The challenge of manoeuvring cars into tight parking spaces could become a thing of the past if specialised robots on show at Gitex 2024 enter the mainstream.
Parkie, designed by Korean company HL Mando, claims to be the world’s first autonomous parking robot.
Drivers will need to step out and let the flat-bed robot take over. It will slide under the car, lift it and move it, even into a spot so tight that it doesn't allow doors to open.
Parkie is aimed at the commercial sector, mostly hotels and offices that need to maximise vehicle spaces at car parks of limited size.
At about $200,000 for a pair of Parkie robots, the technology does not come cheap, but Mia Choi, senior associate at HL Mando, said costs would come down as the manufacturing scale increases.
“Parkie can make parking easier for drivers but it goes beyond that because it enables a driverless parking operation,” she said.
Car parks, she added, "often have a lot of idle spaces, with extra space needed for people to get in or out of the car. With this parking solution, you don't need to have those extra spaces because people don't need to go into their cars. It can increase available parking slots from 30 per cent to 100 per cent.”
Testing is under way in Korea, with plans to expand commercially across the world in 2025.
Mobility and transport solutions are a major aspect of the technology show at the Dubai World Trade Centre.
AI smart-city traffic solutions
More than 30 motorways in the US already use artificial intelligence to efficiently manage traffic flow based on the number of vehicles on the road.
Derq has trialled it in Las Vegas, where the metropolitan area's traffic signals, road cameras and flow detectors were used as sources of traffic data.
The system can also monitor pedestrian movement at crossing points and warn approaching vehicles to slow down, thus pre-empting potential accidents.
“We can detect and track every single road user on the roadway, understand what their behaviour is and make real-time decisions based on that,” said Derq’s co-founder and chief operating officer Karl Jeanbart.
This could prove beneficial for events such as Gitex, with Mr Jeanbart confident the company’s AI algorithms could help manage pedestrian traffic.
“By understanding the size of the crowd that's waiting to cross and if they have crossed over we can understand more about trends at events like Gitex to improve flow," he added.
“We know what the flashpoint is going to be, so we can help collect data and rebuild heat maps for agencies where they have conflict hotspots so they identify potential for collisions.” The big issue, Mr Jeanbart said, is that "sensor infrastructure data is quite poor".
“With the type of technology we enable, we can help agencies gather a lot more data in real-time to better manage traffic to respond to incidents faster."
While “Dubai is quite advanced in terms of technology, there's more that can be done to leverage cameras, as they are not really used for traffic management, but more for road operations".
“By getting real-time notifications, they can better understand road-user behaviour and traffic patterns, to plan better and make decisions in advance. We developed AI that integrates with deployed cameras, for example, CCTV cameras and traffic cameras. To ingest that in real-time, we run our algorithms.”
The technology has already been used in Dubai's Silicon Oasis, where it powers intelligent pedestrian crossings.
Sky scooters
French company Zapata is the latest to display its version of personal drone transport, through its single-seater Air Scooter.
The hybrid personal air vehicle can be flown without a pilot’s licence, has a flight time of two hours and a top speed of about 100kph.
A company representative said the vehicle would be available for use next year. “It's a hybrid electric with a combustion engine and electric motor,” she said. “They provide thrust and also recharge batteries during flight. Due to its weight and speed restrictions, it can be used without a pilot licence."
It is still undergoing an "unmanned flying testing campaign, and about to start the first manned flight with a pilot in the next week or two in France".
There is still no word on when it will take flight in the UAE, but the representative was confident it "needed to work around the regulations".
In the US, air scooters will be sold to people who will need to take simulator training at flight centres before "taking to the skies".
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Skoda Superb Specs
Engine: 2-litre TSI petrol
Power: 190hp
Torque: 320Nm
Price: From Dh147,000
Available: Now
Company%20Profile
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The specs
- Engine: 3.9-litre twin-turbo V8
- Power: 640hp
- Torque: 760nm
- On sale: 2026
- Price: Not announced yet
SAUDI RESULTS
Team Team Pederson (-40), Team Kyriacou (-39), Team De Roey (-39), Team Mehmet (-37), Team Pace (-36), Team Dimmock (-33)
Individual E. Pederson (-14), S. Kyriacou (-12), A van Dam (-12), L. Galmes (-12), C. Hull (-9), E. Givens (-8),
G. Hall (-8), Ursula Wikstrom (-7), Johanna Gustavsson (-7)
How much do leading UAE’s UK curriculum schools charge for Year 6?
- Nord Anglia International School (Dubai) – Dh85,032
- Kings School Al Barsha (Dubai) – Dh71,905
- Brighton College Abu Dhabi - Dh68,560
- Jumeirah English Speaking School (Dubai) – Dh59,728
- Gems Wellington International School – Dubai Branch – Dh58,488
- The British School Al Khubairat (Abu Dhabi) - Dh54,170
- Dubai English Speaking School – Dh51,269
*Annual tuition fees covering the 2024/2025 academic year
Tamkeen's offering
- Option 1: 70% in year 1, 50% in year 2, 30% in year 3
- Option 2: 50% across three years
- Option 3: 30% across five years
Living in...
This article is part of a guide on where to live in the UAE. Our reporters will profile some of the country’s most desirable districts, provide an estimate of rental prices and introduce you to some of the residents who call each area home.
MATCH INFO
Mainz 0
RB Leipzig 5 (Werner 11', 48', 75', Poulsen 23', Sabitzer 36')
Man of the Match: Timo Werner (RB Leipzig)
Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.
Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.
“Within the next two to three years, we are looking at reaching $2 to $3 billion as a conservative estimate and we do see an opportunity to do so,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.
“We have buying power. We can negotiate on their (client’s) behalf with asset managers to provide them lower fees than they otherwise would have to get on their own,” he added.
Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.
From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.
Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.
BCG is forecasting MEA wealth will rise to $12tn by 2021, growing at an annual average of 8 per cent.
Drivers of wealth generation in the region will be split evenly between new wealth creation and growth of performance of existing assets, according to BCG.
Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.
“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.
“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.
“In this environment, we have seen a de facto increase in the risk that clients are taking in things like illiquid investments, private equity investments, infrastructure and private debt, those kind of investments were higher illiquidity results in incrementally higher returns.”
The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”
Profile
Company: Justmop.com
Date started: December 2015
Founders: Kerem Kuyucu and Cagatay Ozcan
Sector: Technology and home services
Based: Jumeirah Lake Towers, Dubai
Size: 55 employees and 100,000 cleaning requests a month
Funding: The company’s investors include Collective Spark, Faith Capital Holding, Oak Capital, VentureFriends, and 500 Startups.
A list of the animal rescue organisations in the UAE
Sri Lanka's T20I squad
Thisara Perera (captain), Dilshan Munaweera, Danushka Gunathilaka, Sadeera Samarawickrama, Ashan Priyanjan, Mahela Udawatte, Dasun Shanaka, Sachith Pathirana, Vikum Sanjaya, Lahiru Gamage, Seekkuge Prasanna, Vishwa Fernando, Isuru Udana, Jeffrey Vandersay and Chathuranga de Silva.
SERIE A FIXTURES
Saturday Spezia v Lazio (6pm), Juventus v Torino (9pm), Inter Milan v Bologna (7.45pm)
Sunday Verona v Cagliari (3.30pm), Parma v Benevento, AS Roma v Sassuolo, Udinese v Atalanta (all 6pm), Crotone v Napoli (9pm), Sampdoria v AC Milan (11.45pm)
Monday Fiorentina v Genoa (11.45pm)
Pakistan squad
Sarfraz (c), Zaman, Imam, Masood, Azam, Malik, Asif, Sohail, Shadab, Nawaz, Ashraf, Hasan, Amir, Junaid, Shinwari and Afridi
WWE Super ShowDown results
Seth Rollins beat Baron Corbin to retain his WWE Universal title
Finn Balor defeated Andrade to stay WWE Intercontinental Championship
Shane McMahon defeated Roman Reigns
Lars Sullivan won by disqualification against Lucha House Party
Randy Orton beats Triple H
Braun Strowman beats Bobby Lashley
Kofi Kingston wins against Dolph Zigggler to retain the WWE World Heavyweight Championship
Mansoor Al Shehail won the 50-man Battle Royal
The Undertaker beat Goldberg
COMPANY%20PROFILE
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Some of Darwish's last words
"They see their tomorrows slipping out of their reach. And though it seems to them that everything outside this reality is heaven, yet they do not want to go to that heaven. They stay, because they are afflicted with hope." - Mahmoud Darwish, to attendees of the Palestine Festival of Literature, 2008
His life in brief: Born in a village near Galilee, he lived in exile for most of his life and started writing poetry after high school. He was arrested several times by Israel for what were deemed to be inciteful poems. Most of his work focused on the love and yearning for his homeland, and he was regarded the Palestinian poet of resistance. Over the course of his life, he published more than 30 poetry collections and books of prose, with his work translated into more than 20 languages. Many of his poems were set to music by Arab composers, most significantly Marcel Khalife. Darwish died on August 9, 2008 after undergoing heart surgery in the United States. He was later buried in Ramallah where a shrine was erected in his honour.
Director: Laxman Utekar
Cast: Vicky Kaushal, Akshaye Khanna, Diana Penty, Vineet Kumar Singh, Rashmika Mandanna
Rating: 1/5
Company%20profile%20
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The specs: 2018 Renault Koleos
Price, base: From Dh77,900
Engine: 2.5L, in-line four-cylinder
Transmission: Continuously variable transmission
Power: 170hp @ 6,000rpm
Torque: 233Nm @ 4,000rpm
Fuel economy, combined: 8.3L / 100km
Sholto Byrnes on Myanmar politics
TYPES%20OF%20ONLINE%20GIG%20WORK
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MATCH INFO
Scotland 59 (Tries: Hastings (2), G Horne (3), Turner, Seymour, Barclay, Kinghorn, McInally; Cons: Hastings 8)
Russia 0
MATCH INFO
Manchester United v Manchester City, Wednesday, 11pm (UAE)
Match is on BeIN Sports
Specs%20
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COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Kumulus Water
Started: 2021
Founders: Iheb Triki and Mohamed Ali Abid
Based: Tunisia
Sector: Water technology
Number of staff: 22
Investment raised: $4 million
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