FEATURE : GITEX PREVIEW
GITEX 2020 : Pandemic or not this year ’ s event is a must-attend
Sunil Paul , Co-Founder and Managing Director , Finesse , looks ahead to the region ’ s only faceto-face technology event of the year GITEX Technology Week .
Sunil Paul , Co-Founder and Managing Director
For the past four decades , one of the biggest global and disruptive technology events GITEX Technology Week , has been a constant in a world where nothing is . It is heartening to see that this has not changed even during a global pandemic . Most of 2020 has passed in a whirlwind of emotions , fighting a pandemic that threw us off track and forced us to reexamine everything we knew about business . However , with GITEX scheduled from 6th to 10th December , there is a new sense of optimism in the air .
GITEX , the region ’ s largest technology event , is expected to be the only global tech and start-up show in the world in 2020 to go live and in-person , according to its organisers . There are a couple of reasons behind this decision .
The primary one being Dubai was voted the safest city in the world to attend an exhibition , according to a survey conducted by Messe Frankfurt Middle East . The study showed that 77 % of respondents viewed Dubai as the safest destination to attend an exhibition post COVID-19 , followed by Germany ( 41 %), Saudi Arabia ( 19 %), France ( 17 %), Finesse and Italy ( 15 %). Another factor giving expected attendees further confidence is that the Dubai World Trade Centre ( DWTC ) venue was recently certified with the Bureau Veritas SafeGuard Label .
Not to forget , DWTC has already successfully held AI Everything x Restart Dubai Summer Conference in a hybrid model a few months ago , which was considered a grand success . Here we saw the event drawing hundreds of attendees – attending physically as well as streaming sessions live remotely .
The annual show is not expected to be different from any other year except that we will have to adhere to all the safety precautions in place , don the mask and consider handshakes a relic of the past . In fact , if anything , it could be the biggest edition to date . In its landmark 40th year , the IT expo is expected to explore groundbreaking pre-and postpandemic technologies , host high-octane tech conferences and showcase futuristic pioneering innovations .
Also , the organisers have decided to combine a number of other sister conferences , which usually run as standalone events – so along with the regular GITEX Technology Week and GITEX Future Stars , attendees will have access to GISEC , Future Blockchain Summit and Marketing Mania during the five days – making it even bigger and grander than any previous editions .
Although this edition promises to be a great platform , several technology firms are not investing in the show this year .
I believe this might be a missed opportunity for them . While remote work models , digital technologies and virtual meetings have been the way of life this year , one aspect everyone agrees on is the
fact that nothing can replace the human element . We have definitely become a lot more productive and much more efficient and effective relying on digital and remote work practices .
However , business is all about people and if there is a platform offering a secure way to meet and reconnect , we must take complete advantage of that .
It also gives us the chance to emerge from the bubble that we may have created over the past months and be inspired by new innovations and technologies and remind ourselves , this too will pass .
Technology players participating at the action-packed conference will put the spotlight on key areas , which will define our future lives , such as 5G , automation and AI , analytics , future mobility , digital economies , cybersecurity , cloud and Edge Computing , Deep Learning and Big Data .
With first time launches expected from more than 60 countries , attendees will truly be treated to the global tech scene . Moreover , all GITEX attendees will experience 70 plus hours of free content , helping them gain valuable insights from critically acclaimed companies and leaders .
Finesse will be exhibiting at the region ’ s biggest tech show in full force , displaying not only the latest state-of-the-art solutions but also our unity and strength as a company thriving in these unprecedented times . • www . intelligentcio . com INTELLIGENTCIO
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