More than 700 experts are set to gather in Dubai today, for a meeting that will tackle key global issues and help set the agenda for January’s World Economic Forum (WEF) in Davos.
The first-ever ‘Annual Meeting of the Global Future Councils’ will include topics such as smart cities, robotics and the future of mobility, a WEF statement said.
It will develop ideas and strategies to help prepare the world for the “Fourth Industrial Revolution” — a new age characterized by breakthroughs in fields including artificial intelligence, the ‘Internet of things’, autonomous vehicles and 3D printing.
Attendees of the Dubai event will include leading figures from global business and academia, public figures and heads of international organizations.
“As the Fourth Industrial Revolution picks up speed, we must develop new and creative ways of driving economic growth, bringing our communities together and fostering cooperation to tackle the challenges we face head on as a shared humanity,” said Klaus Schwab, founder and executive chairman of the World Economic Forum.
The meeting in Dubai will be co-chaired by Mohammad Al-Gergawi, the UAE’s minister of cabinet affairs and the future.
“Our region has played a major role in shaping the future of the world for centuries,” said Al-Gergawi. 
“Today, the forward thinking and vision of our leadership have succeeded in positioning the UAE as a hotbed for innovation, where planning for the future is at the very core of Government. This makes the UAE the ideal destination to host the inaugural Global Future Councils, which strive to find and implement real solutions for the challenges of the future, and flag future opportunities that we can all benefit from.”
As well as generating ideas to tackle global challenges, the outcomes of the discussions of the ‘35 Councils’ meeting in Dubai will shape the program of the 47th World Economic Forum Annual Meeting in Davos, Switzerland, in January 2017.

Source: Arab News