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Dubai Announces Plans To Become A 20-Minute City
The move aligns with the Dubai Urban Plan 2040, which aims to create the world’s most liveable city.
Dubai’s Roads and Transport Authority (RTA) has revealed an updated strategic plan for 2024-2030, which will help the emirate reach its goal of becoming the world’s most liveable city.
The Dubai “20-minute city” plan aims to make urban areas easily accessible by ensuring that 80% of regular journeys can be completed in a maximum of 20 minutes on foot or by bicycle.
The Higher Committee for Strategic Planning and Corporate Transformation at #RTA chaired by His Excellency Mattar Al Tayer, Director General, Chairman of the Board of Executive Directors of RTA, endorsed an updated RTA’s Strategic Plan 2024-2030. The plan is aligned with Dubai… pic.twitter.com/6apr3JG3to
— RTA (@rta_dubai) December 10, 2023
On Sunday, December 10, 2023, Dubai’s Higher Committee for Strategic Planning and Corporate Transformation at the Roads and Transport Authority (RTA) announced that it aims to achieve 5 key objectives relevant to “integrated and innovative mobility”. The goals align with the Dubai Urban Plan 2040, which aims to make the UAE the world’s most liveable destination.
The latest plan is designed to facilitate the roads and transport development, creating systems that will support the 20-minute city plan and emphasizing accessibility and “multi-modal transport integration”. Officials also aim to expand smart mobility services.
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“RTA’s future entails studying and deploying integrated and soft mobility solutions along with connected and real-time mobility systems and self-driving transport. RTA intends to operate self-driving Chevrolet Bolt autonomous electric vehicles, positioning Dubai as the first city in the world to operate American Cruise self-driving vehicles outside the USA,” said Mattar Al Tayer, Director General Chairman of the Board of Executive Directors of RTA.
Dubai’s latest objectives follow a list of ideas first revealed in 2021. Officials explained that they aimed to have around half of the population living within 800 meters of the nearest public transport hub and that space used for hotels and tourist activities would be increased by 134%. In addition, land designated for educational and health facilities would be increased by 25%.
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Nano Banana 2 Arrives In MENA For Google Gemini Users
Google brings its latest image model to Gemini and Search, adding 4K output and tighter text control for regional users.
Google has opened access to Nano Banana 2 across the Middle East and North Africa, pushing its newest image model into everyday tools rather than keeping it inside the exclusive (and expensive) Pro tier.
The rollout spans the Google Gemini desktop and mobile apps, and extends to Google Search through Lens and AI Mode. Developers can also test it in preview via AI Studio and the Gemini API.
Nano Banana 2 runs on Gemini Flash, Google’s fast inference layer. The focus is speed, but also control. Users can export visuals from 512px up to 4K, adjusting aspect ratios for everything from vertical social posts to widescreen displays.
The model maintains character likeness across up to five figures and preserves fidelity for as many as 14 objects within a single workflow. This enables visual continuity across scenes, iterations, or edits — supporting projects like short films, storyboards, and multi-scene narratives. Text rendering has also been improved, delivering legible typography in mockups and greeting cards, with built-in translation and localization directly within images.
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Under the hood, the system taps Gemini’s broader knowledge base and pulls in real-time information and imagery from web search to render specific subjects more accurately. Lighting and fine detail have been upgraded, without slowing output.
By embedding the model inside Gemini and Search, Google is normalizing advanced image generation for a mass audience. In MENA, where startups and marketing teams are leaning heavily on AI to scale content across languages and borders, that shift lands at a practical moment.
The move also folds creative tooling deeper into search itself, so that image generation is no longer a separate workflow. It now sits right next to the query box.
Nano Banana 2 Arrives In MENA For Google Gemini Users
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