Dubai — an oasis for start-ups

Dubai is no stranger to superlatives. City of gold, land of architectural wonders, tallest, grandest, most expensive. the list is quite long, and getting longer. Add 'startup hub' to it.

If launching a venture of your own is your dream, Dubai's looking for you. The emirate has been ranked at #29 in world in the Startup Cities Index, which ranks 85 of the world's most dynamic startup cities.

The ranking is divided into five categories: Startup Ecosystem, Salary, Social Security & Benefits, Cost of Living, and Quality of Life. According to the index, Dubai tops the world on Income Tax Score, bagging 5 out of possible 5 on the parameter (no surprises there since we pay zero income tax), but also scores quite well on Safety (4.72) and Healthcare (4.54).

Dubai beats some of the other, more established startup ecosystems, leaving behind New York, London and Tokyo too. The ranking is produced by furnished apartments platform Nestpick with the objective to discover which cities offer the best quality of life for those employed in the startup industry.

For those looking for a job in a Dubai startup, an experienced techie takes home an average of Dh280,000 ($76,000), which is the 14th best pay in the world for such professionals.

Dubai has proved to be an innovation hub for the ever growing population, richly complemented with entrepreneurial skills and with strong support from the government, the young are indeed encouraged to bring in ideas and see classic startup stories like Careem, yallacompare, Fetchr, Talabat and many more.

Popular names like Antoine Massad, chairman of AJM International and chairman Beco Holdings; Patrick Vosgimorukian, managing partner of Digital Spring Ventures; Tarek Amin, CEO, Digital - Adline Media Network and Founder, Dubai Angel Investors have given a thumbs-up and agree that Dubai has already emerged as a top startup destination.

Massad — an angel investor in startups — focused on alternative and non-traditional investments, with a heavy focus on the technology sector, opines that the UAE has witnessed a phenomenal growth in startup industry, both Abu Dhabi and Dubai offer world-class infrastructure, ease of business, strategic location and favourable legislations, these have worked wonders and the result is here for everyone to see. The country has been home to some of the top venture capitalists, also a lot of initiatives have been taken by the government and accelerators to boost the startup industry in the region."