KOTRA signs MOU with Dubai's Roads and Transport Authority on AI, future mobility

KOTRA signed a memorandum of understanding with Dubai's Roads and Transport Authority on cooperation in AI, future mobility and smart infrastructure at the 14th Dubai Sustainable Transport Awards ceremony in the UAE on Thursday (local time), the trade promotion agency announced Monday.

Competition for AI leadership is intensifying across the Middle East — centered on the UAE, Saudi Arabia and Qatar — even as the US-Iran war continues in the region. KOTRA said the agreement is significant in that it secures a direct cooperation channel between Korean companies and one of Dubai's key procurement bodies.

The MOU builds on a series of partnership moves KOTRA has made in the UAE. The agency signed an MOU with the Dubai Future Foundation in September last year, then held a Korea-UAE business roundtable and economic cooperation plaza in November to broaden its cooperative base. The Korea-UAE Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) entered into force in May this year, further strengthening the institutional foundation.

Kim Jun-gyu, head of KOTRA's Middle East regional headquarters, and Muna Al Osaimi, director general of the Roads and Transport Authority, signed the agreement. The awards ceremony is hosted by the RTA under the patronage of Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Crown Prince of Dubai and Deputy Prime Minister of the UAE, and recognizes outstanding cases of future transport innovation including autonomous driving and AI.

The RTA is the UAE's leading infrastructure procurement body, overseeing Dubai's roads, railways and public transport as well as future transport policy and projects spanning autonomous driving, intelligent transport systems, traffic control and advanced air mobility. As the agency responsible for implementing Dubai's AI Strategy 2031 and Smart Dubai policy on the ground, it works with overseas technology companies to drive AI-based transport innovation.

Under the MOU, the two organizations will establish a cooperation framework covering three areas: expanded participation by Korean companies in future mobility and smart transport projects led by the RTA; joint identification of cooperation tasks in AI- and digital technology-based transport and infrastructure; and support for proof-of-concept demonstrations and commercialization linked to public projects.

KOTRA said it has secured a foothold for Korean companies to participate directly in large-scale Middle East infrastructure projects by connecting the RTA's public procurement needs with domestic AI, mobility and smart-city firms. The agency described the arrangement as a cooperation model that goes beyond simple networking to enable proof-of-concept work and commercialization grounded in public procurement.

KOTRA plans to treat the MOU as its first cooperative project and expand project identification, public procurement consultations and demonstration support in connection with major local exhibition and marketing events such as the Gulf Information Technology Exhibition (GITEX).

"The RTA is a key institution leading future transport and smart infrastructure not only in the UAE but across the entire Middle East," Kim said. "With the Korea-UAE CEPA now in force providing an institutional foundation for bilateral cooperation, this MOU will serve as a turning point for translating collaboration in AI and future mobility into actual projects."