World’s First Machine Economy Free Zone to Launch in the UAE

The UAE has announced the launch of the world’s first free zone dedicated to the ‘Machine Economy’, an initiative that aims to reshape how machines and decentralised technologies integrate with the economy.

The UAE has announced the launch of the world’s first free zone dedicated to the ‘Machine Economy’, an initiative that aims to reshape how machines and decentralised technologies integrate with the economy.

The project is a collaboration between blockchain platform peaq and Abu Dhabi’s Pulsar Group, creating a regulatory environment for machine-powered applications, such as AI-driven systems, autonomous vehicles, and smart infrastructure. Spanning across both Abu Dhabi and Dubai, the free zone will serve as a hub for real-world and digital experimentation. It’s designed to foster the growth of startups and projects focused on decentralised technologies, smart cities, and machine-to-machine applications.

The zone will feature “machine tokenization”, where communities can invest in and own smart infrastructure through digital tokens. This approach is tied to a model of universal basic ownership, allowing local communities to benefit directly from the machines and technologies operating in their environment.