| Museum of the Future | |
| Location: | Sheikh Zayed Road, Trade Centre 2, Dubai, United Arab Emirates |
| Type: | Exhibition and Immersive theatre |
| Founder: | Dubai Future Foundation |
| Architect: | Killa Design |
Museum of the Future (Arabic: متحف المستقبل) is a landmark devoted to innovative and futuristic ideologies located in the Financial District of Dubai, UAE. The museum, with 23 floors, is dedicated to exploring the future of science, technology, and innovation. It is housed in a torus-shaped building with windows in the form of a poem in Arabic about the future, written by His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the United Arab Emirates and Ruler of Dubai.[1] Founded by the Dubai Future Foundation,[2] the Government of the United Arab Emirates opened the museum on 22 February 2022.[3] The choice of the date was officially made because 22 February 2022 is a palindrome date (22/2/22, which is also known as Twosday). [4]
The Museum of the Future officially opened its doors to be an incubator for ideas and innovation. On the evening of 22 February 2022, the museum was inaugurated by His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum with a vibrant light show to mark the occasion.[5]
The opening ceremony saw Sheikh Mohammed alongside Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Crown Prince of Dubai, and Sheikh Maktoum bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum initiate the projections together at the press of a button.[6]
The goal of this museum is to be the first one, to look into the future, rather than the past. It is said that everything exhibited, in the museum, is predicted to be in existence in 2071.
Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum announced on 4th March 2015, plans to establish the Museum of the Future after its February showcase during the World Government Summit (WGS).[7] [8] On 7th February 2016, he inaugurated the Museum of the Future exhibition as part of the World Government Summit 2016.[9] On 24 April 2016, the 'Dubai Future Foundation' was launched in support of the museum. Under the new structure, the Museum of the Future became a part of the Dubai Future Foundation.[10]
On 10th February 2017 and 9th February 2018, the Museum of the Future opened temporarily at Madinat Jumeirah during the World Government Summit. The Museum of the Future exhibitions promoted technological development and innovation, especially in the fields of robotics and artificial intelligence (AI).[11] [12]
On 22 February 2022, the Museum of the Future was officially opened at 7pm Dubai Time.[13]
The Museum of the Future takes visitors on a fictional journey to the year 2071.[14] The museum features seven floors in total, with five floors dedicated to exhibits based on different themes.[15] The visitor journey begins from the fifth floor and takes guests down floor by floor.[16]
As part of the World Government Summit, the Museum of the Future has held several exhibitions since its inauguration in 2016. Each of the exhibitions had a different theme focused on the role of technology in the different sectors.[24]
Held in October 2016, the Mechanic Life exhibition explored the idea of having sophisticated robots that understands emotions. It also focused on artificial intelligence and human augmentation.[25]
The exhibition, which was held in 2017, adopted a theme set in 2050 to explore how humanity could thrive by welcoming radical innovations despite the impacts of global warming and climate change.[26] It focused on the three key factors contributing to humanity's ecological footprint, and these are urbanism, agriculture and global industry.
The Hi I am AI exhibition was held in 2018 to showcase how AI-powered buildings would serve humanity. It discussed several notions, including whether AI could be creative and what would humanity's future be like in an AI era.
The sixth exhibition of the Museum of the Future was held in 2019, and it explored the concepts of human augmentation and focused on the human body and mind.[27] [28]
The Museum of the Future claims that it seeks to foster solutions to the challenges that future cities will face, in addition to housing innovations and being a hub that brings researchers, designers, inventors and financiers under one roof.[29]
The museum is designed to host innovation labs dedicated to several sectors, including health, education, smart cities, energy and transport. It will also support and test new inventions in partnership with research institutes and universities.[30] It stands as a symbol of the city's commitment to innovation and its ambition to lead in shaping the future.
Claimed to be one of the world's most complex structures,[31] [32] the Museum of the Future was designed by UAE architectural firm Shaun Killa Design and engineered by Buro Happold.[33] On 3 February 2023, the building attained the LEED Platinum certification in terms of its green rating.[34] [35] [36] [37]
The façade of the building consists of windows that form Arabic quotes from Dubai's ruler about the emirate's future.[38] The phrases written on the outside of the museum are three quotes from Sheikh Mohammed:
The Arabic calligraphy engraved quotes on the Museum of the Future in Dubai is written by Emirati artist Matar Bin Lahej.
The torus-shaped shell sits on top of the building and comprises 1,024 fire-retardant composite panels clad in stainless steel, and each of which has a unique 3D shape to create the Arabic script.
Killa Design and Buro Happold developed new parametric design and building information modelling (BIM) tools, including a growth algorithm that employs digital means to grow the internal steel structure. Danem Engineering Works was one of the steel structure contractors for the project.
The museum has seven floors dedicated to different exhibitions.[40] [41] Three floors focus on outer space resource development, ecosystems and bioengineering, and health and wellbeing. The other floors showcase near-future technologies that address challenges in areas including health, water, food, transportation, and energy, while the last floor is dedicated to children.
On 30 June 2015, Dubai revealed plans to build the world's first fully functional 3D-printed office building. The project is the first major initiative of the Museum of the Future.[42] The single-story 2700 square feet Office of the Future opened in 2016 on the museum's grounds. It took 17 days to print, "using an additive concrete ‘printing' technique using a 3D printer 20 feet high, 120 feet long and 40 feet wide." and two days to move and install. "Subsequent work on the building services, interiors, and landscape took approximately three months."[43] [44]
On 17 February 2016, the Dubai Future Foundation announced the launch of the Global Blockchain Council to explore and discuss current and future applications, and organize transactions through the Blockchain platform.[45]
On 28 March 2016, the Dubai Future Foundation launched the Mostaqbal Portal, an initiative to cover the latest findings of the technology and science sector on a daily basis by publishing studies, research findings, visual material and infographics in Arabic in simplified and easy-to-understand language.[46]
Dubai Future Forum is an annual platform hosted in the Museum of the Future by the Dubai Future Foundation. The forum is dedicated to facilitating discussions on future opportunities and challenges to enhance collaboration among government entities, the private sector and society.[47] With the participation of leading futurists, government officials and experts, the panels and live discussions taking place during the forum become an opportunity for participants to analyze, anticipate and adapt to a continually evolving world. The first edition of the Dubai Future Forum took place in October 2022 with the topics addressed being: 'future of government, technology, environment, space and society'. [48]
In September 2022, the Dubai Metaverse Assembly was hosted at the Museum of the Future and Emirates Towers. It was spearheaded as the first initiative of the Dubai Metaverse Strategy enacted by Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum with the aim of making Dubai a top 10 world metaverse economy.[49] [50] The forum hosted over 300 experts and policy makers in the field. The United Arab Emirates Ministry of Economy's virtual headquarters was showcased among other recent developments, workshops, and sessions.[51]