What does tomorrow’s city look like?

As someone focused upon the future, there are a few futuristic cities that astound me. Dubai is one, as I go there every year for a winter break, and recently visited the Museum of the Future. That already sounds strange, as museums usually host the memories of the past, not the future. The museum was quite fun, although it’s not my #1 recommendation in Dubai (that would be the Burj Khalifa and the Dubai Mall).

Nevertheless, as I’ve been going to Dubai for over twenty years, what amazes me is how it has transformed from a piece of desert land to a massive, bubbling behemoth in less than half a century.

Dubai 1980

Dubai Now

Dubai now, with the museum of the future on the left.

I could talk lots about Dubai but, in bringing it back to fintech, the DIFC – Dubai International Financial Centre – has been doing great work in bringing Dubai to the forefront of financial innovation, as evidenced by their efforts around crypto assets. In fact, 2024 cemented the UAE’s status as a global crypto hub with new stablecoin regulations, tax exemptions and stricter marketing rules.

Note there that the headline is around the UAE, not just Dubai. After all there are seven Emirate states, with Dubai and Abu Dhabi being the largest (and there’s lots to say about Abu Dhabi too!).

The reason for blogging about this is that, if you want to see the future, the UAE is where it’s at. These are designer cities with designer infrastructure, built from scratch over the past fifty years. More than this, and what I really like about these places, is that they never stand still and they make decisions fast. You go to a meeting with the DIFC on a Friday and by Monday the decision is made to get it done. That ‘can do’ attitude is seriously lacking in Europe, which has become the museum of the world.

The thing is that, as one desert patch transforms to be the leader of the future, others follow. I could not believe the investment being made in Saudi Arabia to build the new designer metropolis called Neom.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z2Fy4e-ZUb8

Estimates vary from $500 billion to $1.5 trillion being invested to create the new designer world of tourism and commerce for the future on the Red Sea. The biggest investment is going into building THE LINE, a 34 square kilometre infrastructure that covers a vast part of the desert in a line (hence the name), designed to eventually accommodate 9 million people. Is this the future?

I guess there’s a competition to build the future now and, even though I love Dubai, Abu Dhabi and THE LINE, the city of the future has actually been built already … by Toyota. Developed by car maker Toyota, 'Woven City' sits at the base of Mount Fuji in Japan, and features smart homes powered by hydrogen, AI and other technologies.

At this year’s Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas Toyota CEO Akio Toyoda -  said the $10 billion utopia would serve as a 'lab' for innovators to develop the technologies of tomorrow. The city will include drones that safely escort you home at night, interactive pet robots to assist the elderly and robots to assist with everyday tasks (Japan loves robots).

“Woven City is more than just a place to live, work, and play,” Toyoda stated at CES. “It’s a living laboratory where the residents are willing participants, giving inventors the opportunity to freely test their ideas in a secure, real-life setting … Woven City is a place where people can invent and develop all kinds of new products and ideas.”

These are just three examples of future cities that are here and now, and there are many more. For example, the main image on this blog update is the futuristic city of Telosa USA. Checkout these and others here.

What makes me live in wonder is that, when I come back to London, Warsaw and other cities where I work and live, how could they ever compete, design or keep up with these innovations. Any thoughts welcome …