Industry, Innovation and Infrastructure

The event discussed the future of cities in the context of eco-technological innovation, with a focus on smart and knowledge-based cities. It emphasised that economic imperatives must no longer outweigh ecological concerns in the face of the planet's environmental challenges. The city of the future, especially in the Anthropocene era, must redefine the concepts of intelligent, sustainable, and resilient urban living. Innovation in these cities depends on the interaction of various elements within the innovation ecosystem—much like in nature, where growth and sustainability are shaped by surrounding conditions. 

The cases of South Korea and Morocco were presented as compelling examples of how ecological and technological dimensions can be integrated into urban planning, underscoring the importance of balancing these aspects to achieve sustainable development. 

Professor Nathalie Martial-Braz and Professor Aude-Solveig Epstein examined the environmental potential of emerging and digital technologies—such as artificial intelligence, blockchain, and the digitisation of the economy—by questioning whether these innovations could contribute to addressing climate change. They reflected on the assumption that transitioning from an oil-based economy to a decarbonised digital economy, particularly within the UAE, could support the country’s climate commitments made in international forums such as COP. However, they raised concerns about the energy intensity of the current digital economy and whether it could deliver environmental benefits, depending on the energy sources used. The professors questioned the potential environmental gains of digital technologies, possible negative side effects like monopolies or shifts in the global economic order, and the legal role in ensuring these technologies contribute to climate goals. They also considered whether regulatory measures could force digital players to adopt environmentally sustainable practices. 

Dr. Stéphane Desruelles, Associate Professor of Geography and Head of the Department of Geography and Planning at Sorbonne University Abu Dhabi, organised an event aligned with the university’s scientific priorities, focusing on regional themes and supporting the UAE government’s vision for global climate action. The event featured speakers from universities and industries in the UAE, the Gulf region, and abroad. It included four sessions: 'Earth Observation Systems/Robotics', 'Energy Transition', 'Adaptation to Climate Change', and 'Transition to Low Carbon, Healthy, and Resilient Cities'. 

Léna Sasal, a PhD student at the SUAD’s Centre for Artificial Intelligence and Digital Policy, worked on predicting time series to forecast future events based on past data. The team focused on using transformers, a type of algorithm, to apply in various fields, such as predicting temperature or earthquake probabilities. In collaboration with TotalEnergies, the project aimed to forecast next-day oil production. The research led to a publication titled W-Transformers: A Wavelet-based Transformer Framework for Univariate Time Series Forecasting, which was presented at the International Conference on Machine Learning and Applications, held in the Bahamas in December 2022. 

This project is under the Chair of TotalEnergies, Centre for Artificial Intelligence and Digital Policy, SUAD.