What Will Dubai Be Like In The Future?
Dubai as we know it has changed so rapidly in the last 46 years, it’s a real test of imagination to envision what it will be like in the future. Although, as one can expect from the city and its leaders, they’ve already started thinking about it!
So here are a few of the future projects, developments and initiatives that we can expect to see in Dubai, sure to change the way we go about our daily lives and positively boost the Dubai real estate market as a whole!
work on your own #readingchallenge at the Mohammed bin Rashid library
Joining the city’s ranks of public libraries and bookshops will be the architectural marvel of the Mohammed Bin Rashid Library (MBR Library). The brainchild of the Dubai Government, MBR Library will inject the city’s educational and cultural sector with even more literary resources in both physical and digital form. The library will serve as an intellectual hub within the city, hosting both local, regional and international presentations, documentaries and lectures. In addition to this, the tech-driven library will be connected with other institutions around the world, allowing visitors in Dubai to obtain information and resources that may be hard to come by otherwise.
Located by the Dubai Creek, the seven-storey MBR library will be in the shape of a Rehl – the tradition lectern that holds books, specifically the Quran. The building will also have labs dedicated to preserving books, collection and material processing, a warehouse, Arabic Library, Children’s Library, Family Library, Media Library, International Library, Young Adult Library, conference rooms,
Feel the need for speed with hyperloop ONE
Imagine waking up on Friday morning in Dubai and thinking to yourself, “I really do fancy getting lost in some art today!” How nice would it be to simply hop on a train and find yourself presenting a ticket stub at the front door of The Louvre Abu Dhabi? In less time than it takes to get a car wash?
In a few years, we all will be wondering how we managed to commute without Hyperloop One! This Jetsons-esque technological marvel is something straight out of a sci-fi movie. How it works is nothing short of ingenious. People will enter the actual Hyperloop vehicle which will slowly accelerate through a low-pressure tube using electric propulsion. Thanks to magnets, the vehicle will float above the track…racing along at aeroplane speeds across great distances. Completely autonomous and independent of the elements, not only is the Hyperloop good for the environment (it does not give out any direct carbon emissions), it’s safe too since it remains unaffected by driver/pilot error as well as any weather conditions.
What this means is that residents, tourists and businesspeople alike will be able to shuttle between Abu Dhabi and Dubai in around 12 minutes, while routes of 40 minutes between Dubai and Riyadh are also being explored. While we don’t have a definite launch date for the Dubai Hyperloop, a working iteration of the transportation system is expected to be unveiled this year. As per current designs provided by Paul Priestman, each vehicle will reach top speeds of 1220 kph and be able to accommodate 40 passengers.
According to RTA Chairman, His Excellency Mattar Al Tayer, “With Hyperloop One, we will create a new means of transportation, keeping our region at the forefront of transportation technology and innovation.”
live in a 3d printed home, work in a 3d printed office
One of the infrastructural and product building innovations that have been making waves in recent years has to be 3D printing. 3D printed jewellery and objects are slowing becoming commonplace and so is 3D printed real estate. This cost-effective and environmentally sound way to build property is so promising, that Dubai has already built the ‘office of the future’, the world’s most advanced, fully functional, inhabitable 3D structure. Dubai has also incorporated a 3D printing strategy into its initiatives as part of the Dubai Future Foundation.
The goal of the strategy, based on Dubai Municipality regulations, is to ensure that by 2025, every new building in the city will be 25% 3D printed. Work towards this will start as soon as next year and will affect the healthcare industry as well – expect to see 3D printed limbs, teeth and hearing aids as well. In total, the strategy’s will reduce time by 80%, labour by 70% and cost by 90%.
There’s (going to be) life on mars
Dubai and the UAE are known for breaking boundaries. For pushing limits and testing the limits of human achievement. And if we had to choose just one project that demonstrated this, it would be Mars Science City. Costing AED 500M and spread over 1.9M sq. ft, this city is not only the largest of its kind but will simulate life on Mars as accurately as possible.
The city will consist of food, water, energy and agricultural labs along with a museum that celebrates humankind’s greatest astronomical achievements. This educational area will also be designed to educate and entertain children, inciting a zest for exploration within them. While the museum is undoubtedly forward thinking, in a masterstroke of blending heritage with the future, the walls of the museum will be 3D printed – using local desert sand. And although the reason behind this project is to help build a settlement on the red planet within 100 years, the research conducted in its state of the art labs (sure to attract the best brains from around the world) will also help us address various energy and food crises here on planet earth.
Regarding the initiative, Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid said, “The UAE seeks to establish international efforts to develop technologies that benefit humankind, and that establish the foundation of a better future for more generations to come. We also want to consolidate the passion for leadership in science in the UAE, contributing to improving life on earth and to developing innovative solutions to many of our global challenges.”
Let’s hear it for the sun
In Dubai, especially for a few months of the year (!), we tend not to be the sun’s biggest fans. However, the sun provides a fantastically reliable, cost-effective and, most importantly, renewable source of energy. Until recently, the only way we harnessed the sun’s energy as average consumers, was through solar-powered lanterns – unless we lived in a community like Sustainable City with built-in solar panels. However, thanks to DEWA’s smart Shams Dubai initiative to help you make your home solar powered, that’s a thing of the past.
All you need to do is find a DEWA approved Electrical & DRRG Solar PV Consultants or Contractor who will guide you every step of the way, from getting a NOC to making sure you have everything you need to get the design approval and installing the panels. Once you’re all set up, if you produce more energy than you consume, it will go back into the grid – DEWA will even offset the cost of your future bills.
All we can say now is…bring on the future! But if you can’t quite wait for a few more years, here are some apps making life at home easier and some of the cool tech projects spotted at GITEX last year.
