The Department of Municipalities and Transport (DMT) has expanded its partnership with the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) to turn urban research into practical improvements in everyday life across Abu Dhabi.
Reaffirming DMT’s membership in the MIT Senseable City Consortium, the agreement was signed by Fatema Al Mutawa, Acting Executive Director of DMT’s Strategy Sector, alongside Carlo Ratti, Director of MIT Senseable City Lab on the opening day of LIVEX 2026, the Liveability and Investment Exhibition, in Abu Dhabi.
The partnership expands the collaboration established in 2024, sustaining ongoing research and opening new areas of work under the DMT Future Hub.
This next phase builds on research into traffic emissions, pedestrian exposure, urban heat and mobility. Proposed projects also explore how artificial intelligence can inform tree planting and how changes to urban lighting could improve night-sky visibility.
Two proofs of concept developed through the collaboration are nearing completion. Emission AI uses dashcam footage and artificial intelligence to estimate vehicle emissions, while Exposure AI assesses pedestrians’ exposure to traffic emissions.
Together, the projects are developing an evidence base to inform cleaner mobility and healthier street design. They complement ongoing research into urban heat and mobility, helping DMT to understand how conditions on the ground effect people’s experience of the emirate.
The collaboration has also contributed to published research. A study featuring Abu Dhabi, ‘Estimating vehicular emissions by applying deep learning on video camera scenes,’ was published in Communications Engineering on 23 September 2026. DMT was also acknowledged as a consortium supporter of ‘Ubiquitous data-driven framework for traffic emission estimation and policy evaluation,’ published in Nature Sustainability on 2 April 2026.
Proposed new projects include ‘Trees in My Backyard’ and ‘Re-Leaf’, which would use AI to guide tree selection and planting for cooler, healthier public spaces. Another proposed project, ‘Stellar Oasis’, would explore ways to reduce light pollution and improve visibility of the night sky.
These areas of research would broaden Future Hub’s work, connecting environmental analysis with decisions about how neighbourhoods and public spaces are planned and managed.
DMT participated in the MIT Senseable City Lab Global Conference held alongside the Venice Biennale in 2025, where MIT showcased the joint Visual AI Emission project. The conference brought together 150 participants from 48 MIT partner institutions, providing an international platform for the research undertaken with Abu Dhabi.
The partnership’s wider scope aligns with LIVEX 2026’st focus on people-centred AI, urban mobility and healthier cities.
Launched in 2024, DMT Future Hub brings together research, data analysis and knowledge exchange through partnerships with academic and research institutions. The renewed MIT collaboration supports its next phase, with a focus on applying research to the decisions that shape quality of life across the emirate.
