Published: 2026-08-22
Abu Dhabi will host the global Reuters NEXT Gulf leadership summit for the second time on 2026-10-21. The announcement, made on 2026-08-21, confirms the Abu Dhabi Department of Economic Development (ADDED) as the exclusive host city partner of the invitation-only event for the next three years. The first edition, held in 2025, brought together more than 600 senior executives from over 40 countries and reached 2 million viewers worldwide via livestream. The 2026 edition will be noticeably bigger: the organisers, Reuters Professional, are adding more stages, closed executive roundtables and vertical-specific strategy sessions. For the UAE it is another confirmation of a simple fact: when global CEOs need one room to discuss the economy, banking, technology and AI, that room is increasingly located in the Emirates.
What was announced
Reuters NEXT Gulf is the regional edition of Reuters NEXT, the flagship leadership summit run by Reuters Professional, the events and professional services arm of the global news agency. The key parameters of the 2026 edition are:
- Date and venue: 2026-10-21, Abu Dhabi, UAE.
- Format: invitation-only summit for senior decision-makers, from CEOs and bankers to policymakers.
- Host: Abu Dhabi Department of Economic Development (ADDED) as exclusive host city partner, under a three-year agreement.
- Agenda: six core themes carried over from the first edition, geopolitics, economy and markets, banking and finance, technology and AI, climate and sustainability, and corporate leadership.
Ahmed Jasim Al Zaabi, Chairman of ADDED, said that Abu Dhabi’s leadership in sectors including financial services, advanced manufacturing, AI, trade, logistics and new energy makes the emirate a natural platform for global conversations. That framing is deliberate: the summit is part of Abu Dhabi’s strategy of positioning itself not just as a place where capital is managed, but as a place where global economic decisions are discussed and made.
What the first edition delivered
The 2025 debut set a high bar for a first-year event:
- More than 600 senior executives attended in person.
- Delegates came from over 40 countries.
- The livestream reached 2 million viewers worldwide.
- Over 30 high-profile speakers took the stage across the six core themes.
The speaker list reflected the summit’s mix of policy and business: Dr. Anwar Gargash, Diplomatic Advisor to the UAE President; Dr. Rania Al-Mashat, Egypt’s Minister of Planning and Economic Development; Yusuf Maitama Tuggar, Nigeria’s Foreign Minister; Mohamed Alabbar, founder of Emaar; and Renuka Jagtiani, Chairwoman of Landmark Group. Few first editions anywhere manage to put ministers, sovereign-scale investors and founders of the region’s largest companies on one programme.
What changes in 2026
The second edition keeps the invitation-only format but expands the architecture of the event. According to the organisers, the 2026 summit will feature:
- Multiple stages instead of a single main programme, allowing parallel tracks per theme.
- Closed executive roundtables, off-the-record discussions for smaller groups of senior leaders.
- Vertical-specific strategy sessions focused on individual industries.
- Expanded structured networking between delegates.
The three-year hosting agreement matters as much as the format. It means Reuters NEXT Gulf will run in Abu Dhabi at least through 2028, giving the emirate a recurring fixture on the global corporate calendar alongside Abu Dhabi Finance Week, ADIPEC and the emirate’s growing portfolio of technology and investment forums.
Why Abu Dhabi keeps winning these events
The choice of Abu Dhabi as a multi-year host is not sentimental, it follows the numbers. The emirate manages one of the world’s largest pools of sovereign capital, its non-oil economy has been expanding steadily, and its listed companies have been delivering strong results, as we covered in our review of ADX-listed companies growing profits 38 percent in H1 2026. Financial services, AI, advanced manufacturing, trade and logistics, the exact sectors Al Zaabi listed, are the pillars of the emirate’s Falcon Economy development model.
For the business ecosystem, a summit of this profile works on several levels:
- It puts several hundred global decision-makers physically in the UAE for a week of meetings around the main day.
- It signals to boards and investment committees that Abu Dhabi is a peer venue to Davos-style gatherings, not an exotic stopover.
- It reinforces the practical infrastructure, flights, hotels, licensing, banking, that international companies rely on when they decide to open a permanent presence in the UAE.
- It compounds: each recurring global event makes the next one easier to attract, and makes a UAE base more valuable for companies that sell to the region.
The UAE already hosts COP28’s legacy climate infrastructure, the world’s largest energy exhibition and a dense calendar of finance and technology weeks. A recurring Reuters summit adds the media dimension: the country becomes the place where the region’s economic narrative is written, on camera, with a global audience.
How Atlant Capital can help
Atlant Capital helps founders and investors who look at events like Reuters NEXT Gulf and conclude that they need a permanent base in the UAE. We handle company registration in the UAE, free zone and mainland, typically within 1-2 weeks, and we manage corporate bank account opening with the banks that actually work with international founders. If your industry is on the summit’s agenda, finance, technology, AI, trade or logistics, we will help you choose the right jurisdiction, structure ownership correctly and get you operational before the next big event lands in Abu Dhabi. One point of contact, fixed fees, realistic timelines.
Conclusion
Reuters NEXT Gulf returning to Abu Dhabi on 2026-10-21, with ADDED locked in as exclusive host for three years, is more than an events announcement. It is a data point in a consistent trend: the UAE capital is becoming a default venue for the conversations that used to happen only in New York, London or Davos. The first edition drew 600+ executives from 40+ countries and 2 million online viewers; the second will be bigger, with more stages and closed executive sessions. For companies deciding where to base their Middle East operations, the signal is hard to miss.
FAQ
When and where does Reuters NEXT Gulf 2026 take place?
The second Reuters NEXT Gulf summit takes place on 2026-10-21 in Abu Dhabi, UAE. The event is invitation-only and is organised by Reuters Professional with the Abu Dhabi Department of Economic Development as exclusive host city partner.
What were the results of the first Reuters NEXT Gulf summit?
The 2025 debut edition gathered more than 600 senior executives from over 40 countries, featured 30+ speakers across six themes and reached 2 million viewers worldwide via livestream. Speakers included UAE presidential advisor Anwar Gargash, Emaar founder Mohamed Alabbar and Landmark Group chairwoman Renuka Jagtiani.
What is new in the 2026 edition of the summit?
The 2026 edition expands the format with multiple stages, closed executive roundtables, vertical-specific strategy sessions and additional networking. ADDED has also signed on as exclusive host city partner for three years, so the summit will stay in Abu Dhabi at least through 2028.
Why does hosting global summits matter for businesses in the UAE?
Recurring global summits bring hundreds of senior decision-makers to the UAE, strengthen the country’s reputation as a regional headquarters location and support the ecosystem of banking, licensing and professional services that international companies use when they establish a permanent presence in the Emirates.
