Emaar Properties chairman and noon founder Mohamed Alabbar advised businesses and governments to resist the dominance of global technology companies. Speaking at the Dubai FinTech Summit 2026, he said, “Monopolies reduce choice, weaken bargaining power and leave economies exposed. You should not accept a monopoly. We need to protect our society, our country, our region.”
He added that regional businesses should challenge all of them. They should not accept the market position of established technology providers.
Alabbar focused on the reliance of companies on enterprise software providers such as Microsoft and Oracle. He questioned whether customers can negotiate effectively when a small group of suppliers controls essential systems.
He argued that limited alternatives give dominant vendors significant pricing and contractual power. This dependence affects costs, productivity and the ability of companies to control their own digital operations. Alabbar cited noon as an example of a company built to create local capability. He said the e-commerce platform was launched partly to prevent one foreign player from controlling the UAE’s online retail and delivery market.
His message was that regional firms could compete with global incumbents by investing in technology, logistics and customer experience. He presented such ventures not only as commercial projects, but as strategic protection for domestic markets.
According to Alabbar, AI could change the balance of power in enterprise software. He said, “AI agents may take over operational and administrative tasks, reducing dependence on traditional systems, including some enterprise resource planning platforms. Our companies are testing AI agents across departments to speed up processes, improve efficiency and reduce errors.”
He welcomed competition between American and Chinese AI companies, saying wider choice gives businesses more room to negotiate. His broader argument is clear: technology dependence is not inevitable. Businesses should build alternatives, diversify vendors and use emerging tools to challenge concentrated market power.
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