Intro

The official app for the UAE’s flagship national youth summit.

The Mohamed Bin Zayed Majlis for Future Generations is the UAE’s most significant government-backed youth leadership event — held under the direct patronage of HH Sheikh Mohammed Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, bringing together 3,000 Emirati university students with ministers, global entrepreneurs, and thought leaders across two days at the Abu Dhabi National Exhibition Centre.

Role

I designed the official app for this inaugural 2017 edition — the digital companion that gave 3,000 attendees a way to navigate a complex two-day, multi-track programme across workshops, keynotes, exhibitions, and networking sessions.

Client

Mohammed Bin Zayed Majlis for Future Generations

Platform

iOS & Android

The Challenge

Designing for a government event of this seniority required precision on two levels: functional and cultural.

Functionally, the app needed to handle a dense, multi-track programme — dozens of concurrent sessions, multiple venue spaces, real-time schedule changes — for an audience with no onboarding time and high expectations. Technically, it needed to perform reliably in a high-footfall venue environment.

Culturally, the app represented the event’s identity directly to young Emiratis and their leadership. Every interaction, every screen, and every line of copy needed to reflect the Majlis’s spirit: ambitious, forward-looking, grounded in Emirati values. The fully bilingual requirement (English and Arabic) wasn’t a feature — it was a baseline.

Personalized Agenda

Users could browse sessions, add favorites, and build their own daily schedule to stay on top of everything happening across multiple venues.

Interactive Venue Map

A simple, visual map helped attendees find stages, exhibition areas, and networking spaces without missing key sessions.

Speaker & Session Details

Profiles and event pages provided insight into speakers, mentors, and topics — encouraging exploration and participation.

Live Updates

Notifications kept attendees informed about session changes, announcements, and event highlights in real time.

Networking Tools

The app included features to connect attendees with peers, mentors, and professionals based on shared interests and goals.

Media & Highlights

Embedded photos, videos, and live content captured the energy of the event and allowed users to revisit key moments.

Search & Filters

Smart filtering made it easy to find sessions by topic, location, or speaker.

Fully Bilingual Interface

Every screen and interaction was designed in English and Arabic, ensuring accessibility and a consistent experience for all users.

IMPACT

Designed for the inaugural edition of what has since become a recurring national platform, the Majlis app set the digital experience standard for one of the UAE’s most high-profile youth events.

For 3,000 attendees navigating a two-day, multi-venue programme of workshops, keynotes, and networking sessions, the app reduced the logistical overhead of a complex event — letting attendees focus on the conversations and sessions rather than on finding them. The bilingual, RTL-native design ensured every young Emirati in the room had an experience that felt built for them, not translated for them.

Designing for a protocol-heavy government event at this scale — directly for the Crown Prince’s office — required a level of precision and cultural sensitivity that directly shapes how I approach institutional and enterprise design today.