoversurf (a combination of a drone and a motorcycle) and mini patrolling robot car by the Dubai Police; and Smart Decision Making Platform, visualising city-wide data in real-time by Smart Dubai. 


More news from