A worldwide Masdar City project called “Innovate” gives innovation-driven businesses a stage on which to present their innovations to foreign investors.
The Innovate program gives businesses unique access to the vibrant Abu Dhabi technological ecosystem, with a focus on the core areas of urban transportation, clean energy, agritech and food security, and artificial intelligence.
Innovate began its 12-month initiative in January 2022 with physical and digital activations during Abu Dhabi Sustainability Week, one of the biggest sustainability conferences ever held. A variety of physical and virtual events were held by Innovate, which also featured a variety of cutting-edge innovations from participating firms. It also brought together technology developers, innovators, and possible investors.
Several companies across various sectors have joined the project including agtech companies:
- Alesca Life Technologies: In order to transform unused infrastructure, such as parking garages, storage facilities, and commercial buildings into year-round food production hubs, Alesca is implementing containerized turnkey vertical farms. The firm is working on indoor farming projects with significant state-owned and private-sector organizations in China, Japan, Singapore, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, and the United Kingdom. Through the yearly collection and analysis of billions of environmental data points and specific plant health photos, Alesca’s indoor farms have been designed to enhance farm output, efficiency, and traceability.
- Manhat: Manhat uses natural water to sustainably produce water and irrigate crops on floating farms thereby providing solutions to water scarcity and accessiblity to fresh food.
Masdar City is a ground-branking sustainable city that became a hub for innovation, research and development, advancing real-world solutions in energy and water efficiency, mobility, and artificial intelligence. The Bustani Smart Home Farming Showcase was unveiled at the Eco-Villa prototype in Masdar City in January 2019, where emerging farming solutions are being displayed alongisde educaitonal amterials explaining sustainable agriculture, food security and affordable ways to grow more food at home.
Image provided by Masdar City