UAE Corridor To Future: Al Jaber Opens ADSW 2026 Highlighting Energy And AI-led Growth

Abu Dhabi Sustainability Week 2026 opened with a clear message that AI-driven growth depends on reliable energy, as Dr. Sultan bin Ahmed Al Jaber linked rising computational demand, global economic change and the UAE’s long-term industrial strategy in front of President His Highness Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan and an audience of international leaders.

Describing a global economy being reshaped by digital systems, Dr. Al Jaber stressed that expanding AI and data services are inseparable from power supply. "Artificial intelligence is rewiring every industry, reshaping every sector and resetting expectations for global growth," Dr. Al Jaber said. "Simply put, there is no artificial intelligence without actual energy."

Projecting forward 15 years, Dr. Al Jaber said data centre electricity demand will increase sixfold, while air travel is set to double and an extra 1.5 billion people are expected to live in cities, placing further strain on systems for cooling, heating, transport and manufacturing that all require dependable and affordable power.

Dr. Al Jaber underlined that this surge in consumption must be managed with realism. "Meeting all this demand responsibly, reliably and affordably means coming to terms with reality," Dr. Al Jaber said. "Over 70 percent of this energy will still come from hydrocarbons." He described this outlook not as a limit, but as motivation. "Sustainable progress is not about slowing down growth, it is about designing a better engine."

Explaining how national planning responds to this context, Dr. Al Jaber said the UAE has shaped its economy around this "better engine for growth," which he described as rooted in practicality, ambition and long-term thinking, supported by leadership that plans patiently, acts cautiously and commits capital in a disciplined way across energy and industry.

He highlighted what he called a "foundational truth" that modern systems still require fuels as well as electrons. "That is why we have always invested in both and fused them into a single integrated system: from the carbon-efficient molecules of ADNOC to the clean gigawatts of Masdar; from the largest solar projects ever built, to the first solar plants that work around the clock; from nuclear energy to custom-tailored wind turbines that work at low speed."

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The speech also described how digital tools are now central to the UAE’s industrial plans. "AI is no longer a tool we add at the margins; it has become the operating system of our industrial strategy. We are embedding AI across our energy and industrial base to optimize every barrel, every megawatt, every production line."

Looking back over two decades, Dr. Al Jaber credited President His Highness Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan for starting Masdar, which hosts Abu Dhabi Sustainability Week. "Exactly 20 years ago, Your Highness, you took a bold strategic decision to invest in renewables" he said, noting that Masdar now develops projects in more than 40 countries and has contributed to renewable energy costs falling by more than 90 percent.

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Dr. Al Jaber reported that Masdar has already passed two thirds of its goal of building a 100 gigawatts portfolio, describing its progress as evidence of consistent delivery. "Twenty years of Masdar is proof of what’s possible when visionary leadership sets a clear direction, does not waver and stays the course."

Turning to international collaboration, Dr. Al Jaber said the UAE positions itself as "an open platform for partnership," based on what he described as "radical collaboration." He added: "We are never distracted by the noise of the moment. We are always focused on the work of a generation. Our word is our currency. Our consistency is our strength. Our record is our credibility."

Addressing "CEOs, technologists, investors and policymakers" at Abu Dhabi Sustainability Week, Dr. Al Jaber said the UAE offers qualities that appeal to long-term capital, including stability, predictable leadership, clear policies, advanced logistics networks, developed financial services and "smart capital," alongside access to substantial energy resources and high-technology infrastructure supported by strong regulation and rule of law.

Abu Dhabi Sustainability Week AI energy UAE values

He described Abu Dhabi as a global hub where large-scale power and data infrastructure intersect. "If you want to engineer the future, this is where that work is happening," he declared. "The corridor to the future runs through here: where gigawatts of power meet terabytes of data, where energy meets intelligence, and where progress is not promised – it is delivered."

Dr. Al Jaber linked this role to the UAE’s social approach, describing the country as "a nation of peaceful coexistence," shaped by practical action. "We move forward with confidence because we know who we are and what we seek to achieve. We believe the future is shaped through wisdom, hard work and sound stewardship. And we believe people are the ultimate purpose.

In a world shaped by technology, it is our values that remain our North Star, guiding how we invest, how we build and how we partner." He then referred to the influence of the late Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan, the first president and Founding Father of the United Arab Emirates, and the standard set for national development.

"Sheikh Zayed defined progress by one standard alone: human dignity," Dr. Al Jaber said. "He believed that leadership is measured not by wealth or power, but by the difference made in people’s lives." He connected this principle to the creation of the Zayed Sustainability Prize, launched in 2008 to advance sustainability, inclusion and development in honour of Sheikh Zayed’s approach.

Dr. Al Jaber noted that the Zayed Sustainability Prize Award Ceremony takes place on the same day as his address and said the Prize has already improved the lives of more than 400 million people around the world. "This prize is not symbolic, it is practical, and it is deeply human," he said. "The Prize has saved lives, and it has changed lives – permanently, for the better. That is the power of legacy multiplied through action."

Closing his remarks, Dr. Al Jaber invited further collaboration through Abu Dhabi Sustainability Week and the UAE. "Bring your ambition, your ideas, your capital and your technology, and put them to work where progress is powered, opportunity is operationalized and partnerships are permanent. The future of sustainable human progress is waiting, and its address is Abu Dhabi."

With inputs from WAM