News
Dubai Introduces Its Metaverse Strategy
The aim of the initiative is to make Dubai the leader in the region and one of the top 10 cities globally in terms of metaverse economy.
Dubai Crown Prince Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum seems to share Meta’s vision for the next generation of the internet because he has recently launched the Dubai Metaverse Strategy.
The aim of the initiative is to make Dubai the leader in the region and one of the top 10 cities globally in terms of metaverse economy by supporting 40,000 virtual jobs and 5x the number of blockchain and metaverse companies. By achieving these ambitious goals, Dubai could add $4 billion to its economy within the next 5 years.

“His Highness added that adopting new technologies will be a stepping stone in Dubai’s vision to use future technologies to create new work models in vital sectors and increase the metaverse’s impact on regional and global economies,” states an announcement published by the UAE official news agency WAM.
The Dubai Metaverse Strategy consists of three pillars. The first pillar is intended to foster metaverse innovation and economic contribution. The purpose of the second pillar is to cultivate metaverse talent through education and training. Finally, the third pillar is all about developing metaverse use-cases and applications at the government level.
The three pillars are supported by the adoption, scaling, and global advocation of safe platforms, in addition to infrastructure and regulation refinement.
Also Read: UAE To Punish Crypto Scammers With Fines & Jail Time
While certainly one of the most bullish proponents of the metaverse, Dubai isn’t the first city to introduce a cohesive strategy. Just last month, Chinese city Shanghai released a policy paper that outlines its strategy to cultivate a metaverse industry worth more than 350 billion yuan ($52 billion) by the end of 2025.
Globally, the metaverse market is projected to be worth around $1,607.12 billion by the end of the decade, according to Precedence Research. Do you think Dubai will see a return on this massive investment?
News
LUVED Is A New Curated Preloved Marketplace For The UAE
Sellers keep 100 percent of every sale and AI can build a listing in five seconds — though the app’s smartest tools are still coming.
Secondhand shopping has become mainstream in the UAE, but the experience is still scattered across resale sites, social media and informal group chats. LUVED, a mobile-first marketplace that launched in Dubai this month, is betting it can pull that activity into one place — and that the thing buyers and sellers actually want is not more inventory, but trust.
The app trades in what it calls circular luxury: preloved fashion and lifestyle pieces across men’s, women’s and children’s categories, bought, sold or given away peer to peer. Its main pitch is economics, with sellers keeping 100 percent of every sale under a zero-commission, fast payout model, while buyers are promised vetted pieces at lower prices.
Where LUVED is staking its reputation is verification. Sellers pass a KYC check, and items run through a two-layer authentication system powered by Entrupy that pairs instant AI screening with human expert review for high-value pieces. Authenticity certificates travel with each item, payments sit in escrow, and a buyer-protection package the company calls The Safety Net adds a 48-hour return window and dispute resolution. Door-to-door logistics removes the in-person meetups that make most resale deals awkward.
An in-app assistant called Luvbot — offering selling insights and demand-based recommendations — is soon to be introduced to the platform. Other features include autofill and dynamic pricing that lets users build a listing in as little as five seconds from three photos, plus a swipe-based feed, story-style drops and in-app chat in English and Arabic. Finally, a gifting layer, Luved & Gifted, lets users pass items to others inside the app rather than sell them.
Also Read: Logitech’s New Folding Mouse Is Designed For Work On The Go
“After moving to Dubai, I saw how difficult it was to sell or even give things away,” says founder and CEO Shaima Sibtain. The friction is real, and so is the competition. In resale, trust is won transaction by transaction — and that is the test LUVED has set itself.
The app is live on the App Store now, with Google Play to follow. The company also plans to expand across the region, which will be the real test for a marketplace staking everything on trust.
