Her Excellency Dr. Aisha Bint Buti Bin Bishr is the vice chairwoman of Emaar Development board
since Dec 2020. Bin Bishr is a global digital magnate and the former founding Director General of
Smart Dubai in the United Arab Emirates. With the distinction of being the first woman to lead the
transformation of a smart city globally, she has laid a robust foundation for upcoming talent and
inspires youth towards building a better tomorrow through digitalisation.
Bin Bishr is considered an Emirati global ambassador for digitalisation being a renowned
thoughtleader advocating the humanisation of technology to create better urban smart future. She
is among the world’s most powerful women leaders in business and technology, with Forbes ME
ranking her among the Middle East’s Top 10 most powerful businesswomen in 2023.
Bin Bishr is the non-executive chairman of the board of Shaffra, a Metaverse-as-a-Service (MaaS)
company. Shaffra’s platform leverages cutting-edge 3D technologies to offer a revolutionary way
for organizations to interact with their customers and stakeholders. As a MaaS provider, Shaffra is
at the forefront of the Metaverse industry and is committed to transforming the way companies
engage with their customers. Bin Bishr’s leadership will enable, Shaffra to be a trailblazer in the
MaaS space in the UAE market and beyond.
She was the Director General of the Smart Dubai Department, UAE between 2015-2020, the
government entity entrusted with Dubai’s city-wide smart digital transformation by His Highness
Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE and
Ruler of Dubai.
Dr. Aisha also led the creation of ‘The Smart City Index’ – the first-ever benchmark for smart city
implementation across the globe in cooperation with ITU and the United Nations. As an acclaimed
digital transformation and Smart Cities thought leader globally, she represented Smart Dubai in City
Protocol Society, Smart City Expo World Congress and GSMA.
In addition to her responsibilities at Smart Dubai, Her Excellency was a member of the Dubai Council
under the Government Development Track until July 2020. Her Excellency also was the Chairperson
of the Dubai Future Council for Blockchain, which was launched as part of the Dubai Future Councils
initiative by His Highness Sheikh Hamdan Bin Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Crown Prince
of Dubai and Chairman of the Executive Council of Dubai, to assess and develop the future of key industry sectors in Dubai over the next 50 years. Dr. Aisha also was the chairwoman “The Council
of Happy Cities” (part of the World Happiness Council), and was the Chairperson of the SDG 11
Global Council, and she was the only woman from the Middle East to be a member of the Gartner
Global CIO Research Board.
Additionally, Her Excellency serves as a member of the World Economic Forum’s Global Future
Councils and The Fourth Industrial Revolution’s Smart Cities Readiness Index Team – an initiative
also led by WEF. Her Excellency was also a Board Member at the Higher Colleges of Technology,
UAE and a member of Emaar’s Board Committee until Dec 2020.
Dr. Aisha was also a member of the board at the UAE AI Council, the Computer System Advisory
Board, the Leadership Team for Smart Services and Digital Infrastructure, and she is a member of
the Advisory Board of the College of Computing and Informatics at the University of Sharjah, the
University of Wollongong, and the World Happiness Council.
Dr. Aisha co-led the creation of the U4SSC’s Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) for Smart
Sustainable Cities (SSC) – the first-ever benchmark for smart city implementation across the globe,
drafted in cooperation with the International Telecommunication Union and the United Nations. As
an acclaimed digital transformation and smart cities thought leader globally.
Prior to her current role, Dr. Aisha served as Assistant Director General of Dubai Executive Office
and Assistant Undersecretary of the UAE Ministry of Labour during her illustrious career.
Throughout her 27-year experience in ICT development, Dr. Aisha committed herself to humanising
digital transformation, from developing technologies to transforming human experiences.