Dubai stands out as a leader in three waves. For starters, it has successfully attracted leading technology companies for many years with an aggressive corporate tax rate incentive capped at zero. Smaller tech firms followed suit with UAE operations.

Despite only a few GCC regional oil companies industrializing wide-scale investment in digital technology, 88% of GCC refiners surveyed acknowledge that non-investment poses risks such as a lack of ability to improve margins and lower competitive advantage.