The UAE is doubling down on its vision of becoming a global startup hub, as leaders implement innovation-driven policy measures aimed at giving entrepreneurs the tools to scale. The national campaign “The Emirates: The Startup Capital of the World”, launched by His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, is central to this push.
Key among the policy supports is the Scale Up Platform, an initiative by the Ministry of Economy designed to help high-growth SMEs and startups become future unicorns. It provides services such as digital transformation support, export promotion, overseas expansion, joint operations, and access to funding.
Other enabling measures include streamlined regulations and legislative reforms, active government-private-academic partnerships, priority in federal procurement for startups, mentorship and training programmes, and incentives to attract talent and capital.
Entrepreneurs in fintech, healthtech, AI, climate tech and related “new economy” sectors are seeing particular benefit. For example, in 2025 the UAE has already attracted over US$2.1 billion in startup funding in the first half of the year, reflecting a 134% year-on-year rise. Startup counts have also grown, with the country registering more than 5,600 startups in Q2 2024, the highest among GCC nations.
Leaders expect that by 2031, these policies will transform the startup ecosystem: more unicorns, stronger contributions from SMEs to non-oil GDP, and a larger share of global innovation emanating from the UAE.