The Smart Building Summit brought together policymakers, city leaders, developers, consultants, engineers, and technology experts to explore how intelligence is being embedded into buildings and urban infrastructure at scale. The summit served as a dedicated platform for informed discussion on how smart buildings are influencing the way cities are planned, built, and operated.
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Across three days, the programme examined the full smart building lifecycle, from policy frameworks and standards to design, interoperability, operations, and retrofit. Sessions addressed critical topics such as Dubai Smart Building Policy, data governance, artificial intelligence, cybersecurity, sustainability, wellbeing, and the evolving role of facilities management, with discussions grounded in real projects and regional and global experience.
Hosted as part of Light + Intelligent Building Middle East, Smart Building Summit continues to bridge long-term vision with practical delivery. The next edition will build on the momentum of 2026, with deeper technical content, stronger cross-sector collaboration, and a continued focus on translating ambition into measurable outcomes.
Smart Lighting Control Partner
Associate Sponsors
11:20 – 11:30
Opening Address
11:30 – 11:50
Opening Keynote: Digital Transformation and City Infrastructures for Smart Building - Case of Madrid
11:50 – 12:10
Fire-Side Chat: Beyond E-Permits: Implementing Smart Building Standards in Line with Dubai Municipality
12:10 – 13:00
Panel Discussion: Navigating the Regulatory Landscape: Standards, Policies & Incentives for Smart Buildings
13:00 - 13:20
Presentation: DALI as a Data Backbone: Optimising Smart Building Infrastructures
13:20 – 13:40
Presentation: Smart Buildings: The Future of Intelligent Living
13:40 - 14:30
Panel Discussion: Beyond Net-Zero: Rethinking Sustainability & Energy Efficiency in the Built Environment
14:30 – 14:50
Presentation: KAFD Sustainability Features, Solutions, Achievements in Design and Construction of Smart Buildings
11:00 - 11:05
Opening Address
11:05 - 11:50
Panel Discussion: Smart Design for Wellbeing
11:50 - 12:10
Tech Talks: When Media Art & AI Enter-Tech Meet Property and City
12:10 – 12:50
Panel Discussion: Women Shaping the Future of Smart Cities & Buildings
12:50 - 13:10
Tech Talks: Building Asset 360: Unlocking a Data-Driven Future in Lighting
13:10 – 14:00
Panel Discussion: Designing Smart Buildings Safe in a Connected World
14:00 - 14:20
Presentation: Smart Buildings Start Here: Copper & Fiber for Connectivity, Efficiency, and Innovation
14:00 – 14:20
Presentation: Designing Smart Buildings for Comfort, Productivity, and Well-being
11:30 - 11:50
Opening Address
11:50 – 12:30
Panel Discussion: The Evolution of Modern Spaces Through User-Centred Design and Comfort
12:30 – 12:50
Presentation: The New Era of Facility Management in the AI Wave
12:50 – 13:30
Panel Discussion: Constructing Smart: How Modern Methods are Powering the Next Generation of Buildings
13:30 – 14:10
Panel Discussion: Modern Retrofitting, Intelligent Spaces
14:10 – 14:30
Fire-Side Chat: Embedded Intelligence: Turning Building Components into Smart Assets
14:30 – 14:50
Onstage Discussion: How Can We Build Resilient, Flexible, and Future-Ready Urban Environments?
14:50 – 16:00
Closing Address
Advisory Committee
Abdallah Mahmoud
President, ASHRAE Falcon Chapter
Dr. Bhakti More
Chairperson & Professor, School of Design & Architecture, Manipal Academy of Higher Education, Dubai Campus
Casey Rutland
Chair, buildingSMART UK & I
H.E. Maher Al Kaabi
Independent Board Member, Al Serkal Group & Member, UAE Circular Economy Council
Mahmoud Adly
BIM Director, BINGHATTI Group
Maitha Al Nuaimi
Director of GIS, Dubai Municipality
Majd Fayyad
DSM Strategy & Policy Lead, Dubai Supreme Council of Energy
Mohammed Imran Shaikh
Director of MEP – Middle East, Ramboll , & Chair, CIBSE UAE
Nicky Dobreanu
Branch Director, Omnium International
Rohan Chandavarkar
Head of Smart Buildings and Cities, AESG
Samir Abdullah
Director - Smart Cities, KEO International Consultants
Meet 2026 Speakers
Aamena Desai
Urban Designer | Buro Happold
Aziz Patel
End Users – Buildings – Sr Key Account Manager | Schneider Electric
Anirudh Bhaskaran
Associate Director - Buildings and Smart Infrastructure | Frost & Sullivan
Abdallah Mahmoud
President | ASHRAE Falcon Chapter
Adel Miran
Director General - Administration & Facilities Management | Dubai Holding Real Estate
Anamika Gupta
Principal Consultant - Smart, IT, AV & Security | Egis
Ali Aurangzeb
Head of Acoustics & Building Technology Solutions | Design Confidence
Babu Khan
Senior Technical Manager | Leviton
Benazir Noor Mohamed
Research Associate | University College London (UCL)
Bushra Anwar
Senior Principal Electrical | Mott MacDonald
Dr. Bhakti More
Chairperson & Professor, School of Design & Architecture | Manipal Academy of Higher Education, Dubai Campus
Chris Slattery
Team Lead – Project Sales and Services | Tridonic
Christina Bahou
Board Member | AIA Middle East
Dr. Cristiano Luchetti
Head of Urban Design | Dorsch Global
Carolina Godinho
Senior Associate | Perkins Eastman
Casey Rutland
Chair | buildingSMART UK & I
Casto Canavate
Marketing Team Leader | KNX Association
Daria Jarovickis
Secretary | KNX National Group Middle East
Drew Tinsley
Director - Building Services | WSP in the Middle East
Fahad Aljabr
Vice President - Project Delivery | KAFD Saudi Arabia
Fernando De Pablo Martin
Director General of the Digital Office | Madrid City Council, Spain
Fadi Alshakhshir
Executive Director - Facility Management | Dubai Holding
Gurubasu Kategeri
Head of Sustainability | ARADA
Dr. Harpreet Seth
Head of Architecture | Heriot-Watt University Dubai
Dr. Hassam Chaudhry
Associate Professor | Heriot-Watt University Dubai
Eng. Hassan Kayed Al Mustafa
Principal Mechanical Engineer | Dubai Municipality
Hazleen Ahmad
Deputy CEO | Institute of Neurodiversity (ION)
Iftikhar Zubair
Head of Building Technology Systems | WSP in the Middle East
Irem Kurtuluş Korkmaz
Urban Policy Center Director | Marmara Municipalities Union, Turkey
Ismail Azam
Chief Product Officer | White Helmet
James Huntington
Controls & Solutions Manager | Tridonic
Jay Lee
Co-Founder | d’strict, South Korea
Kaarin Kalavus-Collins
Director | Turner & Townsend
Kenneth Okai
Building IT Infrastructure Unit Head | Louvre Abu Dhabi
Lutz Steiner
Head of Product Line KNX and SVP Building Automation | ABB
Muna AlNahdi
Director of Sustainability | Farnek Services
Mohamad Awwad
Regional Manager – MEP | Group AMANA
Mohammed Imran Shaikh
Director of MEP – Middle East, Ramboll & Chair | CIBSE UAE
Mateusz Lukasiewicz
Associate Director - Digital Technology | KEO International Consultants
Dr. Mohamed Al Rawahi
AI Expert
Marc Lynch
Associate | Cundall
Michael Rimmer
Regional Director – MEP | Egis
Mohamed Amer
Managing Director – MENA | International Code Council
M. Imtiaz Ahmad, PE, PMP
Executive Director - Facility Management and HSE | Dubai Holding Asset Management
Jean-Christophe Krieger
President | KNX Association
Mohammad Hattab
General Manager | Jung Gulf
H.E. Maher Al Kaabi
Independent Board Member | Al Serkal Group & Member | UAE Circular Economy Council
Nandan Tavkar
Senior Associate Director – Sustainability | Jacobs
Nilesh Deshpande
Associate Director – Sustainability | AESG
Nicky Dobreanu
Branch Director | Omnium International
Ruins He
Chief AI Architect & AIoT Platform Lead | NEXhome Smart Technologies Co., Ltd.
Rami Ghanem
Managing Director | Alpin Limited
Ridab Nasredine
Smart Cities Expert | Government Entity, U.A.E
Rohan Chandavarkar
Senior Associate – Digital (Smart Buildings + Cities), AESG & Technical Liaison | CIBSE Intelligent Buildings Group
Rijo Abraham
Project Development Manager, | TAQA Energy Services
Snehashis Sharma
General Manager | Elsner Elektronik ME FZ LLC
Eng. Salim Mohamed Rekouane
Principal Mechanical Engineer | Dubai Municipality
Steven Fry-Harris
Associate Director | Cundall
Samir Abdullah
Director - Smart Cities | KEO International Consultants
Sandra Woodall
RIBA Gulf Representative and Design Principal | Tangrum Gulf
Sila Egridere
Urban Development Director | Mayors of Europe, Germany
Steven Velegrinis
Design Director, Cities and Urban Design | Gensler
Taj Kollara
Managing Director | Total Automation
Tafadzwa Mukaro
Associate Director | Rider Levett Bucknall
Tekha Selim
Executive Vice President & Head of MENA Region | International WELL Building Institute
Valentina Cereda
Health & Wellbeing Architect | ENERGY & SPACE
Vladan Hasesic
Project Director, Mirage Leisure & Development & Chair | CIBSE Intelligent Buildings Group
All sessions are CPD certified
2025 Highlights
