Dubai Chambers Strengthens Ties with China Ahead of 2026 Business Forum to Boost Innovation and Investment
Dubai Chambers is enhancing its engagement with the Chinese business community in anticipation of the Dubai Business Forum – China, scheduled for 14 October 2026 in Shenzhen. The forum, themed “Momentum at Scale: Accelerating Shared Success,” aims to unite senior government officials, investors, business leaders, and representatives from both public and private sectors to explore new avenues for trade, investment, and economic collaboration between Dubai and China.
This initiative comes at a time when an increasing number of Chinese technology firms are selecting Dubai as a regional and international hub. These companies cite the emirate’s advanced infrastructure, supportive regulatory framework, robust public-private partnerships, and strategic connectivity across the Middle East, Africa, and Asia as key advantages.
Chinese Innovators Expand Through Dubai
Dubai Chambers reports that leading Chinese firms in sectors such as advanced air mobility, aerial logistics, and cross-border payments are increasingly utilizing Dubai as a platform for growth and international expansion. A notable example is ARIDGE, formerly known as XPENG AEROHT, which is recognized as Asia’s largest flying car company. ARIDGE has chosen Dubai as a pivotal base for its expansion into the advanced air mobility sector.
In October 2025, ARIDGE conducted the first public manned flight demonstration of its flying car outside of China and subsequently secured purchase agreements for 600 units across Middle Eastern markets, including the UAE, Qatar, and Kuwait. The company emphasizes that Dubai provides ideal conditions for the commercial deployment of electric vertical take-off and landing (eVTOL) aircraft.
According to ARIDGE, “With nearly one-third of the global population within a three-to-six-hour flight radius, Dubai provides an ideal strategic base for eVTOL and Advanced Air Mobility companies to scale efficiently and access surrounding regional markets.” The firm also highlights Dubai’s supportive regulatory environment, future mobility ambitions, and opportunities for low-altitude airspace testing as significant factors driving its expansion.
Drone Delivery Ecosystem Gains Momentum
Keeta Drone, the drone delivery division of China’s Meituan, is also expanding its operations in Dubai after receiving the UAE’s first Beyond Visual Line of Sight (BVLOS) commercial license from the Dubai Civil Aviation Authority in December 2024. The company cites institutional cooperation and regulatory clarity as primary reasons for establishing its operations in Dubai.
Junwei Yang, General Manager of Keeta Drone, noted that “In Dubai, the defining difference is the decisive decision-making and willingness to co-build with the operators and partners. The public and private sides are genuinely connected, and it is a very supportive ecosystem.” Yang added that Dubai’s openness to emerging technologies and collaboration with operators has enabled the company to accelerate its deployment faster than in other markets.
Keeta Drone is currently collaborating with government entities, developers, and enterprise partners to explore new drone delivery routes across residential communities, universities, beaches, and parks.
Payments Gateway Connecting Asia, Middle East, and Africa
Chinese payments company PingPong is also expanding its presence in Dubai to facilitate increasing trade flows between China, the Middle East, and Africa. The company views Dubai as a central hub that links physical trade with the necessary financial infrastructure to support cross-border business.
Co-founder Aaron Lu stated that Dubai allows businesses to manage multiple regional trade corridors from a single location. “By anchoring with us in Dubai, they gain a payments foundation that scales across the entire arc from East Asia to Africa, without rebuilding that infrastructure market by market as they grow.” Lu further emphasized Dubai’s role as a meeting point for decision-makers from China and emerging markets, alongside the emirate’s advanced financial ecosystem, which includes technologies like Aani instant payments, UAE Pass, and ISO 20022 financial messaging standards.
Growing Appeal for Global Technology Companies
The experiences of ARIDGE, Keeta Drone, and PingPong illustrate Dubai’s capacity to attract and support high-growth international technology companies through a combination of strong public-private partnerships, access to capital and investors, connectivity to regional and global markets, and support for testing and commercializing emerging technologies.
The upcoming Dubai Business Forum – China is anticipated to further solidify economic ties between Dubai and China’s innovation-driven business community, showcasing the emirate’s role as a gateway for companies seeking expansion across the Middle East, Africa, and beyond.
As reported by www.emirates247.com.
Explore the latest digital editions of FAME Delivered in the Magazine section: https://famedelivered.com/magazine/
Published on 2026-08-09 15:47:00 • By FAME Delivered News Desk