News

Step Conference Announces Dates For 2023 Dubai Tech Festival

The popular technology expo will take place in Dubai’s Internet City and feature a retro future theme.

Published

4 years ago

December 22, 2022

step conference announces dates for 2023 dubai tech festival

Step Conference has announced dates for the 11th Edition of its popular technology festival for emerging markets, which will take place in Dubai’s Internet City. The expo will take place between 22-23 February 2023 in the largest technology hub in the MENA region, which is currently home to Fortune 500 companies, SMEs, and startups.

This year the conference will focus on exploring a “retro future”, where past styles and trends mix with cutting-edge technology. In a first for the popular event, consumer brands will showcase their products to more than 8,000 consumers at a special Direct-to-Consumer (DTC) Hub. As well as catching a glimpse of upcoming tech innovation, participants will also be able to enjoy a packed program of events:

Start Track: Covering the tech startup scene and all things digital.
Fintech Track: A deep dive into banks, payment gateways, and fintech.
Future Track: Exploring futuristic transport and autonomous technology.
Digital Track: Bringing together brand managers and digital influencers.
Wellness Track: Covering topics and trends on wellbeing and fitness technology.
Earth Track: Exploring greentech, sustainability, and environmental impact.

“I’m delighted to announce the launch of the 11th Edition of our conference and to provide a platform for the tech industry to come together, discuss and debate the latest and future trends. We wanted to focus on six tracks where we see past trends developing and impacting the future. Exploring retro-futurism and the dynamic between past and future technologies will help to pave the way for what is yet to come,” says Ray Dargham, CEO of Step.

Also Read: How To Find The Best Remote Work Opportunities In The Middle East

The event host, Dubai Internet City, has been home to a tech community of global and local businesses and startups since 1999, and has helped to put the UAE at the center of global technology innovation. Events like Step create important funding and networking opportunities for startups and entrepreneurs and help to raise the profile (and value) of an already booming digital economy.

If you’re interested in visiting Step Conference 2023, head over to the official booking page to register for tickets.

News

Trip.com Is Betting An AI Agent Will Book Your Next Vacation

Abu Dhabi, Jazeera Airways and a run of hotel deals give the company more inventory. Its Mastercard demo says the most about where booking technology is headed.

Published

2 days ago

September 16, 2026

Nour Nasir

trip.com is betting an ai agent will book your next vacation

Most of what Trip.com Group announced at Arabian Travel Market 2026 this week reads like the standard expansion playbook of an online travel agency: a new agreement with a tourism board, a run of hotel partnerships, an airline deal. However, one item was considerably more interesting: a demonstration built with Mastercard of an AI agent that doesn’t just suggest trips but also pays for them.

trip.com tripgenie ai agent

The showcase put TripGenie, the company’s AI travel assistant, to work searching, selecting and completing purchases inside a single booking flow, with Mastercard’s Agent Suite for Merchants handling the payment step and Network International processing the transactions on the merchant side. It’s limited for now to attractions and ancillary services, but the partners plan a phased commercial rollout from early 2027.

“As traveller expectations change, technology and AI will play an increasingly important role in how people plan their journeys,” says Schubert Lou, CEO of Trip.com.

Meanwhile, in more conventional news, CEO Lou and Saleh Mohamed Al Geziry (Director General for Tourism at the Department of Culture and Tourism – Abu Dhabi), signed an agreement building on the two organizations’ existing partnership, with joint marketing and Abu Dhabi destination content to be pushed across Trip.com Group’s platforms.

Also Read: Musk’s Boring Company Wants To Dig 150 KM Of Tunnel Under The UAE

On accommodation, the group expanded its partnerships with JA Hotels & Resorts, Ishraq Hospitality and Aleph Hospitality and deepened its work with Silkhaus, which brings vacation homes into a portfolio that has so far leaned on hotels. Jazeera Airways signed a strategic partnership intended to widen the Kuwaiti carrier’s reach and encourage earlier bookings, tied to Kuwait’s own tourism ambitions.

The company moved into a larger Dubai office earlier this year and describes its long-term aim as a two-way ecosystem: sending Middle East travelers abroad while drawing international visitors in.