Dubai has ranked second in the first Intelligent Cities Index. Reports published on 5 August 2026 said the study compared how cities use artificial intelligence and digital tools.
Boston Consulting Group assessed 61 cities in 39 countries. Dubai also led the category for AI use and smart-city solutions. Technology adoption was its strongest result among the five areas in the index.
The reports do not name the city in first place. They also do not give Dubai's score. Readers therefore cannot see the gap between first and second.
How the index worked
The study examined outcomes, strategy, adoption, ways of working and supporting systems. It used 35 indicators across 14 parts of digital change.
The framework looked at how cities apply technology to public services and business. It also considered efficiency and sustainable growth.
The published coverage does not include the full scoring method. It lists the broad areas, but not the weight given to each measure.
Why Dubai scored highly
The reports linked Dubai's result to the wide use of AI and digital services. They said the city reached a high level of digital maturity because those tools are used across several sectors.
Digital Dubai and Dubai Future Foundation said long-term planning helped the result. They also pointed to shared data, digital infrastructure and cooperation between government and business.
The organisations said practical use matters more than the number of systems a city owns. For example, a digital service should make a task faster or easier for the person using it.
What it means for residents
The ranking is a broad comparison, not a scorecard for every Dubai service. It suggests the city has built strong systems for using AI at scale.
For residents, the value depends on daily results. Services should be easy to use, quick and reliable. For businesses, useful digital systems can cut delays and make routine work more efficient.
The reports do not give local figures for user satisfaction or time saved. Those measures would help show whether the high ranking matches people's experience.
Dubai's second-place result is still notable. The missing score and full method mean it should be read as a positive signal, rather than a complete measure of service quality.