OpenAI halts GPT-6.1 Astra release over safety concerns
The decision comes before OpenAI’s annual developer conference, where the company is expected to face scrutiny over AI safety.
Business
SoftBank raises $11.1 billion through bonds for OpenAI
SoftBank Group has issued dollar- and euro-denominated bonds worth a combined $11.1 billion as it seeks funding to support its...
Business
Business
Abu Dhabi records real estate deals worth $38.7 billion in 2025
Abu Dhabi, UAE -- Abu Dhabi’s real estate market recorded transactions worth a record AED 142 billion ($38.7 billion) in...
- Sales and purchase transactions totalled $27.1 billion from 25,604 deals, while mortgage activity accounted for $11.6 billion across 17,210 transactions.
- Foreign direct investment in Abu Dhabi’s real estate sector reached $2.2 billion in 2025, up 13 percent from the previous year.
Interview
Startups need more than funding: they need an ecosystem
Drew Propson, Head of Technology and Innovation in Financial Services at the World Economic Forum, explains how sustainable growth, AI...
- The UAE’s Vision 2031 and Saudi Vision 2030 are clear calls to action that outline not just ambition, but execution.
- The third quarter 2025 marked the fourth consecutive quarter with over $90 billion in funding, something not seen since early 2022.
Interview
Gulf startup hubs: Converging strategies, diverging ambitions
Despite fierce branding as rivals, Gulf startup hubs share capital, policy, and talent structures that are quietly shaping distinct, globally...
- Shared infrastructure, capital flows, and policy choices bind these ecosystems together more than they divide them.
- The critical question for Gulf ecosystems is not whether they have capital or talent, but whether both are organized toward genuinely global ambition.
Interview
Professional events are becoming West Africa’s new innovation engine
Innovation doesn’t happen by decree. It happens when people collide, when ideas rub up against each other, when unlikely conversations...
- What happens after the expo is just as important as what happens on stage.
- These gatherings give birth to cross-border communities of engineers, researchers, entrepreneurs, investors, and policymakers.
Geostrategy
Citizen-consumers are redefining the global reputation of multinationals: Ipsos study
The report, Impacts of Multinational Corporations: What Citizen-Consumers Want from Foreign Companies Doing Business in Their Country, draws on a...
- Despite regional differences, one expectation stands out globally: people want multinational corporations to contribute to local economies.
- This economic focus was particularly pronounced in developing and emerging markets, including many countries in the Middle East, North Africa, and Latin America.
Economy
Gaming, esports GCC’s new growth play
Saudi Arabia and the UAE are leading the gaming surge with world-class ecosystems and youth-driven expansion. Across the region, governments...
- Flagship events such as the Dubai Esports Festival and the BLAST Premier World Final, hosted by AD Gaming, have elevated the UAE’s global standing.
- With nearly 71 percent of the population under the age of 35, Saudi Arabia’s youth form the foundation of its gaming transformation.
Business
From awareness to action: How Amazon Ads is helping GCC startups scale smarter
Amazon Ads is evolving from a marketing channel into a business-building engine, helping GCC startups use full-funnel advertising, retail media...
- Amazon Ads is positioning itself as a platform for GCC startups, helping them link brand building with measurable growth across the full funnel, Rayan Karaky told TRENDS
- MENA startups can leapfrog legacy markets by adopting AI-driven Retail Media 3.0 from the outset, using commerce data to scale smarter and faster, he adds
How Sensodyne’s 5th Sense is turning oral care into experience
Haleon delivers better everyday health with humanity, as Sensodyne drives trusted innovation through The 5th Sense, Murtaza Mahfouz tells TRENDS
- Nearly half the population experiences tooth sensitivity, but two-thirds do not seek treatment, pointing to a major awareness gap, Murtaza Mahfouz told TRENDS
- Sensodyne’s ‘5th Sense’ uses immersive technologies like VR and multi-sensory design to position tooth sensitivity as a treatable condition, he adds
Business
CAMB.AI unveils a new vision for a ‘truly borderless internet’: Avneesh Prakash
CAMB.AI founder Avneesh Prakash explains how on-device, real-time AI translation—powered by its MARS and BOLI models—is poised to dismantle language...
- CAMB.AI is shifting voice AI from the cloud to the chip, enabling devices to be “born multilingual” through real-time, on-device translation, Avneesh Prakash tells TRENDS
- Founded on lived experiences of linguistic exclusion, CAMB.AI aims to ensure language never determines access, opportunity, or identity., he adds
Business
The new knowledge economy belongs to super users: Michael Wolf
Activate Consulting CEO Michael Wolf tells TRENDS how AI, media and shifting consumer behaviour are driving the next knowledge economy.
- The next knowledge economy will be built on AI working alongside journalists, analysts, creators and storytellers whose critical thinking remain irreplaceable, Wolf tells TRENDS
- From cost-efficient film and TV production to streamlining legal, accounting and other B2B workflows, AI will boost productivity rather than eliminate most jobs, he adds
OpenAI halts GPT-6.1 Astra release over safety concerns
The decision comes before OpenAI’s annual developer conference, where the company is expected to face scrutiny over AI safety.
Business
Company News
Latest News
EasyLease H1 profit $12.2m
Business
FAB profit edges higher
Business
Aramco profit jumps as oil prices surge despite Hormuz disruption
Saudi oil giant Aramco reported a 44 percent jump in second-quarter net profit on Wednesday, helped by higher crude oil...
Business
Most Read
Analysis
GCC lenders should reassess credit risks continuously
Today's environment calls for continuous reassessment rather than periodic review. Institutions need to challenge assumptions, stress-test portfolios against multiple scenarios,...
- KPMG urges GCC financial institutions to strengthen credit resilience through scenario analysis, governance and dynamic portfolio monitoring amid uncertainty.
- Analysis identifies retail, corporate and commercial real estate portfolios as key pressure points under prolonged geopolitical and economic disruption.
Business
Emirates NBD to acquire retail banking business of HSBC Egypt
Dubai, UAE -- Emirates NBD Egypt S.A.E., a 100 percent owned subsidiary of Emirates NBD Bank has entered into definitive...
- Emirates NBD Egypt will acquire HSBC Egypt’s retail banking portfolio along with the associated branch and ATM network, customer base and relevant employee base.
- The transaction is expected to enhance Emirates NBD Egypt's market positioning as a leading retail and premium banking franchise in Egypt.
Business
Aldar records $408 million sales from Yas Point residential launch
Dubai, UAE -- Aldar said it generated AED1.5 billion ($408 million) in sales from the launch of The Canopies, the...
- First-time Aldar buyers accounted for 84 percent of customers, with UAE nationals representing 40 percent of total sales.
- Expatriate residents and overseas buyers contributed 60 percent of sales, while 47 percent of buyers were under 45.