Fourth edition of regional data centre conference moves to the UAE, bringing digital industry leaders together in Abu Dhabi

Khalifa Economic Zones Abu Dhabi – KEZAD Group, one of the largest operators of integrated and purpose-built economic zones in the region, will host Touchdown Middle East 2026 in Abu Dhabi, marking the first time the region-wide data centre conference will take place in the UAE.

Organised by the Gulf Data Centre Association (GDCA), the fourth edition of Touchdown Middle East 2026 will take place on 18–19 November 2026 at Conrad Abu Dhabi Etihad Towers. Following three consecutive years in Bahrain, the conference’s move to Abu Dhabi reflects its growing regional footprint and positions the UAE’s capital as its first new host venue.

The conference will attract data centre operators, investors, technology providers, government stakeholders, real estate leaders, energy specialists and digital infrastructure decision-makers from across the Middle East and international markets. The event is expected to attract more than 1,500 visitors, over 400 companies, 70 speakers and participants from more than 30 countries.

Abdullah Al Hameli, CEO, Economic Cities & Free Zones Cluster — AD Ports Group, said: “Hosting Touchdown Middle East 2026 in Abu Dhabi reflects the Emirate’s growing role in the digital infrastructure economy. Data centres are now central to industrial growth, AI adoption, cloud services, advanced manufacturing and secure digital trade. At KEZAD Group, we see this conference as a practical platform to connect investors, operators and infrastructure partners with Abu Dhabi’s industrial base, logistics strength and long-term growth environment.”

The two-day conference will feature keynote sessions, panel discussions, networking meetings and industry-led conversations on the key issues shaping the sector, including power availability, connectivity, site readiness, regulation, investment, AI demand, cloud growth and sustainable data centre development.

Henry Sutton, Director of the Gulf Data Centre Association and Touchdown Middle East, said: “Touchdown Middle East was created to bring the region’s data centre industry together, with a clear focus on knowledge, partnerships and market growth. After three successful years in Bahrain, bringing the fourth edition to Abu Dhabi is an important step for the event and for the wider regional industry. We are delighted to have KEZAD Group as our main sponsor and we look forward to welcoming leaders from across the data centre value chain to discuss the next phase of digital infrastructure growth in the Middle East.”

Abu Dhabi is placing digital infrastructure at the centre of its next phase of economic growth, with a clear focus on AI demand, sovereign cloud, hyperscale compute, power planning and industrial land readiness. The Emirate’s Digital Strategy 2025 to 2027 commits AED 13 billion to digital transformation and targets full sovereign cloud adoption for government operations, full automation of government processes and more than 200 AI-led solutions across public services. Abu Dhabi has also moved into large-scale AI compute through Stargate UAE, a planned 1GW compute cluster within the wider 5GW UAE and US AI Campus, with the first 200MW expected to go live in 2026. Together, these steps make Abu Dhabi a strong host for a regional data centre conference focused on the next wave of AI, cloud and digital infrastructure investment.

The conference comes at a time when demand for digital infrastructure is rising across the region, driven by AI, cloud computing, data sovereignty, smart industry, enterprise digital services and the growth of high-capacity connectivity. As main sponsor, KEZAD Group will leverage the platform to foster dialogue on how industrial zones, logistics platforms, energy infrastructure and real estate can work together to support the next wave of data centre investment.