District 2020, the future of Expo 2020 Dubai, has announced the evaluation and shortlist of more than 600 applications from global start-ups and small businesses through its dedicated entrepreneurship programme. This marks the first major milestone for its dedicated Scale2Dubai programme which began accepting applications back in September 2021. The final announcement of successful applicants is expected to be revealed by March and will eventually see over 80 selected start-ups and small businesses joining District 2020’s community from October 2022.

The announcement reiterates District 2020’s commitment to continuing a meaningful Expo 2020’s legacy, while contributing to the emirate’s future vision, the growth of its innovation-driven economy; and its status as a global start-up capital.

District 2020 seeks to play a role in enabling regional and global start-ups to scale-up within Dubai,which provides an ideal launchpad and gateway to access new regional and global markets. And, as one of the world’s most connected cities that leads the Arab region in innovation rankings, Dubai offers unrivaled opportunities to innovate in tech-driven sectors, and connect with global potential partners and customers.  By enabling start-ups and small businesses through its Scale2Dubai programme, District 2020 builds on Expo 2020’s efforts to fund and empower innovating budding businesses with the potential to create long-term positive economic and social impact.

The focus on building a global innovation ecosystem is one of the core elements of the ambitious plan for the future of the Expo site,which aims to encourage cross-sector collaboration between corporates and Fortune 500s, government entities, academic institutes, accelerators, incubators, VCs, SMEs and start-ups. Crucial to the success of District 2020 are its sustainability credentials and its forward-thinking urban planning.  District 2020 hopes to be a blueprint for more human-centered, smart and sustainable cities.

Come 31 March 2022, the doors to Expo 2020 Dubai will close and the work to repurpose the 4.38 sq km site will begin. Around 80 per cent of Expo-built structures will be retained and repurposed to host up to 145,000 residents and workers, with 115,000 sqm NLA set to become available for companies of all sizes starting from October 2022. As a human-centric mixed-use community, it will provide a multi-purpose destination to live, work and explore; with a focus on balance and well-being and commitment to help people and businesses to thrive.

Tala Al Ansari, Director, Innovation Ecosystem and Scale2Dubai, said “This is a great stride towards our goals of supporting the start-up ecosystem in Dubai, which will provide an ideal home for these businesses at District 2020. We received tremendous interest in our global entrepreneur programme, Scale2Dubai, with over 3,200 registrations from 129 countries. From those registrations, we had over 1,000 applications which then moved to the screening stage. Applications were screened based on key criteria including their alignment with our target sectors and technologies; being operational for at least 2 years, having an existing solution and at least one paying customer; and being at either in “Series A”, late seed stage, or are a small business with less than 49 employees.

We’re proud to say that 628 businesses have been shortlisted for evaluation, which is really encouraging considering the criteria of businesses we’re seeking to bring as a part of this programme. Each application will now be reviewed by a panel of technically qualified judges, and more than 80 selected start-ups and small businesses will join District 2020 when we open doors in October this year. I would like to thank all 15 of our Scale2Dubai partners for helping us promote the programme and reach so many nations.”

As District 2020’s global entrepreneurship programme, Scale2Dubai is designed to ensure small business and start-ups thrive within its innovation ecosystem. Less than one per cent of programmes globally focus on helping businesses scale and only 50 per cent of start-ups make it to their fifth year. Scaling is a global challenge for start-ups, and this is where District 2020 aims to create impact. Scale2Dubai will provide start-ups and small businesses with access to deal flow, funding, talent and more to ensure they thrive in District 2020, Dubai and the UAE as a whole.

The first cohort of businesses who will set up in District 2020 will be announced by end of March, before Expo 2020 Dubai concludes. Demonstrating the long-term legacy goals of Expo 2020 Dubai and District 2020, Cohort 2 will be announced during the fourth quarter of 2022 and will move into District 2020 from April 2023.

The human-centric future city will continue the ambitions of Expo 2020 to bring diverse thinkers together to collaborate and devise solutions for a smarter, more sustainable future.  Anchor tenants DP World, Siemens, Siemens Energy and Terminus Technologies will also play a key role in developing tech-driven solutions as global industry leaders.  They will collaborate with the start-ups and small businesses that will come throughScale2Dubai, who will also play a pivotal role in contributing fresh thinking, bringing innovative solutions to the fore and feed these into the ecosystem, for true co-creation that will drive the smarter, more sustainable future District 2020 hopes to exemplify.