Dubai Future Week’‘ ‘The Chall’nge’ brings global AI and robotics talents to Dubai
(MENAFN- bursonglobal) Dubai, 15 October 2026: Dubai Future Foundation (DFF) has unveiled details of The Challenge, one of the main concepts at Dubai Future Week, taking place from 18 to 21 November 2026 across Emirates Towers and the Museum of the Future.
Held under the theme ‘For the Human of the Future’, Dubai Future Week will bring together more than 10,000 participants to explore how the forces shaping the future will change the way people live, think, innovate, feel and do business.
The Challenge moves the conversation from ideas to action, bringing together some of the world’s leading talent in artificial intelligence, robotics and emerging technologies for live competitions that put technical skill, creativity and problem-solving to the test.
Rather than simply discussing what new technologies can do, participants will demonstrate what they can build, solve and deliver in real time.
The platform reflects one of the central ideas behind Dubai Future Week: that technology is never the whole story. AI, robotics and advanced computing are tools, but their real value lies in how people use them to solve problems, expand opportunities and improve lives.
AI Grandmaster
The AI Grandmaster competition builds on the success of the Global Prompt Engineering Championship 2025, which attracted more than 3,800 applications from 125 countries.
For 2026, the competition evolves beyond prompting. Twenty elite AI practitioners will compete live through elimination rounds testing AI orchestration, product thinking, integration and measurable outcomes under pressure.
The competition will culminate in a final showdown, with one winner taking the title of Dubai AI Grandmaster and a grand prize of AED 1 million.
Emirates Robotics Competition
The Challenge will also host the finals of the fourth Emirates Robotics Competition, organised by Dubai Future Labs, part of Dubai Future Foundation, in partnership with Rochester Institute of Technology, Khalifa University of Science and Technology, Mohammed bin Rashid Library and the American University of Sharjah.
This year, participating university teams are challenged to design and develop an autonomous library assistant capable of identifying, handling and delivering books.
Using the same robotic platform, teams must develop the intelligence behind the machine — including perception, grasp planning, navigation and autonomy — making software and problem-solving the key differentiators.
The competition brings together university teams from across the UAE and puts their systems through a real-world test during Dubai Future Week.
Where the future gets tested
The Challenge sits within How We’ll Innovate, one of Dubai Future Week’s five tracks.
The track explores a much broader question than which technology comes next: what are we building, and why?
Across the Week, conversations and experiences will explore AI and robotics alongside quantum computing, biotechnology, materials science, automation, space, research and scientific discovery — and what these advances mean for people and society.
Dubai Future Week itself is designed to move beyond the traditional conference format. Instead of organising the future into industries, the programme is built around five human questions:
How We’ll Live. How We’ll Think. How We’ll Innovate. How We’ll Feel. How We’ll Do Business.
Across four days, visitors will encounter keynote conversations, live competitions, more than 100 prototypes, startup pitches, workshops, policy discussions, scientific and cultural experiences, exhibitions and activations throughout the Dubai Future District.
The Week unfolds across eight main concepts: The Big Stage, The Prototype Floor, The Pitch, The Policy Room, The Challenge, Offstage, 500 Future Minds and The District.
From AI builders competing for AED 1 million and autonomous robots tackling real-world tasks, to founders pitching investors, scientists and artists exploring what makes us human, and experiences extending beyond the conference room, Dubai Future Week is designed to make the future something people can see, question, test and participate in.
For more information about Dubai Future Week, visit:
Held under the theme ‘For the Human of the Future’, Dubai Future Week will bring together more than 10,000 participants to explore how the forces shaping the future will change the way people live, think, innovate, feel and do business.
The Challenge moves the conversation from ideas to action, bringing together some of the world’s leading talent in artificial intelligence, robotics and emerging technologies for live competitions that put technical skill, creativity and problem-solving to the test.
Rather than simply discussing what new technologies can do, participants will demonstrate what they can build, solve and deliver in real time.
The platform reflects one of the central ideas behind Dubai Future Week: that technology is never the whole story. AI, robotics and advanced computing are tools, but their real value lies in how people use them to solve problems, expand opportunities and improve lives.
AI Grandmaster
The AI Grandmaster competition builds on the success of the Global Prompt Engineering Championship 2025, which attracted more than 3,800 applications from 125 countries.
For 2026, the competition evolves beyond prompting. Twenty elite AI practitioners will compete live through elimination rounds testing AI orchestration, product thinking, integration and measurable outcomes under pressure.
The competition will culminate in a final showdown, with one winner taking the title of Dubai AI Grandmaster and a grand prize of AED 1 million.
Emirates Robotics Competition
The Challenge will also host the finals of the fourth Emirates Robotics Competition, organised by Dubai Future Labs, part of Dubai Future Foundation, in partnership with Rochester Institute of Technology, Khalifa University of Science and Technology, Mohammed bin Rashid Library and the American University of Sharjah.
This year, participating university teams are challenged to design and develop an autonomous library assistant capable of identifying, handling and delivering books.
Using the same robotic platform, teams must develop the intelligence behind the machine — including perception, grasp planning, navigation and autonomy — making software and problem-solving the key differentiators.
The competition brings together university teams from across the UAE and puts their systems through a real-world test during Dubai Future Week.
Where the future gets tested
The Challenge sits within How We’ll Innovate, one of Dubai Future Week’s five tracks.
The track explores a much broader question than which technology comes next: what are we building, and why?
Across the Week, conversations and experiences will explore AI and robotics alongside quantum computing, biotechnology, materials science, automation, space, research and scientific discovery — and what these advances mean for people and society.
Dubai Future Week itself is designed to move beyond the traditional conference format. Instead of organising the future into industries, the programme is built around five human questions:
How We’ll Live. How We’ll Think. How We’ll Innovate. How We’ll Feel. How We’ll Do Business.
Across four days, visitors will encounter keynote conversations, live competitions, more than 100 prototypes, startup pitches, workshops, policy discussions, scientific and cultural experiences, exhibitions and activations throughout the Dubai Future District.
The Week unfolds across eight main concepts: The Big Stage, The Prototype Floor, The Pitch, The Policy Room, The Challenge, Offstage, 500 Future Minds and The District.
From AI builders competing for AED 1 million and autonomous robots tackling real-world tasks, to founders pitching investors, scientists and artists exploring what makes us human, and experiences extending beyond the conference room, Dubai Future Week is designed to make the future something people can see, question, test and participate in.
For more information about Dubai Future Week, visit:
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