Dubai’s flagship technology exhibition GITEX is expanding globally to position the UAE as a bridge between disparate tech ecosystems and enhance its geo-economic influence, the event’s chief executive said.
“This geo-economic positioning is very powerful, and GITEX can definitely do a lot to position Dubai and the UAE at that intersection,” Trixie LohMirmand, CEO of Kaoun International and Executive Vice President of Dubai World Trade Centre, told Arabian Business at the inaugural GITEX Europe in Berlin.
She said the global expansion of GITEX beyond its Dubai origins serves a mission that extends far beyond traditional trade shows.
“At the end of the day, we carry the main mission and the vision of Dubai and the UAE,” she added. “We are a platform that will influence, have good outcomes for as many countries and peoples of the world, as much as possible.”
GITEX, which began in 1981 as a modest trade show in Dubai, has evolved into one of the world’s largest technology events. The Dubai edition attracted 200,000 attendees from over 180 countries in 2024, with 6,500 exhibiting companies.
The event has now launched international editions in Morocco, Singapore, Nigeria and Germany, with GITEX Europe making its debut in Berlin this week.
LohMirmand said the decision to launch in Europe, and Berlin specifically, was driven by the region’s strength in deep tech and scientific research.
“When it comes to innovation and especially deep tech, AI, Europe leads in its own capacity,” she said. “In order to be able to innovate and invent frontier technologies that is going to really solve some of the world’s toughest challenges, you need to leverage deep research.”
The Berlin launch followed two years of discussions with the German state government, she said.
“There was great interest from them, because they have heard how GITEX has evolved, sustained and thrive and has become that global ecosystem builder,” LohMirmand said.
She described Berlin as an attractive venue due to its multicultural nature, similar to Dubai, and its position as Germany’s capital where policy influence is possible.
“The ability to be able to co-create regulations the way forward” makes Berlin strategically important, she said.
LohMirmand positioned GITEX’s expansion as reflecting broader UAE ambitions, comparing it to the country’s AI strategy which involves multiple international agreements.
“GITEX mirrors what the UAE ventures in AI. It has got multiple agreements with so many different countries, from very established nations to emerging economies,” she said, adding that the event’s expansion serve to “enlarge global ecosystems” rather than simply create events.
“With AI growing at the blistering pace, you can’t not be connected with the global – and very disparate – ecosystem,” she said.
GITEX Europe runs from May 21-23 at Messe Berlin, marking the first European edition of the Dubai-born technology exhibition after previous expansions into Africa and Asia.
