XPANSE

That is how stakeholders at XPANSE 2024 described it…and we can’t wait for you to have an XPANSE experience again!

Key Insights:
- 93% left with a new perspective on Abu Dhabi as a science & tech powerhouse
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- 64% of international audience visited Abu Dhabi for the first time…because XPANSE was worth the journey

- XPANSE curated a global cross-discipline stakeholders network, where 90% of attendees are now ready to collaborate with Abu Dhabi partners

XPANSE 2024 commenced in the presence of His Excellency Sheikh Nahyan bin Mubarak Al Nahyan, Minister of Tolerance and Coexistence, along with a number of excellencies and senior officials.

From Nobel Laureates, and Fortune 500 companies C-suite to technology trailblazers, industry leaders, ministers, scientists, and internationally renowned thinkers, XPANSE explored beyond the horizons of quantum, AI, genomics, advanced materials, 6G & future G, exotic computing, and more...

Discover what insights, topics and breakthroughs were revealed at the global gathering of the Exponential Technologies & Deep Science leaders:

Enter the gateway to the future through our photo gallery:

Watch 250+ performative keynotes from some of the world's most brilliant minds

Welcome to… IMAGINARIUUM
The World’s First Performative Keynote 360° Immersive Experience… a tribute to the enchanted forest of knowledge and discovery.
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Unlike any other stage, every element—from the scenographic walls, 360-degree panoramic immersive auditorium, the fiber-optic flora, ethereal soundscapes, the cinematic lights, and even the exclusive signature scent —extends 8-minute stories of our scientists' most inspiring discoveries.

The Keynote Stage is a tribute to the ever-flowing stream of knowledge that propels humanity forward.

The sculptures on the stage represent scientific papers and published work of the speakers and thought leaders who will deliver 12-minute keynotes and panels in this space.

For thousands of years, humanity has gathered around the fire and engaged in the timeless art of storytelling and sharing of knowledge from one generation to the next.

The Fireside Stage honors this long-lasting ritual where participants engage in open dialogues and sit together with no barriers or distances obstructing them from the speakers.

The Pitch Stage is dedicated to 5-minute pitches presented by startups, early-career scientists, and Gen Z speakers, each competing for top honors in their category. Winners receive:
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- Startup Pitch Prize: $20,000
- Science Prize: $5,000
- Gen Z Prize: $3,000

Like your favorite local gathering spot, ħBar is a forum for cosmic conversation, letting people taste, sense, and even become novel things through new ingredients, ideas, and inventions inspired by science and wonder.
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Fun Fact: hbar is named after ħ (𝗵-𝗯𝗮𝗿), the reduced Planck’s constant- that fundamental quantum unit that helps us understand the smallest building blocks of our universe. Hence, an appropriate name for the smallest bar possible by the laws of physics.

20 New Media Artists | 7 Art Installations | 3-Day Workshops

ART Proxima, an initiative of MATTER, is a first-of-its-kind collective of new media artists and pioneering scientists, united to co-create works of art at the intersection of deep research, science, technology, and creativity.
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ART Proxima is represented at various MATTER events, with its grand premiered at XPANSE 2024 in Abu Dhabi.

Over the three days of XPANSE, 20 artists convened in this space with scientists, seven sci-art installations were showcased, and a series of three-day workshops were organized.

Welcome to the Observatory of Insight, Data and Trends.

Through interaction and gamification, XPANSE attendees & thought leaders witnessed data visualization in real time and a feedback loop that grows with their contribution.

XPANSE stakeholders actively contributed their insights, ideas, and analyses on cutting-edge topics including Quantum Computing, Artificial Intelligence, Brain-Machine Interfaces, Genomics, and Advanced Materials.

This tunnel connected XPANSE attendees with a realm beyond perception, where order and randomness go hand in hand.

This is the walk through a quantum entangled secret key.

In this work of art in partnership with TII, two listener devices are connected by quantum entanglement — they measure single particles of entangled light to produce random ones (1) and zeros (0) on the left and right walls of this tunnel. The numbers should match on both sides, with errors highlighted.

This installation by Dr. Zina Jarrahi Cinker plays tribute to the humanity's ever lasting attraction to the mysterious and to the beyond.
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Floating above are five books that have shaped the path of humanity: from Rumi's poems to Newton's Principia Mathematica, Darwin's On the Origin of Species, Plato's Republic, and Omar Khayyam's The Rubáiyát.
Beneath echo the words of trailblazers who used their mortal journey to illuminate humanity's path since the dawn of history.

Arcadia by Sam Nester is an immersive sound and light experience that connects you to the hidden rhythms of nature.

‍Using biofeedback technology, the installation captures real-time data from the native plant Blue Panicum and translates it into MIDI messages to create music and corresponding light cues.

The special plant is created through a partnership between Etihad Rail and Silal, who are cultivating the crop on unused desert land along the national railway, transforming it into a sustainable green corridor.