The Dubai AI Festival 2025 proudly welcomes Mauricio Zuazua, Middle East and Africa Chair at Kearney, as one of its distinguished speakers. A seasoned strategist and global business leader, Zuazua brings a powerful perspective on how artificial intelligence can fuel economic transformation and competitive advantage across emerging markets, particularly in the Middle East and Africa.
With decades of experience in advising governments, corporations, and investors on strategy and innovation, Zuazua’s keynote will bridge the gap between AI theory and executive-level action, offering strategic frameworks for impactful and sustainable adoption.
Leadership at the Helm of Global Strategy
Mauricio Zuazua currently leads Kearney’s operations across the Middle East and Africa, where he helps shape the firm’s engagement in one of the world’s most dynamic and rapidly digitizing regions. Previously, he held senior governance roles including:
- Global Board Director of Kearney
- Board Member of Kearney Venture Capital, where he helped drive investments in transformative technologies and startups aligned with the future of work, health, energy, and data
His advisory work spans sectors such as energy, financial services, manufacturing, public policy, and technology, and he is recognized for his ability to align digital innovation with national development agendas and corporate performance goals.
A Strategic View of AI at the Executive Level
Zuazua’s leadership reflects a growing recognition that AI is not only a technological shift—but a boardroom imperative. He is a vocal advocate for embedding AI into core business strategies, enterprise-wide operating models, and sector-level transformation roadmaps, especially in economies undergoing rapid digital acceleration.
His work focuses on:
- Developing AI strategies for public and private institutions
- Designing agile transformation models for regional growth
- Ensuring AI adoption drives equitable value, job creation, and productivity at scale
Keynote at Dubai AI Festival 2025: “AI for Growth: Strategy, Scale, and Impact in Emerging Economies”
At the Dubai AI Festival 2025, Mauricio Zuazua will deliver a keynote titled:
“AI for Growth: Strategy, Scale, and Impact in Emerging Economies.”
In this high-level session, he will explore:
- Strategic considerations for AI deployment in the Middle East and Africa
- The role of AI in unlocking productivity, innovation, and inclusive development
- How governments and enterprises can structure scalable AI transformation programs
- Risk management and governance frameworks to ensure ethical and sustainable AI impact
This keynote will be essential for CEOs, ministers, policymakers, investors, and digital leaders looking to place AI at the heart of national competitiveness and future-readiness.
Mauricio Zuazua’s participation at the Dubai AI Festival 2025 highlights the vital role of strategic leadership in scaling AI from pilot projects to economic transformation across the Global South.
