DUBAI, United Arab Emirates, 24 October 2026: AI Security Academy (AISA), the AI security native training platform, today announced its expansion into the United Arab Emirates to meet the professionals powering the region’s fast-growing AI ecosystem. The expansion begins at Dubai AI Festival 2026, taking place 26 and 27 October at the Dubai World Trade Centre, where AISA will exhibit at Stand S46.
Dubai is where the world’s most ambitious AI ideas come to scale. From government infrastructure to enterprise innovation to university research, Dubai has positioned itself as the global city where AI moves from vision to reality. As the UAE’s AI ecosystem continues to grow, AI Security Academy is expanding into the region, starting at Dubai AI Festival 2026.
“AI is moving faster than ever, and tools alone will not secure your organisation. You must upskill your human capital to become the first and final layer of defence,” said Abdoulkader Dirieh, Founder and CEO of AI Security Academy.
Dubai and the UAE AI Ecosystem
Dubai is not waiting for the AI future. It is building it. The city has established itself as the Arab world’s leading hub for AI talent, investment and innovation. The Dubai Centre for Artificial Intelligence, the AI Academy, the Dubai Universal Blueprint for Artificial Intelligence and the city’s broader Smart Dubai agenda reflect a government that is not just adopting AI but architecting an entire ecosystem around it.
Dubai does not stand alone. Across the UAE, Abu Dhabi has launched AiNative, equipping government employees with AI capability at scale. Sharjah is investing in AI-driven research and education. The UAE’s National AI Strategy 2031 and its dedicated Minister of AI signal a federal commitment that is matched by action on the ground across every emirate.
The result is one of the most advanced AI ecosystems in the world: a country where AI is not a pilot programme but a core operating reality, and where the scale of deployment is growing every quarter. This is exactly the kind of market AI Security Academy is expanding into.
Why Now
Every AI system deployed at scale creates a corresponding need for people who can secure it. As Dubai’s AI infrastructure matures, from copilots inside government departments to agentic applications running in enterprise environments, the professionals responsible for those systems need more than AI literacy. They need the hands-on capability to identify how these systems fail, how they are exploited and how to defend them under real conditions.
That capability is what AI Security Academy was built to develop. Dubai, with its scale, its ambition and its commitment to responsible AI adoption, is the right place to start.
What Makes AI Security Academy Different
AI Security Academy is not a cybersecurity platform that added an AI module. It was built from the ground up exclusively for AI-native threats: the LLMs, agentic systems, machine learning pipelines and autonomous tools now running inside enterprise environments across the Gulf.
The Academy trains teams against the threats that are already here, including prompt injection, insecure RAG, agent tool abuse, data leakage, MCP misconfiguration and adversarial machine learning. AI Security Academy does not certify course completion; it certifies capability, measured through hands-on labs, real attack simulations and CTF-style exercises that move learners from understanding concepts to testing, defending and communicating findings under real conditions.
Its curriculum is aligned with the NIST AI RMF, OWASP AI Top 10, MITRE ATLAS and the EU AI Act, and AI Security Academy is the official sponsor of the OWASP AI Exchange. Its programmes are built by AI security red teamers and certified practitioners with frontline experience, not adapted from legacy frameworks never designed for this threat landscape.
Who AI Security Academy Serves
AI security is not one role. It is a capability that every layer of an organisation needs to build.
- Enterprises: role-based learning pathways for non-technical staff, developers, architects, security practitioners and governance teams, with content that can be tailored to UAE sector priorities including government, financial services, healthcare and critical infrastructure.
- Universities: direct integration into existing cybersecurity and data science curricula. The University of Ottawa expanded from 20 to more than 200 learners across three renewal periods, and Al Hussein Technical University in Jordan adopted the AI Security Essentials course as a fourth-year subject. AI Security Academy is ready to bring that model to universities across Dubai and the wider UAE.
- Individuals: hands-on labs, certifications and CTF challenges that build real, demonstrable AI security skills, from foundation level through to advanced red teaming and agentic security architecture.
Trusted by Professionals from Leading Organisations
AI Security Academy’s programmes have been adopted by professionals across some of the most respected institutions and enterprises globally. ACIST Medical Technology (USA), the African Development Bank Group, operating across Africa, and Salam Bank (Djibouti) are among the enterprise and financial institutions that have trusted AISA to build AI security capability where the stakes are highest.
In higher education, the University of Ottawa scaled from 20 to more than 200 learners across three renewal periods, and Al Hussein Technical University in Jordan adopted AI Security Essentials as a fourth-year university subject.
Meet AI Security Academy at Dubai AI Festival 2026
AI Security Academy will make its Dubai and UAE presence official at Dubai AI Festival 2026, one of the most important gatherings of AI leaders, innovators, and decision-makers in the region. The team will be on site to connect with university leaders, enterprise teams, government institutions and learners across Dubai and the wider UAE who are serious about building practical AI security capability, and to discuss what an AI security partnership could look like for their organisation, institution or team.
Event details: Dubai AI Festival 2026 | 26–27 October 2026 | Dubai World Trade Centre | Stand S46
Organisations, universities and institutions ready to build AI security capability can learn more at aisecurityacademy.ai.
About AI Security Academy
AI Security Academy is an AI security native training platform dedicated to securing artificial intelligence. As AI reshapes industries from healthcare to finance, the risks evolve just as quickly. The Academy’s mission is to bridge the gap between innovation and security by equipping individuals and organisations with the skills to defend against AI-driven threats. Learn more at aisecurityacademy.ai