TECOM Group’s Vision for Dubai: The Future of Business Districts and Tech Innovation

TECOM Group has led Dubai’s vision in becoming a global business, innovation, and technology hub. Originating as a subsidiary of Dubai Holding, a Government of Dubai-owned company, TECOM Group emerged as an independent publicly traded business entity listed on the Dubai Financial Market (DFM) under the symbol “TECOM” since 2022. The Group has successfully developed and managed several business districts catering to various industries providing high-quality infrastructure and services for start-ups and global corporations alike.

TECOM has played a significant role in the development of key business hubs, such as Dubai Internet City, Dubai Media City, Dubai Studio City, and Dubai Science Park. Most companies, from the media giant to tech innovators, have moved into these districts due to strategic location, world-class infrastructure, and a thriving business ecosystem.

Diversification with TECOM Group is business district development at its very best-in that each of the ten business hubs around which the company has developed focuses on specific types of industry, fostering environments favourable to growth, creativity, and collaboration. Dubai Internet City and Dubai Media City are international business destinations for companies involved in tech and media, while the Dubai Design District, or d3, is at the heart of Dubai’s emerging design sector.

Not only does TECOM Group target high-demand sectors such as technology and media, but it has also invested in sectors like education, science, and manufacturing. Dubai International Academic City and Dubai Industrial City are central to this strategy, boasting world-class infrastructure for educational institutions and industrial players. In fact, TECOM Group strategy is anchored around a commitment to innovation and sustainability. In 2013 the Group undertook an ambitious innovation strategy worth AED 4.5 billion with the intent of driving entrepreneurship, and creating an ecosystem, of start-up as well as tech companies. Creative spaces, smart buildings, innovation labs, and business incubators make up this much larger program.

TECOM has also invested much of its energy into nurturing talent and supporting the growth of local and regional businesses. Its partnerships with international tech moguls, coupled with attention to creating co-working and collaboration spaces, have helped make TECOM a leader for fostering technological advancement and creative industries within the Middle East.

The public listing of TECOM Group on the Dubai Financial Market (DFM) in July 2022 represents a significant milestone in the development journey for this company. An IPO was raised for $1.67 billion, and TECOM is now much better placed to expand its business districts and continue facilitating innovation in sectors far more extensive than it started with. The IPO successfully enhanced investor confidence in Dubai’s real estate and business infrastructure and also focused the strategic importance of TECOM within the emirate’s economic future.

Sustainability forms part of their commitment in collaborations with various UAE government entities: TECOM Group has been involved in close cooperation with the UAE’s Ministry of Industry and Advanced Technology (MOIAT) on decarbonisation; playing a big role in shaping the region’s future transportation and logistics through the development of a freight terminal for Etihad Rail, the national railway project of the UAE.