UAE Cyber Security Council Signs Siemens, IBM, ATRC and Dragos Partnerships at MIITE 2026 - ITP.net

Cybersecurity took centre stage at Make it in the Emirates 2026, with the UAE Cyber Security Council announcing a series of strategic partnerships aimed at strengthening the country’s industrial resilience, operational technology security, and sovereign cyber infrastructure as digital threats continue to evolve across the region. From critical infrastructure and manufacturing systems to AI governance and quantum-safe security, the announcements reflected how cybersecurity is increasingly being treated as a national priority tied directly to the UAE’s industrial and digital transformation ambitions. Among the key agreements announced during the event was a Memorandum of Understanding signed between the UAE Cyber Security Council and Siemens focused on strengthening operational technology (OT) cybersecurity across the UAE’s industrial sectors. The partnership includes plans to establish a Joint Innovation Centre of Excellence dedicated to OT cybersecurity research, talent development, and deployment of cybersecurity solutions within the UAE. The agreement also explores locally hosted security infrastructure, Security Operations Centre (SOC) capability expansion, and deployment of Siemens’ SINEC Guard solution on UAE cloud infrastructure. H.E Dr. Mohamed Al Kuwaiti, Head of Cybersecurity for the UAE Government, said the collaboration forms part of the country’s National Cybersecurity Strategy and aims to strengthen the UAE’s ability to detect, respond to, and recover from cyber threats across sectors. Alongside Siemens, the UAE Cyber Security Council also expanded its partnership with the Advanced Technology Research Council (ATRC) and its entities to accelerate the UAE’s transition towards post-quantum cybersecurity. The agreement, consolidated between VentureOne and the UAE Cyber Security Council, focuses on deploying cybersecurity technologies designed to support one of the world’s first coordinated national post-quantum migration programmes. The initiative includes the deployment of QuantumGate’s Crypto Discovery Tool (CDT), cryptographic libraries developed by the Technology Innovation Institute, and Entanglement-based Quantum Key Distribution (EQKD) technologies commercialised by VentureOne. Alongwith Siemens and ATRC, the UAE Cyber Security Council also signed a series of agreements with global and regional technology companies focused on industrial resilience, AI governance, and cyber defence capabilities. IBM announced a collaboration with the Council to establish a joint Innovation Center in Abu Dhabi focused on trusted AI, cyber resilience, governance frameworks, and emerging technologies aligned with the UAE’s wider digital transformation agenda. The Council also partnered with Honeywell to support national cyber resilience programmes focused on operational technology security and critical infrastructure protection, particularly across industrial environments and national systems. Industrial cybersecurity also emerged as a major focus area during MIITE 2026, with the Council partnering with Dragos to launch an OT Cyber Centre of Excellence aimed at strengthening industrial cybersecurity capabilities and protecting critical infrastructure environments across the UAE. In another move targeting the wider business ecosystem, e& UAE signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the Council to provide managed cybersecurity services tailored for small and medium-sized businesses across the UAE. The collaboration is expected to support SMEs with services including threat monitoring, cyber awareness, and incident response capabilities as smaller businesses continue to face increasing cyber risks. The partnerships announced during Make it in the Emirates 2026 come at a time when governments and enterprises globally are facing rising cyber threats targeting industrial systems, cloud infrastructure, AI environments, and operational technologies. For the UAE, the developments also reflect a wider push to build sovereign cyber capabilities alongside the country’s ambitions around AI infrastructure, advanced manufacturing, smart industries, and digital economy growth. Pavneet Kaur Pavneet is the Editor of ITP.NET, where she leads content strategy and writes across its five brands. A technology writer by choice and passion, she breaks down complex trends in AI, cybersecurity, cloud,... More by Pavneet Kaur