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Former Dubai banker is UAE nominee for $1m Startup World Cup final prize

Published

3 years ago

May 25, 2022

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The two-day 35th World AI Show, the longest running event in artificial intelligence kicked off in style and ended with the UAE finalist chosen for the Startup World Cup in Dubai on Wednesday.

Affinsys, a startup running AI solutions for banks, telecom and insurance companies, won out of a shortlist of six yesterday after the jury took a live decision based on final pitches and voted for UAE’s representation among 60-plus countries from where the World Cup winner will receive $1 million funding.

Making the presentation and receiving the award was Aditya Bhagat, who co-founded the company three years back with friend and fellow banker Surya Prasad. “I am extremely honoured to get this reward,” said a beaming Bhagat immediately after. “We have been associated with the Dubai Future Program and also received many accolades and awards, so we are on the right track.

“We need 3-4 million of funding for our expansion programme and if all goes well in September (for the Startup World Cup final round), this will be a big help.”

Meanwhile, the day featured a lot of brainstorming on problems, solutions and what the future holds in various aspects of artificial intelligence. With delegates being served tea and refreshments by robotic machines doubling up as hostesses at the Jumeirah Emirates Towers, attendees had a field day imbibing the latest trends and exploring future opportunities to collaborate.

The event started smoothly with the focus on AI in transport where speakers discussed ‘transforming cities to autonomous mode’ and everyone agreed that the challenges remain on ground outside of driverless cars or semi-automatic modes, than the vehicles themselves.

“Planes have been using auto-pilot technology for something like 70 years so we have come a long way,” said Seham El Behissy, former Renault general manager, digital and connected cars. “But on the road there are other elements and each one brings with it its own challenges. Then it is also about the data in real time, it has to be good, it depends on how the user is trained to use it and the user himself and then his interaction with other users.”

Aditya Bhagat is a former banker and co-founder of Affinsys. Trescon Global

Author of research papers and an expert, El Behissy shared the dias with Dr Jassim Haji, president of International Group of Artificial Intelligence and who is working with road authorities in Bahrain and Angad Singh, the global director for innovation at Aramex.

AI with human touch

Noor Alnahhas, the CEO of nybl, another alumni of the Dubai Future Accelerators programme, gave the keynote speech and took the conversation beyond the day’s agenda on a thoughtful note.

“In the past, more was key to everything. If you wanted more oil, drill more. If you are hungry, produce more food … but now, it is less. If you want to save the climate, consume less of many things, we are trying to towards zero carbon footprints.

“If we can tie the development to betterment of human life, investment is not a question. Everyone here will talk about technology and their USPs. But it is important for all to think how to come together to make lives better. Like six weeks ago, we have collaborated with the International Humanitarian City how to deliver aid and relief items faster and better.”

Saeed Alhebsi, the advisor in the AI ministry of Human Resource and Emiratisation spoke about the UAE’s Fourth Industrial Revolution strategy framework.

CNN global director Rachele Peterson moderated a panel of experts on the use cases of AI, future implementation strategies of digital transformation, challenges in current practices and real-life examples on how the experts are solving them.

All had various focus areas to approach but many agreed that unless the masses do not buy-in on the prospects, the growth rate will be hampered. Yet, Wees Abraham of Elekron Ventures warned against jumping on to the AI bandwagon because others are. “Get a consultant, but you need to have someone in the team to own it otherwise you will be sold something you never need. Technology has to be your slave, not the other way around.”

Many speakers across different sessions touched on the positive impact of AI in the times of Covid-19. “Pandemic has changed how we look at productivity, no doubt,” said Amina Abdul Rahim, head of IT in the engineering office of Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum.

Day Two of the WAIS will feature an awards ceremony to celebrate some of the achievers in the field. Those wishing to attend can walk in or register here.

Staff Reporter

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Dubai’s RTA to open new exit to Ras Al Khor Road, cutting travel time by over 50%

Published

3 hours ago

July 31, 2025

Michael Gomes

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Good news for commuters, Dubai’s Roads and Transport Authority (RTA) is rolling out a new road improvement designed to ease congestion and reduce travel time near the busy Bu Kadra Interchange.

Set to open in early August 2025, the new exit will connect vehicles travelling from Financial Centre Street to Ras Al Khor Road, as part of the Financial Centre Street

road upRTA’s Rapid Traffic Solutions Plan. The initiative focuses on enhancing traffic flow and boosting road network efficiency, especially in Ras Al Khor, a growing hub for commercial and industrial activity.

According to RTA, the new exit will significantly reduce congestion at Bu Kadra Interchange. Vehicles using the collector road from Financial Centre Street towards Ras Al Khor Road will now experience shorter travel times, especially during peak hours. Journey times are expected to drop by 54%, from 13 minutes to just 6 minutes.

The new development builds on recent traffic upgrades in the area. One key improvement included the widening of Exit 25 on Ras Al Khor Road leading to Al Khail Road and Al Meydan Street. This stretch was expanded from one lane to two lanes over 500 metres, doubling the capacity to accommodate 3,000 vehicles per hour. The result: peak travel time was cut from 7 minutes to 4 minutes, easing traffic flow at a critical intersection.

RTA reaffirmed its commitment to delivering road and transport solutions in step with Dubai’s rapid urban growth, saying these enhancements are crucial to keeping the city moving efficiently.

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UAE travel: Emirates adds Hangzhou to its China network

Published

8 hours ago

July 31, 2025

Michael Gomes

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The UAE’s flagship carrier launched its new daily service to Hangzhou on Wednesday, marking yet another milestone in its growing network across China. The move comes hot on the heels of its recent route launch to Shenzhen, making Hangzhou the second new mainland destination in just under a month.

Flight EK310 touched down at Hangzhou Xiaoshan International Airport to a warm welcome – complete with a traditional water cannon salute and greetings from local officials and dignitaries. Passengers on the inaugural flight didn’t leave empty-handed either. They were treated to souvenir keychains, flight certificates, and Chinese tea tasting sets to mark the occasion.

The new route is operated on a Boeing 777-300ER, with flight EK310 departing Dubai at 9:40am and reaching Hangzhou by 10:00pm. The return leg, EK311, takes off from Hangzhou at 12:10am, landing back in Dubai by 4:55am, making it a convenient overnight hop for business and leisure travellers.

With this addition, Emirates now flies 49 times a week to five major Chinese cities: Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou, Shenzhen, and now Hangzhou.

Thanks to seamless connectivity through Dubai, travellers from over 40 European cities, 21 in Africa, and others in the Middle East and South America can now easily access one of China’s key tech and business hubs. The route also enables convenient two-way travel between Hangzhou and global cities like Istanbul, Cairo, Johannesburg, and Barcelona.

Best of all? UAE and GCC nationals can visit China visa-free for up to 30 days, making spontaneous business trips or leisure breaks even easier.

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Paid parking around mosques in Dubai begins in August

Published

9 hours ago

July 31, 2025

Michael Gomes

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Worshippers in Dubai will soon see a new parking system rolled out around 59 mosques across the city, and while the move introduces 24-hour paid parking, there’s good news too: It remains free during prayer times.

Starting in August, Parkin Company, Dubai’s largest public parking provider, will manage around 2,100 parking spaces in partnership with the Islamic Affairs & Charitable Activities Department (IACAD). The spaces, located around mosques, will be free to use for one hour during each prayer, helping ensure convenient access for worshippers.

Outside of those times, however, the same parking spots will operate as regular paid zones – either Zone M (standard) or Zone MP (premium), and will be chargeable 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.

Here’s a quick breakdown:

Zone M (Standard): Dh2 for 30 minutes, Dh4 for an hour.
Zone MP (Premium):
- Off-peak: Dh2 (30 min), Dh4 (1 hour)
- Peak: Dh3 (30 min), Dh6 (1 hour)

Of the 59 mosques involved, 41 will be in Zone M, while 18 fall under the premium MP category.

“We’re looking forward to seeing how this collaboration improves the worshipper experience,” said Eng. Mohamed Abdulla Al Ali, CEO of Parkin.

For now, this initiative is focused on the current 59 mosques, but both Parkin and IACAD say there’s potential to expand the programme in future.

Parkin already manages around 209,000 paid parking spaces across Dubai, including developer-owned areas and barrierless systems at malls like City Centre Deira and Mirdif. This partnership adds to their growing footprint and introduces a structured approach to mosque parking that balances convenience with efficiency.