Dubai-based URB, a global leader in developing sustainable cities, has unveiled plans for the new Dubai Urban Tech District, which will become home for the most innovative entrepreneurs.

To be built on the creekside of Al Jaddaf area in Dubai, the Urban Tech District will create 4,000 jobs in green urban tech, education and training. It will have a total built-up area of 140,000 sq m, creating the world's largest urban tech hub, said URB.

It will also be home to venture capitals to provide the fuel for entrepreneurs, thus empowering a unique collaborative urban tech eco system, it added.

The global urban tech market is estimated to be worth $158 billion, which is expected to grow rapidly in the next decade. 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 and scalable renewable energy, low energy demand water harvesting, zero-waste management, and waste-to-energy solutions – which are just some of the many challenges our cities are facing.

Baharash Bagherian, CEO of URB, the company behind the Urban Tech District, said: “Dubai is best positioned to lead the urban tech transformation than any other city in the world. The Urban Tech District will be a new global tech hub for urban innovation. With a total built-up area of 140,000 sq m, it will be the world’s largest urban tech district, making Dubai the centre for urban innovation.”

 The new district will provide facilities for conferences, training, research, seminars, business incubation as well as various amenities. The building will also offset all its embodied carbon emissions from construction and operation. As a net-zero carbon district, the development will help to reduce the carbon footprint of its partner businesses, thus enabling a low-carbon workforce, it said.

The district will also be home to the Urban Tech Institute, which will foster the next generation of urban tech leaders, Bagherian said.

 URB is a global leader in developing sustainable cities with a sense of purpose to accelerate the world’s transition towards net zero developments. The company is headquartered in Dubai Design District with several mega-scale sustainable cities currently in planning stages.