On a mission to make AI a superutility

Office (ADIO), which is mandated to attract FDI to the emirate, playing a similar role as Singapore's Economic Development Board.

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ADIO focuses on industry clusters that include smart autonomous vehicles, food - through lab-based meat - and water technologies, clean energy, advanced manufacturing and AI. Financial services are also a priority. Abu Dhabi has a "financial free zone" where English common law applies.

This has helped attract public pension funds and private investors. Among those who have established family offices in Abu Dhabi are the founder of Binance, Zhao Changpeng, India's Adani family, hedge fund billionaire Ray Dalio, several Russian oligarchs and Singapore's property magnates Raj Kumar and Kishin R.K.

Besides offering incentives such as zero income tax and rebates on land, water and electricity, ADIO has a team called "Investor Care" which helps foreign investors with issues such as licences and permits, schooling as well as accommodation and business space. "We handhold investors and can answer everything about living and working in Abu Dhabi," says Mr Al Yusuf.

"Once foreign investors set up, their journey doesn't end," he adds. "We have continuous dialogues with them to open new opportunities, find partners and access talent. We ensure that they grow."

But Abu Dhabi also wants to create home-grown champions. "We don't want to be only a consumer of technology, but also to build our own and then to export," says Hakim Hacid, chief researcher at the Advanced Technology Research Council (ATRC), which oversees R&D in Abu Dhabi and has a staff of more than 1,300 drawn from 70 countries.

The industries it targets include aerospace, environment and energy, food and agriculture, transport, security and defence. But ATRC does more than research - it also commercialises what it develops. "We take innovations from the research world to the business world, through licensing and creating start-ups," says Mr Hacid.