Dubai: Dubai Chamber of Digital Economy, one of three chambers under Dubai Chambers, has unveiled five new features for the 10th edition of Expand North Star 2025, the world's largest gathering for startups and investors. Organised by Dubai World Trade Centre and hosted by Dubai Chamber of Digital Economy, the event will take place at Dubai Harbour from 12th to 15th October 2025.
According to Emirates News Agency, this year's edition will introduce ScaleX, the Consumer Tech Zone, North Star Green Impact, Deeptech MEA Summit, and Digital Assets Forum. These additions aim to enhance the Expand North Star ecosystem, offering unparalleled opportunities for the global tech community to explore growth, funding, and collaboration.
Expand North Star gathers leading founders, investors, entrepreneurs, and business leaders worldwide to explore emerging opportunities in Dubai and drive the future of the digital economy.
ScaleX is the official growth programme of Expand North Star Dubai 2025, highlighting 100 of the fastest-growing tech companies worldwide and facilitating their expansion into the Middle East and beyond. This curated programme blends remote preparation with high-impact, in-person exposure, connecting tech scaleups with key partners and investors.
The Consumer Tech Zone will feature founders developing next-generation AR/VR hardware, smart health devices, lifestyle tech, and connected products. These startups, supported by leading accelerators, government innovation programmes, and deep-tech hubs, represent cutting-edge consumer technology.
North Star Green Impact, launching for the first time, is a new sustainability zone spotlighting startups driving climate and environmental innovation. It connects global green-tech founders with impact investors, government buyers, and climate-focused partners amidst a burgeoning climate-tech ecosystem in MENA, evidenced by a 40% annual increase in venture capital investment during 2023.
The Deeptech MEA Summit will serve as a premier platform for advanced technologies in the Middle East and Africa, bringing together visionary entrepreneurs, pioneering researchers, technology leaders, and forward-thinking government entities to drive innovation in fields such as artificial intelligence, quantum computing, and robotics.
The Digital Assets Forum will convene global experts to explore transformations reshaping the financial sector's infrastructure, covering topics from central bank digital currencies to tokenised assets and AI-powered risk management.
This edition will also feature the world's largest startup pitch competition, the Supernova Challenge 2.0, with a US$200,000 prize pool. The Corporate Arena will return for its second edition, offering a platform for enterprise leaders to collaborate with founders and investors.
The Tech Transfer Innovation Forum will again bridge the gap between research and business, while specialised events like Marketing Mania will explore AI and storytelling in brand building.
The event continues to foster young talent through the YouthX Unipreneur and Emaratipreneur platforms, empowering the next generation of innovators and entrepreneurs. Networking opportunities will extend with North Star by Night, a series of evening mixers and events.
Expand North Star is a key component of the chamber's strategy to establish Dubai as a global hub for innovation and technology, driving economic growth in the emirate and beyond.