The Private Office’s senior director to join global AI experts at /function1 event in Dubai

• 64% of participants at the /function1 AI conference and exhibition are expected to be founders and senior executives.
• Omnia Hamed, Senior Director – International Ventures at The Private Office of Sheikh Saeed bin Ahmed Al Maktoum, will join two main-stage panels.
• C-suite executives and key figures from NVIDIA, Lincode Labs Inc., and Deloitte will appear alongside Hamed in the second session.

 The “Unicorn 30 Program” and “Dubai AI Acceleration Taskforce” are among the new initiatives recently approved by H.H. Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Crown Prince of Dubai, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Defence of the UAE, and Chairman of The Executive Council of Dubai. These programs now form part of the emirate’s comprehensive agenda to speed up its technology adoption and become the world’s most advanced AI economy. As such, the local business environment is in a transformative phase, with AI innovations, investments, and the way of setting up a business in Dubai evolving.

In line with these strategies, the ‘/function1’ AI conference and exhibition returns this November as a distinctive platform focused on the real-world application and business transformation enabled by AI. The event draws together innovators, thought leaders, policymakers, and investors to explore the commercial and ethical dimensions of emerging technologies.

Among its key voices is Omnia Hamed, Senior Director of International Ventures at The Private Office of Sheikh Saeed bin Ahmed Al Maktoum and Seed Group.

 Omnia Hamed to offer AI growth strategies at /function1

On 19 November 2025, Hamed will participate in two key panel discussions on the Main Stage at /function1. The first discussion, titled “Global AI Governance: Can Public and Private Leaders Align?”, will focus on international collaboration for responsible AI ecosystems. Hamed will be joined by the Minister of Justice of the Kyrgyz Republic and the Co-Founder of Astana Open Dialogue.

Later in the day, Hamed will also be on the panel for the session “MENA’s AI Race: Bold Bets for 2030”, which will outline how regional stakeholders are scaling AI innovation as we look towards the next decade. Joining her on the panel are C-suite executives and key representatives from NVIDIA, Lincode Labs Inc., and Deloitte. Their discussions are expected to outline how strategic investments can create a meaningful impact, especially for founders setting up their business in Dubai.

Hamed has extensive experience supporting international tech companies in expanding into the UAE and GCC markets, with a focus on partnerships that align with the UAE’s innovation and diversification agenda.

Why setting up a business in Dubai’s AI economy is vital

/function1 is scaling up to become a large year-end AI conference in 2025, following its successful debut last May. The previous edition attracted over 600 carefully selected attendees, featured 40 international speakers, and included 10 hours of expert-led sessions, including the UAE’s first major hackathon.

This November, the conference will expand with a week-long series of featured events across Dubai, such as:

• BITS Tech Fest: Agentic AI Hackathon 2025 (14-15 November)
• AI Genesis: AI Hackathon (14–19 November)
• Business Circle: Founders & Investors Connect (18 November)
• AI Futures Lab: Youth Program (18–19 November) – free for students
• First Google Data Science Agent: CoLab AI Workshop (19 November)
• Brew AI Over Coffee: Business and AI Professional Workshop (21 November)

These sessions are designed to cultivate innovation within Dubai SMEs and startups, in line with the broader objectives of the “Dubai Universal Blueprint for Artificial Intelligence”. This major government-led initiative aims to expedite the adoption of AI, creating a supportive environment for entrepreneurs setting up a business in Dubai.

Why you should attend the AI conference and exhibition

By focusing on real-world applications and scalable solutions, AI events like /function1 act as both launchpads and accelerators for innovators and investors setting up their businesses in Dubai. Aligned with the emirate’s long-term vision to integrate AI across sectors — from real estate and finance to energy, logistics, and media — the AI conference and exhibition helps boost the city’s global competitiveness for business.