Abu Dhabi’s inaugural DRIFTx, an international platform and
exhibition for smart, autonomous, and sustainable urban mobility
applications across air, land, and sea, has concluded with the
consensus that flying taxis, autonomous cars, and sea gliders will
be a popular mode of transport in the UAE and globally, much sooner
than expected. The event convened industry titans, startups, and
mobility leaders from across the world, firmly reinforcing Abu
Dhabi’s emergence as a global hub for smart and autonomous
mobility.
Attended by over 8,000 visitors from more than
25 countries, DRIFTx convened global leaders from around the world
in Abu Dhabi, enabling engaging discussions, fostering meaningful
collaborations, and providing a perfect platform to showcase and
unlock innovative technologies across air, land, and sea
applications. Through showcasing the latest solutions, DRIFTx
promoted partnerships and unlocked commercial and investment
opportunities in the mobility space, supporting Abu Dhabi’s vision
to provide a global platform that can be used as a test bed for
technologies that are shaping the future of transportation and
mobility across the world.
His Highness Sheikh Theyab bin Mohamed
bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Deputy Chairman of the Presidential
Court for Development and Fallen Heroes’ Affairs, inaugurated the
Abu Dhabi Mobility Week. As part of the evening’s program, His
Highness toured the DRIFTx exhibition to witness the industry’s
latest innovations and solutions.
His Highness Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohamed
bin Zayed Al Nahyan toured DRIFTx,
visiting a number of local and international company pavilions, and
discussed the latest technology and solutions in the field. His
Highness was accompanied by His Excellency Mohammed Ali Al Shorafa,
Chairman of the Department of Municipalities and Transport; and His
Excellency Ahmed Jasem Al Zaabi, Chairman of the Department of
Economic Development.
Sheikh Ahmed bin Hamdan Al
Nahyan, President of the UAE Sailing and Rowing
Federation, toured DRIFTx, and viewed the autonomous vehicle
showcases and innovations presented at the event.
Hasan Ahmed Al Hosani, Managing
Director, Bayanat, said: “We are proud to have been part
of what can only be described as a leading platform for global
mobility experts and innovators. Over the two days, DRIFTx
presented enlightening discussions and fostered key collaborations,
helping to propel the future of mobility at the global stage and to
drive Abu Dhabi’s efforts in redefining possibilities for smart and
autonomous vehicles and sustainable mobility applications.”
News at DRIFTx – Advancement of Mobility
Solutions Through 12 MOUs
DRIFTx concluded with 12 MOUs and agreements
signed between key local and global players in urban mobility.
These strategic agreements advance future mobility solutions
bringing them closer to operational launch in civil use-cases.
Amongst the key collaborations announced at
DRIFTx was an agreement between the Abu Dhabi Investment Office
(ADIO) with Archer Aviation to accelerate Archer’s planned
commercial air taxi operations in the UAE, slated to launch as soon
as next year. Furthermore, ADIO announced its collaboration with
electric seaglider pioneer, REGENT Craft to support and attract
investment for seaglider development and manufacturing at the Smart
and Autonomous Vehicle Industry (SAVI) cluster. The Department of
Municipalities and Transport (DMT), represented by Abu Dhabi
Mobility (AD Mobility), also signed a memorandum of understanding
with REGENT to provide low-hovering maritime transport for both
passenger and freight transport, accelerating the establishment of
an integrated transport system and supporting goals aiming to
reduce carbon emissions.
Joby Aviation has also signed a multilateral MOU with the
Department of Municipalities and Transport - Abu Dhabi (DMT), the
Abu Dhabi Department of Economic Development (DED) and the
Department of Culture and Tourism - Abu Dhabi (DCT Abu Dhabi) to
support and scale Joby air taxi services in the UAE.
Leading fintech group in the MENA region, Multi
Level Group (MLG) partnered with the Abu Dhabi Investment Office
(ADIO) to drive eVTOL development in the UAE and beyond, signing a
trilateral agreement with EHang. EHang is looking to set up their
regional headquarters in Abu Dhabi to promote business activities
with local partners including manufacturing, flight operations,
research and development, training and Maintenance, Repair, and
Overhaul (MRO) facilities.
FEST Auto Global Holding Ltd (FEST), a global
mobility solutions company with a mission to redefine urban
transportation, with Abu Dhabi University (ADU), aimed at fostering
innovation in sustainable urban mobility. FEST and ADU will work
together to enhance FEST's proprietary Fleet Management System
(FMS) and Vehicle Management System (VMS). These systems are
designed to increase operational efficiency through advanced system
customization and to showcase the practical viability of FEST's
customized electric vans in real-world applications.
Bayanat announced a series of exciting
initiatives, including the launch of the Daleel App, in beta
testing. Unveiled during DRIFTx, Daleel is a cutting-edge
navigation application developed in-house by Bayanat specifically
for the GCC region, and optimized for the UAE, for smart phone
users. Bayanat is also partnering with South Korean autonomous
technology firm, Autonomous a2z to combine their expertise in
pioneering cutting-edge autonomous fleet operations. It also signed
an agreement with AUTOCRYPT, an industry-leading V2X security
provider and system integrator, to combine its expertise in
vehicle-to-everything (V2X) infrastructure deployment with
Bayanat’s AI Smart Roads, enabling and advancing Level 4+
autonomous driving.
Manta Aircraft announced strategic support by
Altair for Manta Aircraft's innovative program, which offers
unlimited simulation and data analytics software. Altair will
provide software tools and computational intelligence solutions in
the areas of digital engineering, AI, and data analytics
technologies.
DRIFTx: A Show of “Firsts”
DRIFTx also featured a number of “firsts”,
including product unveilings, new showcases, and attracting
international mobility entities to the UAE for the first time. This
included the UAE’s first operational vertiport for vertical
take-off and landing aircraft (eVTOLs) which was unveiled by ADIO,
in collaboration with the UAE’s General Civil Aviation Authority
(GCAA) and The Department of Municipalities and Transport - Abu
Dhabi (DMT), represented by Abu Dhabi Mobility (AD Mobility), an
affiliate of the Department of Municipalities and Transport – Abu
Dhabi (DMT).
GMC, one of General Motors’ most popular vehicle
brands, and Bin Hamooda Auto – GMC dealership for Abu Dhabi,
displayed the brand's first all-electric supertruck, the GMC HUMMER
EV Pickup and SUV. Furthermore, May Mobility showcased its
autonomous vehicle solutions for the first time in the region. The
company works with existing transit systems to provide safe,
accessible and equitable autonomous transportation.
“This week, some of the world’s
most forward-thinking leaders and brightest minds convened at
DRIFTx in Abu Dhabi, unlocking extremely important discussions that
are sure to shape the way people and goods are transported, with
advanced solutions,” said Namir Hourani, Managing Director of
GMOLx, organizers of DRIFTx. “Across the two days, we had an
impressive speaker lineup, unique exhibitions, and exciting live
demonstrations, truly demonstrating and displaying the future of
urban air, land, and sea mobility. DRIFTx 2025 will be even bigger,
and we’re looking forward to building on the energy and amazing
vibe we witnessed this week to inspire another round of real-world
breakthroughs.”
Bayanat collaborated with FlyNow Aviation
providing visitors with the chance to virtually take to the skies
of Abu Dhabi with the revolutionary eVTOL eCopter, in addition to
showing its full-scale HAPS in Abu Dhabi for the first time.
Attendees also got the chance to experience innovations that have
come to the UAE for the first time, including a2z’s MS MiniBus,
Carnival Robo taxi, and remote control driving from Abu Dhabi to
Korea. Furthermore, Multi-Level Group showcased Wings Logistics
Hub’s intra-city passenger taxi, and a short-range light cargo
drone which performed flying demonstrations within the event space.
Visitors also got to view Big Drone by DCL, which provided an
aerobatic drone for human flight, Ocean Drone 30 by Ocean Drone,
and Fugro demonstrated the Blue Shadow.
In collaboration with the Department of
Municipalities and Transport (DMT), the Abu Dhabi Investment Office
(ADIO), Abu Dhabi’s Smart and Autonomous Vehicle Industry (SAVI)
cluster, Bayanat, and key local and international strategic
partners, including Abu Dhabi Chamber, Joby Aviation, Emirates
Driving Company, 7X, Multi-level Group, Archer Aviation, Abu Dhabi
Ports Group, and International Road Transport Union (IRU), DRIFTx
has emerged as the world’s premier gathering for global thought
leaders and innovators to explore, showcase, and demonstrate the
latest in smart, autonomous, and sustainable mobility solutions
from across the world. Building on its success, the second edition
of DRIFTx is set to take place once again in Abu Dhabi during the
first quarter of 2025.
About DRIFTx
DRIFTx is an international thought-leadership
and exhibition platform dedicated to advancing the future of smart,
autonomous, and sustainable mobility across air, land, and sea.
Supported by the Abu Dhabi Investment Office (ADIO) and Abu Dhabi’s
Smart & Autonomous Vehicle Industry (SAVI) cluster, DRIFTx is a
leading global event to showcase the latest in advanced urban
mobility, driving discussions, collaboration, and innovation across
the sector.
To learn more about DRIFTx, please visit
https://driftx.com and follow DRIFTx on LinkedIn: DRIFTx Abu Dhabi,
Instagram: @driftx_ad, X: @DRIFTx_AD, and Threads: @driftx_ad.
Press Contact:
Megan Schwichtenberg Skyya PR+1.651.785.3212DRIFTx@skyya.com