Museum Of The Future And Great Arab Minds Host Knowledge Session On Reading In A Digital Age

The Museum of the Future is preparing a public session with Algerian novelist Waciny Laredj on 24th January 2026, examining how reading is changing in an era of screens and smart devices. The talk sits within the museum’s Master Class series, organised in partnership with the Great Arab Minds initiative.

This first Master Class of 2026 will investigate the shifting place of books and storytelling in a digital culture. Laredj will discuss how technology is altering the relationship between authors and readers, and how these tools influence literary style, publishing formats and the ways audiences discover, share and debate texts.

The Museum of the Future serves as the official headquarters of the Great Arab Minds initiative, which His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum launched to highlight creative talent. From its base in Dubai, the institution backs cultural projects that support Arab innovation and encourage dialogue across the wider Middle East.

Through exhibitions, public events and research programmes, the Museum of the Future offers a meeting point for writers, artists, technologists and scientists. The goal is to create a space where ideas from different disciplines intersect. This approach helps visitors and participants examine how creativity, science and society interact in the region.

The Master Class series continues across 2026 with speakers from literature, architecture, arts and technology. Every session is designed as a forum for open discussion rather than a closed academic lecture. By inviting diverse experts, the museum highlights how cultural production responds to fast social and technological shifts.

Earlier Master Class events have welcomed Iraqi artist Dia Al-Azzawi, winner of the Great Arab Minds Award 2024, and Jordanian architect Sahel Al-Hiyari, recognised in the Architecture and Design category. Their contributions examined visual culture and urban form, showing how creative practices document and reinterpret Arab experiences in different cities.

During the forthcoming lecture, Laredj will raise a central question for contemporary authors: "what does it mean to write in a world that is changing faster than ever?" Using this question, the novelist will look at how literature can interpret current challenges and connect individual stories with wider historical and cultural shifts.

Laredj will also turn to historical fiction, a genre central to much of the author’s work. The session will consider how narratives set in earlier periods can speak to present concerns, linking memory and imagination. The discussion will address identity in a connected world, and how reading remains meaningful despite constant technological change.

Across the event, the Museum of the Future and Great Arab Minds initiative underline their shared aim to support serious cultural debate in the Arab world. By focusing on the future of reading and writing, the 24th January 2026 session offers audiences in Dubai and the region a chance to reflect on how stories shape collective understanding.

With inputs from WAM