Author: Sam Allcock
Sam Allcock
Sam Allcock is a seasoned media professional and content strategist with a passion for storytelling across digital platforms. As a contributor to Abu Dhabi Week, Sam brings a sharp editorial eye and a deep appreciation for the culture, innovation, and lifestyle that define the UAE capital. With over a decade of experience in journalism and public relations, he covers everything from local events and business trends to travel, dining, and community highlights. When he's not writing, Sam is exploring the hidden gems of Abu Dhabi, always on the lookout for the next story worth sharing.
Abu Dhabi is set to host one of the Middle East’s foremost gatherings for HR excellence and youth empowerment as the 13th Annual GCC GOV HR and Youth Summit & Awards 2025, organised by QnA International, returns to the capital on 22–23 October. The Grand Hyatt Abu Dhabi Hotel & Residences Emirates Pearl will once again serve as the venue for this flagship event uniting top leaders, strategists, and future-shapers from across the Gulf. Celebrating thirteen years of impact, the summit has established itself as a cornerstone for driving innovation, collaboration, and human development in governance. Centred on the theme…
The Department of Culture and Tourism – Abu Dhabi (DCT Abu Dhabi) forged its long-term alliance with the UFC in 2019 with a bold goal: to cement the emirate’s position as a leading capital for combat sports. Since then, Abu Dhabi has delivered over 20 major UFC events, launched Fight Island during the global pandemic, and staged some of the sport’s most defining nights. As UFC President Dana White once declared, Abu Dhabi is the “fight capital of the world”—a reputation that continues to grow stronger six years on. However, Abu Dhabi’s ambitions stretch far beyond hosting landmark events. Its…
The Junior Dubai Desert Classic (JDDC) has officially opened registrations for its 2026 edition, with the tournament returning to Emirates Golf Club from 16–18 January. Now in its fourth year, the JDDC continues to serve as a key platform for emerging talent across the region and beyond. Hosted in partnership with the Emirates Golf Federation, the 2026 event marks the second consecutive year the JDDC has achieved World Amateur Golf Ranking® (WAGR®) recognition – giving participants a valuable opportunity to earn ranking points and progress through the competitive amateur golf pathway. The championship welcomes male and female golfers aged 18…
The Incubation and Entrepreneurship Centre (IEC) at the Mohamed bin Zayed University of Artificial Intelligence (MBZUAI) has announced the launch of Build It Demo Day, a unique platform for innovators to present tangible AI-driven products to the UAE’s growing technology ecosystem. Unlike traditional startup pitches, Build It is dedicated to showcasing real prototypes and working models rather than slide decks. The initiative sets three simple criteria: participants must demonstrate something they are genuinely proud of, ensure that AI forms the foundation of the product—whether as a model, agent, or workflow—and present their progress in the form of a prototype, mock-up,…
New Command and Control Centre to Oversee UAE’s Largest Data Centre Portfolio and Integrate into G42’s Global Intelligence Grid Presight, a global pioneer in artificial intelligence and big data analytics, has entered into a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Khazna Data Centers, one of the world’s leading hyperscale infrastructure providers, to introduce an innovative AI-based facility management system across Khazna’s network of data centres throughout the UAE. The collaboration will see Presight implement a cutting-edge, AI-driven command and control platform to manage 30 data centres nationwide. Operated from a secure, advanced AI hub in Abu Dhabi, the system will leverage…
Dubai, United Arab Emirates, 16 October 2025 – Wio Bank PJSC, the Middle East’s premier digital financial platform, has signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Alibaba Cloud, the digital and intelligence backbone of Alibaba Group, to promote the integration of artificial intelligence and cloud technology across the region’s fintech landscape. The agreement, signed at GITEX Global 2025, signals a new phase of collaboration aimed at redefining digital banking through innovation and data intelligence. The partnership enhances Wio Bank’s multi-cloud approach and accelerates its use of generative AI, supported by Alibaba Cloud’s state-of-the-art technologies such as the Qwen large language…
The stage is set for one of the year’s most anticipated sporting spectacles as UFC® 321: ASPINALL vs GANE headlines Abu Dhabi Showdown Week 2025. Taking place on 25 October at Etihad Arena, the event will feature Tom Aspinall defending his undisputed heavyweight title and the Arab world’s first-ever UFC women’s championship fight, where Virna Jandiroba faces Mackenzie Dern for the strawweight belt. From 20–26 October, the city will come alive with free fan activations, open workouts, and live appearances at Yas Mall and Yas Bay. Fans can immerse themselves in a full schedule of pre-fight activities. On 22 October,…
XBase Virtual Assets Broker & Dealer Services (XBase), under the XBD Group umbrella, has obtained In-Principle Approval (IPA) from the Dubai Virtual Assets Regulatory Authority (VARA) for its Broker-Dealer Services Licence. This milestone signifies the final phase before XBase launches full operations, pending formal authorisation. It represents another key moment in the evolution of Dubai’s regulated digital finance ecosystem and highlights the emirate’s growing global influence in the virtual asset landscape. The approval reinforces Dubai’s proactive efforts to create a transparent and sustainable framework for virtual assets. As of 2025, Dubai hosts the world’s largest regulated market for digital assets,…
Investment and Grid Bottlenecks Threaten Momentum, IRENA and Partners Warn Ahead of COP30 The world risks falling short of its renewable energy and efficiency targets despite achieving record deployment last year, warns a new report jointly published today by the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA), the COP30 Brazilian Presidency, and the Global Renewables Alliance (GRA). The findings were presented at a high-level pre-COP30 gathering in Brasília. According to the report, global renewable energy capacity grew by an unprecedented 582 GW in 2024 – the largest single-year increase to date. Yet this remains insufficient to achieve the COP28 UAE Consensus commitment…
Metropolitan Capital Real Estate Achieves AED 2.7 Billion in Deals Abu Dhabi’s property sector delivered an exceptional performance over the summer of 2025, with the total transaction value exceeding AED 11.6 billion—more than double the same period last year. The analysis, released by Metropolitan Capital Real Estate, a leading agency under the Metropolitan Group, marks the highest-performing summer in the capital’s real estate history. From June to August 2025, activity remained buoyant, supported by continued investor optimism, new off-plan launches, and government reforms including wider Golden Visa eligibility and the allowance of full foreign property ownership. Insights from the Abu…