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Joby To Launch High-Speed Air Taxi Service In Dubai

The agreement grants Joby exclusive rights to operate a fleet of air taxis in Dubai for six years, with operations beginning as soon as 2025.

Published

2 years ago

February 12, 2024

Nour Nasir

joby to launch high-speed air taxi service in dubai

Joby Aviation

Electric aircraft company Joby Aviation, has announced an agreement with Dubai’s Road and Transport Authority (RTA) to introduce air taxi services in the Emirate by early 2026, with plans for initial operations as soon as 2025.

The agreement, formalized at the World Governments Summit in Dubai, grants Joby exclusive rights to operate air taxis in Dubai for six years. The partnership aims to position Dubai as a global leader in swift, environmentally friendly, and noise-conscious air travel using Joby’s groundbreaking technology.

JoeBen Bevirt, CEO and founder of Joby Aviation, commented: “It is an honor to partner with the government of Dubai to demonstrate the value of sustainable air travel to the world. Today’s landmark agreement delivers on all three ingredients required to successfully launch an air taxi service – a definitive path to operations, well-placed infrastructure supported by dedicated partners, and an aircraft with the capacity and range to deliver meaningful journeys”.

joby aviation rta skyports dubai

Joby has also forged an agreement with Skyports, who are tasked with the design, construction, and management of four initial vertiport sites at Dubai International Airport (DXB), Palm Jumeirah, Dubai Marina, and Dubai Downtown.

joby aviation infographic

Joby’s aircraft, unveiled for the first time in the region at the World Governments Summit, is engineered to accommodate a pilot and four passengers, achieving speeds of up to 200 miles per hour for a projected travel time of just 10 minutes from Dubai International Airport to Palm Jumeirah, as opposed to the 45 minutes it takes by car.

Also Read: e& To Establish Largest Subsea Cable Connection In UAE

His Excellency Mattar Al Tayer, Director-General, Chairman of the Board of Executive Directors for RTA, also released a statement, explaining, “The air taxi service is part of RTA’s efforts to embrace future transportation technologies and offers a novel and efficient mobility option for Dubai’s residents and visitors, enabling fast, safe, and convenient travel to key city spots. This service will also enhance seamless multimodal transportation, improving citywide connectivity and ensuring a smooth travel experience for passengers”.

In the future, RTA, Joby, and Skyports will integrate the service into Dubai’s broader public transportation network. Joby has established a local operating entity to bolster its operations in Dubai and plans to predominantly hire locally for its operational team. Additionally, the company is open to localizing other global business activities in Dubai and the surrounding region.

Related Topics:Air Taxi Aviation Dubai Joby RTA

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Meta’s New AI Tool Builds Images From Public Instagram Photos

Muse Image lets anyone generate AI visuals from your public posts, unless you find the opt-out that’s buried in your account settings.

Published

14 hours ago

July 9, 2026

Nour Nasir

Meta

Meta has a new AI image generator, and it comes with a feature that has privacy advocates alarmed. Muse Image, launched Tuesday by the company’s Superintelligence Labs division, lets users generate AI images by @ mentioning any public Instagram account — pulling that person’s photos into the creation without their knowledge.

The tool is available through the Meta AI app, WhatsApp, and Instagram Stories. Meta says it “uses advanced reasoning to understand complex prompts, seamlessly blending multiple photos into high-quality creations you can download and share anywhere”. The tagging is the flashpoint: “Tagging a username lets Meta AI use public photos to build a visual that’s ready to post,” the company says. Every public Instagram profile can be used unless its owner has explicitly opted out.

That default has drawn sharp criticism. Public Citizen, the consumer advocacy nonprofit, called the feature “an egregious invasion of user privacy”. “Meta has once again chosen the creepiest possible path,” said J.B. Branch, the group’s director of federal AI governance and technology policy. “People should not wake up to discover their face has become raw material for someone else’s AI experiment”. “Instead of asking for meaningful consent, Meta quietly defaults users into the system and buries the opt-out in account settings,” Branch added. “It’s a playbook we’ve come to expect from a company with a long history of putting its business interests ahead of the public”.

Also Read: WhatsApp Usernames Are Coming: Here’s How To Claim Yours

Despite the concerns, it’s worth noting that private accounts are already protected. Muse Image requires access to public photos, and anyone trying to tag a private profile will be told the account can’t be used. Public accounts, on the other hand, must opt out manually. To do that, users will need to go to their profile, tap the menu in the top-right corner, then Sharing and Reuse. Under “Allow people to reuse your content on Instagram and with AI features at Meta,” you’ll find separate toggles for Posts and Reels — switch both off to keep your images and videos out of other people’s AI creations.