ADNEC, Ministry of Defence Share Overview Of This Year's UMEX

The Abu Dhabi National Exhibitions Company (ADNEC) group and the Ministry of Defence in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) on Thursday gave an overview of this year's Unmanned Systems Exhibition (UMEX), which will feature a Simulation and Training Exhibition (SimTEX) zone.

The event will be held under the directives of Sheikh Hazza bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Deputy Ruler of Abu Dhabi, at the Abu Dhabi National Exhibition Centre (ADNEC) from Jan. 22-25.

EDGE Group will serve as the strategic partner at the 2024 run of the event that will be attended by major international companies alongside experts.

"The unmanned systems industry holds a significant role in global peace and security while contributing to the economic development of countries through value-added innovations," Major General Mubarak Saeed bin Gafan Al Jabri, chairman of the Higher Organising Committee of the event, said, as per WAM.

"These innovations have expanded beyond defense applications and now include commercial and civil uses," he added.

The chairman went on to explain that the event, which will also feature a conference and live flying demonstrations on top of an exhibition, will offer a platform to present the latest upgrades in unmanned systems, simulation and training, robotics and artificial intelligence applications.

This platform will also bring international industry leaders together and help them explore avenues to expand further in these sectors.

Al Jabri noted that the upcoming event will be held under the theme "Soaring to new heights: Impact of new technologies in evolving unmanned systems era."

More than 200 senior leaders, decision-makers and experts are expected to attend the conference. In several sessions during the three-day event, these participants will address regional and international challenges while discussing their applications in civilian and military contexts.

Humaid Matar Al Dhaheri, managing director and group CEO of ADNEC group, shared that the event will also "introduce five new initiatives for the first time, including the UMEX trade platform featuring the participation of more than 30 international and local companies specializing in the civil and commercial applications of unmanned systems."

"Furthermore, onshore and marine demonstrations of unmanned systems will be held at ADNEC Center for the first time," he added.

Al Dhaheri then disclosed that the event will also launch the MoD Coding Challenge competition, which is aimed at national talents in the programming sector.

A new platform will be launched for startups, too. People from around the world can submit their latest innovations and technologies to compete for the "UMEX NEXT_GEN Award for Innovation."