Architectural practice URB is developing the world’s largest Urban Tech District along the Al Jaddaf Creekside in Dubai, writes an article in the online magazine Design Boom. The new complex, which will span 140,000 square metres, will offer facilities for conferences, training, research, seminars and business incubation, as well as commercial premises. It will be a "home for the most innovative entrepreneurs in the world", according to the project website.
The net-zero hub will “offset all of its embodied carbon emissions from construction and operation and later reduce the footprint of its partner businesses to enable a low-carbon workforce”, writes the article. At the same time, it will have sustainable features such as onsite urban farming, solar farms, and light and temperature sensors.
With the goal of "growing urban solutions at a much larger scale", the district will provide investment opportunities to innovators tackling issues related to sustainable cities. It will also offer opportunities to pilot innovations while driving public-private partnerships to support climate-friendly changes. It will create 4,000 jobs in green urban tech, education and training.
Baharash Bagherian, CEO of URB, said in the article that the global urban tech market is currently estimated to be worth 158 billion US dollars. He continued: “Urban Tech will be at the core of all future cities. Tech-enabled urban developments seek to provide solutions to the challenges created by urbanisation in various areas such as zero-mile food production, food security, affordable & scalable renewable energy, low energy demand water harvesting, zero-waste management, and waste to energy solutions.”
