UAE Billionaire Says Businesses Should Not Accept Monopolies

UAE billionaire Mohamed Alabbar said he is not in favour of monopolies and businesses should not accept them for their country.

“You should not accept a monopoly. We need to protect our society, our country, our region,” he said.

Alabbar, who is chairman and founder of Emaar Properties and Noon, said he founded the latter to combat the hold that certain American countries had on delivery services in the UAE.

“I don't want one company to come in and control the e-commerce experience in our country,” he said.“That's why I have a problem with the big tech companies. I'm not sure this monopoly can continue. But I believe that AI is going to change (things).”

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Noon is Alabbar's e-commerce venture, which in recent years has introduced food delivery through quick deliveries, with its 9-minute delivery scheme being the first in the world, he claimed.

“How can you negotiate with Microsoft?” the businessman said, explaining that he is not in favour of monopolies held by American big tech companies - with one exception.“I negotiate with Meta, I don't negotiate with anybody else.”

The Emirati magnate was speaking at Dubai Fintech Summit 2026, one of the region's largest fintech events, bringing together global financial leaders, regulators, investors, banks, and technology innovators to discuss AI in finance, digital assets, payments, WealthTech, sustainability, and the future of financial services. It is organised by DIFC as the flagship event of Dubai Future Finance Week.

Alabbar said that businesses who fall behind with adopting AI will face challenges as the technology is constantly changing.“Those who use AI and those who are a little late in using AI, in another few months, the gap is going to get bigger,” he advised.

When it comes to enterprise resource planning (ERP), which is a system business use to manage their day-to-day, Alabbar said he believes they have“another 12 months to last” due to AI.

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