Dubai Future Foundation and autonomous vehicle developer Oxa have launched SHIFFT, a joint venture to deploy self-driving vehicles in ports and airports starting with a commercial launch in Dubai before the end of 2027.
The venture uses Oxa's proprietary self-driving software and fleet management tools to increase operational efficiency and safety, and directly supports Dubai's plan to double foreign trade volume by 2033 as part of its broader Research, Development, and Innovation Programme.
What happened
Dubai Future Foundation and Oxa, an autonomous vehicle technology developer, have launched SHIFFT, a joint venture to deploy self-driving vehicles in ports and airports. The venture will use Oxa's self-driving software (Oxa Driver) and fleet management system (Oxa Hub) integrated with existing vehicle fleets, with a first commercial deployment planned in Dubai before the end of 2027.
Why it matters
SHIFFT directly supports Dubai's goal to double foreign trade volume by 2033 and is part of Dubai's Research, Development, and Innovation Programme launched in November 2024, which aims to boost the knowledge-based economy and establish the emirate as a regional R&D hub. The venture promises productivity, efficiency, and safety gains for port and airport operators.
What to watch
SHIFFT's first scalable commercial deployment will launch in Dubai before the end of 2027. The venture will operate autonomous systems in major industrial environments, leveraging self-driving technology to create a digital workforce for industrial fleets.
Ask the AI about this article →
Dubai has established itself as an innovation-focused hub, and this venture represents a concrete step toward that strategy. The joint venture between Dubai Future Foundation and Oxa comes as part of Dubai's broader Research, Development, and Innovation Programme, launched in November 2024, which explicitly targets the knowledge-based economy and positions Dubai as a regional R&D hub. By anchoring autonomous logistics capabilities in the emirate's ports and airports—critical infrastructure for a trade-dependent economy—SHIFFT directly addresses Dubai's stated objective to double foreign trade volume by 2033.
Oxa brings proven autonomous vehicle technology to the partnership, including its configurable and explainable self-driving software (Oxa Driver) and cloud-based fleet management (Oxa Hub). The use of Oxa's hardware systems, designed to integrate with existing fleets, suggests the venture aims for practical, rapid deployment rather than wholesale fleet replacement. This emphasis on working within existing infrastructure may lower barriers to early adoption in port and airport environments, where operational disruption is costly.
For example, today's edition would include:
AI-summarized, only the topics you pick — one digest a day via Email, Slack, or Discord.
Free · takes 30 seconds · unsubscribe anytimeWhat is AIToday? →
Ask AI anything about this article. Q&As are published on this page for other readers too.
Toyota Motor, Denso, Woven by Toyota, and Toyota Industries are all hiring for self-driving roles, but the job…
Toyota Motor announced it will begin introducing Level 2++ autonomous driving in 2028, starting with the Corol…
Uber's president and COO Andrew Macdonald predicted that in 15 to 20 years, nobody will own a car or have a dr…
A Reddit user gave their AI agent Cleo a prepaid $150 card, and after their son asked for the same, set up a r…
Pony.ai and South Korea's FutureLink signed a strategic cooperation agreement on August 28 at the Conrad Seoul…
Toyota announced it will equip production passenger cars with AI-based autonomous driving technology starting…
