Global Media Convergence: UAE Opens BRIDGE Summit 2025 In Abu Dhabi

Global leaders, creators, and institutions gather in Abu Dhabi to shape a more trusted, human-centred future for media

Published: Wed 10 Dec 2025, 9:41 AM

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With thousands watching and attending from across the globe, BRIDGE Summit 2025 opened on Monday on a scale that set a new benchmark for how nations, institutions, and creative communities collaborate to shape the global media, entertainment, and content landscape. As diplomats, ministers, international delegations, and industry leaders gathered in Abu Dhabi, the UAE once again affirmed its role as a global connector - where ideas, innovation, talent, and ambition converge.

The opening ceremony set the tone for the three-day event, positioning BRIDGE Summit as a unified arena where nations, creators, innovators, and institutions come together to rethink the future of media, strengthen cross-sector collaboration, and build a more trusted, interconnected, and forward-looking global ecosystem.

Abdulla bin Mohammed bin Butti Al Hamed:“This is a country that has always welcomed the world, and BRIDGE is an extension of that spirit.” The ceremony opened with remarks by Abdulla bin Mohamed bin Butti Al Hamed, Chairman of BRIDGE, who described the Summit as a living extension of the UAE's open, outward-looking identity - one rooted in bringing nations closer, advancing dialogue, and building bridges between civilisations.

He said:“Through the BRIDGE Summit, we seek to establish a new chapter in the future role of media. In the coming decades, we will witness artificial intelligence creating parallel worlds that humans will interact with. Yet here in the UAE, we believe that no matter how advanced technology becomes, it can never replace the human value that forms the essence of real media.”

He added:“It is values that give words their meaning; credibility that gives news its weight; and responsibility that grants media its legitimacy. Without these values, media becomes an echo of chaos rather than a voice of awareness.”

Al Hamed explained that BRIDGE is designed as an evolving global platform focused on the ethical and social responsibilities of media.“True media is not the one that creates noise, but the one that leaves a noble impact on minds and hearts,” he said, adding that leadership is about responsibility, not privilege, and that the future is built, not awaited.

He outlined three core pillars shaping the next era of media: trustworthy media that prioritises truth; innovative media that uses technology to serve awareness rather than manipulation; and human-centred media that celebrates difference through compassion and understanding.

Concluding his remarks, Al Hamed said the Summit marks another step in the UAE's long-term commitment to strengthening dialogue and empowering media to connect societies. He expressed confidence that the ideas and partnerships formed at BRIDGE would help shape a more collaborative global media future.

Earlier, Al Hamed officially inaugurated the Summit with a message delivered in seven languages, symbolising BRIDGE's mission to connect people and cultures through dialogue, technology, and shared purpose.“Let us create the future we aspire to where the stories we tell become bridges that bring us closer, not barriers that divide us,” he said.

Dr Jamal Mohammed Obaid Al Kaabi:“At BRIDGE, disruption is not the goal. Disruption is the tool for progress.” Welcoming attendees to Abu Dhabi, Dr Jamal Mohammed Obaid Al Kaabi, Vice Chairman of BRIDGE, highlighted the scale of engagement even before the Summit officially began.

“A day before the opening, the numbers from the BRIDGE App spoke for themselves: over 14,600 messages exchanged, 425,000 searches, more than two million interactions, 7,000 networking actions, and 871 pre-booked meetings,” he said.“In tech language, that is called product–market fit. We went live before we even went live.”

He emphasised that while connection is essential, trust is what sustains it and trust grows through stories.“From Washington to London, from Cannes to Tokyo, from Seoul to Shanghai and Cairo, we listened closely. When we truly understand one another's stories, new ideas are born, partnerships are formed, and bridges are built.”

Dr Al Kaabi said BRIDGE was created to address a long-standing gap in the global media ecosystem.“Media, content, and entertainment are not just industries. They are forces for trust, growth, and unity. Yet they never had one true home. This is why BRIDGE exists.”

Quoting Dr Martin Luther King Jr., he added:“Great human achievement begins with belief. Plans come after. And that belief is what brought us here.”

“At BRIDGE, disruption is not the goal. Disruption is the tool. When aligned with purpose, disruption becomes progress,” he concluded.

Richard Attias, strategist and Chairman's Strategic Advisor to BRIDGE Alliance, described the Summit as the realisation of a long-held conviction that the global media community lacked a true home. “BRIDGE is no longer a concept, it is an alliance,” he said.“Built with the passion and generosity of more than 1,000 people in the UAE, BRIDGE is a gift from Abu Dhabi to the world.”

From an idea conceived just eight months ago to a global gathering of industry leaders in Abu Dhabi, Attias said BRIDGE is set to become a defining platform for the future of media.“Not because we say so, but because the world needs it.”

A ceremony rooted in the human story of communication

The opening ceremony also featured a short film tracing humanity's evolution of communication - from early gestures and cave markings to language, writing, printing, broadcasting, and the digital age. It reflected on the challenges of today's AI-driven world, where misinformation spreads rapidly and reality is increasingly blurred, before positioning the UAE at the crossroads of this global transformation.

A young Emirati speaker followed, urging discernment and truth in an age of advanced technology. A choreographed performance by eight contemporary dancers then depicted a fractured world gradually reconnecting through the building of a bridge, symbolising the Summit's core mission.

Closing the ceremony, emcee Tumi Magkabó highlighted the scale of today's content economy, noting that gaming now rivals television and film combined, 67% of creators use AI, and cross-sector collaborations have surged by 340% in just three years.“Welcome,” she said,“to the largest debut media event in the world.”

The inaugural BRIDGE Summit runs from 8–10 December 2025 at ADNEC, Abu Dhabi.

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