Dubai is positioning itself as a hub for property technology (proptech) innovation, with the Dubai Land Department (DLD) aiming to attract entrepreneurs and funding to the sector.

At the Step Conference, senior director Mahmoud Al Burai highlighted Dubai’s goal to become the “Silicon Valley of real estate innovation” by providing a testing ground for technologies and securing investment.

The emirate’s real estate market continues to grow, with transactions reaching 761 billion dirham (US$207.2 billion) in 2024, a 20% increase from the previous year.

To drive proptech advancements, the DLD launched initiatives like the Real Estate Evolution Space Initiative and partnered with Dubai Chambers to form the Dubai PropTech Group.

The department is also exploring blockchain and AI, including a Real Estate Tokenisation initiative for fractional property ownership.