Dubai’s appeal as a hot spot for influencers is under threat.
Over the weekend, the US and Israel launched a massive attack on Iran, and Iran retaliated with its own strikes across the Middle East, including in Dubai and Doha. That’s put cracks in the image of these cities as safe havens within a volatile part of the world and could have a ripple effect on their efforts to establish themselves as global creator hubs.
Dubai, for example, has launched a $40 million fund to attract international influencers and opened Creators HQ, a physical space for creators located in the center of the city’s financial district. The UAE is also offering foreign creators the ability to apply for a golden visa to live and work in the country.
These moves are all part of an effort to diversify the Middle East’s economy beyond oil and position the region as a modern place to do business—and as a driver of culture and innovation.
The strategy has been working. MrBeast headlined a creator economy conference in Dubai in January. A few months earlier, the mega YouTuber opened a temporary theme park in Saudi Arabia. Startups and investors are also doing more business in the region: Earlier this year, investment firm Guggenheim Brothers Media partnered with Abu Dhabi-based Ethmar International Holding on a new up to $75 million fund to back creator economy startups.
It’s still too early to know what the long-term effects will be. But in the short term, the unrest could deter people from traveling to the region for conferences and business meetings, while creators may rethink moving there.
We’ve spent time in Dubai and Doha this year, speaking to creators, founders and other expats based in the region. The common benefits we heard: safety and economic opportunity. With tax-free salaries, foreigners can earn much more money than in their home countries. The costs of childcare and other services are also lower than in the US, making it an attractive place to raise a family.
At the same time, people have to balance that with some of the other restrictions in the UAE. It wasn’t until 2020 that unmarried couples could live in the same apartment or share a hotel room, for example.
In the immediate aftermath of the strikes, top influencers and founders in the UAE shared largely positive messages on social media. Others said very little about the situation or played it safe by not taking sides.
Dubai-based MoVlogs, who has about 12 million YouTube subscribers, posted an Instagram Story saying: “Our hearts are with everyone across the UAE and the region.” Joelle Mardinian, a Lebanese beauty creator who also lives in Dubai, reposted an Instagram Story with a UAE flag and the text: “We chose this country and we stand with it.” That post was sandwiched between stories promoting her TV show and her beauty salon.
As the situation has developed, we’ve noticed some influencers expressing shock and confusion. But our Reels feeds have been mostly full of videos trying to quell fears and paint a picture of calm in Dubai. “I feel safe here,” one person with 10,000 followers posted.
Others shared videos of the president of the UAE at the iconic Dubai mall. “Having coffee in Dubai mall while the region talks about tension. That’s how you reassure a nation without saying a word,” one post read. Criticism of the UAE government is illegal.
Many of the people we have spoken to on the ground as of Tuesday also say they now generally feel safe and have continued on with their usual lives. Still, comments on one viral video we saw have gone so far as to allege these influencers are being paid by the government.
And some international influencers are already thinking about a plan B.
Will Bailey, a UK fitness influencer who had only arrived in Dubai this past Saturday said his plan to relocate his coaching business to the city is now up in the air following the strikes.
“I don’t know if I will stay here or I will go back to the UK,” Bailey told BBC Arabic. “All we can do at the moment is stay undercover, wait it out, and see what happens.”
In other news…
The Round Up
Meta is rolling out an experimental AI shopping research tool to some users in the US, Bloomberg reported. When a user asks for product recommendations, the chatbot will show product images and pricing, as well as a link to the e-commerce website and information about the brand. On Thursday’s episode of Scalable, we’ll go deeper on AI’s impact on social commerce.
Instagram said it will begin to alert parents if their teen repeatedly tries to search for terms related to suicide or self-harm within a short time period. The announcement is the latest in a series of new features and updates the company has rolled out as it’s faced criticism for the app’s impact on young people’s wellbeing.
YouTube is testing ways to “remix” some Shorts using AI. YouTube said a small group of English-speaking creators will be able to insert items into a scene in a video using either suggested or custom prompts. They can also create a new video from a single frame from the original video. New Shorts created with these tools will link back to the creator’s original video.
Dots, a payouts startup that helps marketplaces and service-focused businesses pay gig workers, sellers and creators, raised $8.9 million in Series A funding led by DCM.
Creator Moves
Jesse Riedel, the creator better known as Jesser who has over 37 million YouTube subscribers, partnered with the Chicago Bulls to host its first-ever creator takeover game at the Kid Nation Game on Sunday. Jesser covered the event in real time, posting content on his social media accounts. During a shooting challenge in the second quarter, Jesser made a half-court shot on his first try, which gave two kids $10,000 toward higher education.
Oxford Road, a podcast advertising agency, is launching its own awards shows for independent podcasts and creators. The show, which will be hosted by podcaster and rapper Killer Mike, is happening on March 15. It’s the latest in a string of new creator-focused awards shows, including from TikTok and Snapchat.
The Independent Podcast and Creator Awards is part of the larger Podcast Movement Evolutions event at South by Southwest, the annual tech and arts festival in Austin. As part of the event, we will also be on stage for a special live version of our Scalable podcast at 7:15 pm local time on March 13. Let us know if you’ll be in town!
Talent Tracker
Digital Brand Architects promoted five team members, including Alix Frank, who represents “The Home Edit” founders Clea Shearer and Joanna Teplin. Frank is now executive vice president of talent. Ali Wald and Haley Walsh were both promoted to vice presidents of talent, while Sasha Mixon and Sophie Fox are now directors of talent.
Olivia Owens was promoted to head of product marketing and partnerships at Teachable, a platform for selling online courses, coaching and other digital products. Previously, she was associate director of creator partnerships and business development. (Owens is also one of the speakers at our upcoming Scalable Summit! More info here.)
