Humanity may be closer than ever to developing technology that enables us to talk to animals. But futurists say the world is unprepared for the ethical, economic and legal implications that come with unlocking such an ability.
Future forecasting strategists warn of fast-accelerating risks, including climate change, mounting pressure on global healthcare systems from labour shortages and unforeseen consequences of artificial intelligence.
“One thing that's on nobody's radar, or only on a few people's radars, is the fact we're moving closer to a time when we will be able to talk, to communicate with animals,” Florence Gaub, director of the research division at the Nato Defence College, told The National at the Dubai Future Forum.
The annual gathering at the Museum of the Future last week brought together government strategists, scientists, innovators and experts to identify emerging signals and stress test assumptions about what is to come in the next decade.
Ms Gaub said advances in data collection and AI were rapidly moving the world closer to fuller communication with animals. “We will be able to understand what they're going through,” she said. “They will be able to talk about their feelings, how everything is for them.”
Last year, Earth Species Project, a non-profit group focused on animal communication, launched NatureLM, an AI language model that can identity the species of an animal as it communicates. The programme can also determine the animal's approximate age and whether it is distressed or playing.
Ms Gaub said a breakthrough in communication could reshape food systems, environmental ethics and human-animal relationships.
Do we continue eating animals if we understand that they have feelings?
Florence Gaub,
Nato Defence College
“Do we continue eating animals if we understand that they have feelings?” she asked. Scientists, she added, are already building the datasets needed to make these systems possible. “We are at level one. We need to create awareness.”
She said long-term planning often neglected the human dimension. “The human at the centre of the future, to me, is so often neglected,” she said. She added that “being in nature, being with family, cooking, none of that exists in old futures", because deeper questions about what defines human life today and in the future are frequently overlooked.
Such questions, she said, “should be at the centre because everything else derives from that".
Speakers told The National that, while innovation is accelerating, policymakers are still overlooking profound disruptions, from ecological shifts and labour shortages to the ethical dilemmas created by AI. Taken together, the risks point to a future in which environmental, technological and social pressures converge more quickly than institutions can adapt.
Medical labour shortage
Health care was another area identified at risk. “The world is not prepared for the shortage of doctors in the future,” said Sarah Sharif, founder of Experimental Civics.
She referred to burnout, medical school debt and the growing complexity of AI-enabled medicine as key pressures on the global workforce. Governments must rethink how they regulate innovation, she said. “It's about really thinking through how we do clinical trials, how we regulate those, how we actually think about finding the cures for these diseases with technology," she added.
Beyond health care, several speakers warned that environmental pressures also pose urgent challenges.
Climate change requires 'radical change'
“Climate change is an issue that's going to be affecting us in many more ways than people think,” said Georgios Tzoumas, co-founder of Aura under Prototypes for Humanity, a global initiative showcasing university-driven innovations addressing global challenges.
He said the effect on ecosystems and food chains required a “radical change of thinking" and that “humanity needs to change the way that we think about the world in general".
Despite the warnings, several delegates said this year’s forum was marked by cautious optimism. Ms Gaub described the key theme as “hope", noting that discussions focused not only on risks but also what can be done to shape a more resilient future.
BULKWHIZ PROFILE
Date started: February 2017
Founders: Amira Rashad (CEO), Yusuf Saber (CTO), Mahmoud Sayedahmed (adviser), Reda Bouraoui (adviser)
Based: Dubai, UAE
Sector: E-commerce
Size: 50 employees
Funding: approximately $6m
Investors: Beco Capital, Enabling Future and Wain in the UAE; China's MSA Capital; 500 Startups; Faith Capital and Savour Ventures in Kuwait
The specs
- Engine: 3.9-litre twin-turbo V8
- Power: 640hp
- Torque: 760nm
- On sale: 2026
- Price: Not announced yet
Ten tax points to be aware of in 2026
1. Domestic VAT refund amendments: request your refund within five years
If a business does not apply for the refund on time, they lose their credit.
2. E-invoicing in the UAE
Businesses should continue preparing for the implementation of e-invoicing in the UAE, with 2026 a preparation and transition period ahead of phased mandatory adoption.
3. More tax audits
Tax authorities are increasingly using data already available across multiple filings to identify audit risks.
4. More beneficial VAT and excise tax penalty regime
Tax disputes are expected to become more frequent and more structured, with clearer administrative objection and appeal processes. The UAE has adopted a new penalty regime for VAT and excise disputes, which now mirrors the penalty regime for corporate tax.
5. Greater emphasis on statutory audit
There is a greater need for the accuracy of financial statements. The International Financial Reporting Standards standards need to be strictly adhered to and, as a result, the quality of the audits will need to increase.
6. Further transfer pricing enforcement
Transfer pricing enforcement, which refers to the practice of establishing prices for internal transactions between related entities, is expected to broaden in scope. The UAE will shortly open the possibility to negotiate advance pricing agreements, or essentially rulings for transfer pricing purposes.
7. Limited time periods for audits
Recent amendments also introduce a default five-year limitation period for tax audits and assessments, subject to specific statutory exceptions. While the standard audit and assessment period is five years, this may be extended to up to 15 years in cases involving fraud or tax evasion.
8. Pillar 2 implementation
Many multinational groups will begin to feel the practical effect of the Domestic Minimum Top-Up Tax (DMTT), the UAE's implementation of the OECD’s global minimum tax under Pillar 2. While the rules apply for financial years starting on or after January 1, 2025, it is 2026 that marks the transition to an operational phase.
9. Reduced compliance obligations for imported goods and services
Businesses that apply the reverse-charge mechanism for VAT purposes in the UAE may benefit from reduced compliance obligations.
10. Substance and CbC reporting focus
Tax authorities are expected to continue strengthening the enforcement of economic substance and Country-by-Country (CbC) reporting frameworks. In the UAE, these regimes are increasingly being used as risk-assessment tools, providing tax authorities with a comprehensive view of multinational groups’ global footprints and enabling them to assess whether profits are aligned with real economic activity.
Contributed by Thomas Vanhee and Hend Rashwan, Aurifer
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The view from The National
MOUNTAINHEAD REVIEW
Starring: Ramy Youssef, Steve Carell, Jason Schwartzman
Director: Jesse Armstrong
Rating: 3.5/5
UAE tour of the Netherlands
UAE squad: Rohan Mustafa (captain), Shaiman Anwar, Ghulam Shabber, Mohammed Qasim, Rameez Shahzad, Mohammed Usman, Adnan Mufti, Chirag Suri, Ahmed Raza, Imran Haider, Mohammed Naveed, Amjad Javed, Zahoor Khan, Qadeer Ahmed
Fixtures:
Monday, 1st 50-over match
Wednesday, 2nd 50-over match
Thursday, 3rd 50-over match
RESULT
Manchester United 2 Tottenham Hotspur 1
Man United: Sanchez (24' ), Herrera (62')
Spurs: Alli (11')
Squad
Ali Kasheif, Salim Rashid, Khalifa Al Hammadi, Khalfan Mubarak, Ali Mabkhout, Omar Abdulrahman, Mohammed Al Attas, Abdullah Ramadan, Zayed Al Ameri (Al Jazira), Mohammed Al Shamsi, Hamdan Al Kamali, Mohammed Barghash, Khalil Al Hammadi (Al Wahda), Khalid Essa, Mohammed Shaker, Ahmed Barman, Bandar Al Ahbabi (Al Ain), Al Hassan Saleh, Majid Suroor (Sharjah) Walid Abbas, Ahmed Khalil (Shabab Al Ahli), Tariq Ahmed, Jasim Yaqoub (Al Nasr), Ali Saleh, Ali Salmeen (Al Wasl), Hassan Al Muharami (Baniyas)
Classification of skills
A worker is categorised as skilled by the MOHRE based on nine levels given in the International Standard Classification of Occupations (ISCO) issued by the International Labour Organisation.
A skilled worker would be someone at a professional level (levels 1 – 5) which includes managers, professionals, technicians and associate professionals, clerical support workers, and service and sales workers.
The worker must also have an attested educational certificate higher than secondary or an equivalent certification, and earn a monthly salary of at least Dh4,000.
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Squads
Australia: Finch (c), Agar, Behrendorff, Carey, Coulter-Nile, Lynn, McDermott, Maxwell, Short, Stanlake, Stoinis, Tye, Zampa
India: Kohli (c), Khaleel, Bumrah, Chahal, Dhawan, Shreyas, Karthik, Kuldeep, Bhuvneshwar, Pandey, Krunal, Pant, Rahul, Sundar, Umesh
KILLING OF QASSEM SULEIMANI
