On 9 June, GRIP convened senior private-sector leaders from across the UAE and MENA at Jumeirah Emirates Towers in Dubai for a closed-door roundtable on regulation and innovation in the region. The session opened with remarks from H.E. Mr. Khaled Al Harmoudi, Assistant Secretary-General for Cabinet Affairs, UAE Ministry of Cabinet Affairs, who spoke to the UAE's ambitions in regulatory innovation and its ongoing collaboration with the World Economic Forum through GRIP.

Participants — representing global and regional companies navigating regulatory frameworks across emerging technologies, finance, healthcare and digital infrastructure — spent the session identifying what is working well, where friction points remain, and how regulatory design can better enable innovation, investment and long-term trust. Discussions were anchored by a preview of the GRIP Regulatory Playbook and a live Regulatory Insights Board that surfaced themes directly from the room. The session closed with a conversation on future opportunities for GRIP engagement across the region.