This article was originally published in the Brand Finance Telecoms 150 Report 2026.
du has strengthened its position in the global telecoms landscape, retaining its rank as the world’s 20th strongest telecoms brand while increasing its brand value to USD3.9 billion and entering the top 40 most valuable telecoms brands worldwide. This growth reflects the company’s strategic evolution from a traditional telecoms operator into a broader digital services and infrastructure provider. In a recent interview with Brand Finance, Fahad Al Hassawi, CEO of du, discusses the key drivers behind the brand’s momentum, from network leadership and customer experience to expanding digital capabilities, emotional storytelling, and du’s growing role in powering the UAE’s AI and digital economy.
Interview with Fahad Al Hassawi CEO, du
This year, du has retained its position as the world’s 20th strongest telecoms brand while further increasing its brand value to USD3.9 billion. This growth has enabled du to enter the top 40 most valuable telecoms brands globally. What were the key factors and strategic initiatives that drove this success?
CEO, du
du's success represents a strategic transformation from traditional telecoms operator to comprehensive digital services provider, driven by brand investment and consistency. The foundation of this growth rests on superior connectivity and infrastructure, driven by du's 5G+ and fibre rollout and combined with consistent improvements in coverage and reliability.
Customer-centric performance has been equally crucial, with public rankings consistently highlighting du's excellent coverage, superior customer service, and best value proposition as key differentiators that demonstrate how brand promises translate into daily operational excellence.
du's strategic diversification into digital and B2B solutions, encompassing data centers, cloud services, ICT, managed services, and AI, has expanded its market relevance far beyond consumer connectivity while significantly increasing perceived future earnings potential. This evolution has been amplified by the company's alignment with UAE's national digital vision, positioning du as a critical enabler of the country's digital and AI ambitions, which has strengthened its reputation, built institutional trust, and created a powerful nation-building narrative.
In recent years, du has expanded its B2B portfolio beyond connectivity with sub-brands such as du Tech and du Infra. Looking ahead, which strategic brand investments over the next 3–5 years will be most critical to strengthening du’s brand resilience and future-proofing its market leadership?
As a leading telecom and digital enabler, we are focused on being a trusted digital and AI partner for businesses and government while maintaining human accessibility and emotional connection.
Central to this strategy is scaling and clarifying the B2B brand architecture through du Business, du Tech, and du Infra, which were specifically created to signal the company's evolution from pure connectivity provider to end-to-end digital transformation partner covering cloud services, cybersecurity, data centres, infrastructure, and advanced ICT solutions.
Equally important is du's commitment to owning "sovereign digital infrastructure" and AI as core brand territories, while continued investment in data centers, national clouds, and AI platforms will strengthen perceptions of du as a long-term, future-proof backbone of the UAE's digital economy.
The strategy must also emphasise developing verticalised solutions and co-creation opportunities with key sectors including government, smart cities, finance, healthcare, logistics, and tourism under the du Tech and du Infra banners, creating powerful proof points that reinforce du's position as a strategic partner rather than merely a technology supplier.
With the launch of “Bridging the Space Between Us,” du has placed emotional connection at the centre of its brand narrative rather than technical performance. How can emotional storytelling drive sustained brand equity and long-term value?
Whatever gaps exist, we are committed to filling them, always prioritising the human element and bridging connections between people through our businesses. From the beginning, we have focused on the human aspect, and despite growth, expansion, and evolving customer demands, we remain customer focused. du's latest campaign exemplifies how a telco can transform into a facilitator of human progress and connection.
The campaign places human connection at the centre of du's narrative, focusing on the emotional, social, and aspirational spaces between people, communities, and ambitions throughout the UAE, while positioning technology as an invisible enabler rather than the primary hero of the story.
The approach also generates broader relevance across diverse life stages and market segments, as it centres around families, communities, ambitions, and national progress. The campaign's alignment with national identity and pride, celebrating the UAE's Year of Family, digital progress and collective ambition, taps into particularly powerful emotional drivers that strengthen trust and affinity.
With the launch of du’s AI Park and the National Hybrid AI offering, du is positioning itself at the heart of the UAE’s sovereign AI ecosystem. How are these initiatives shaping du’s brand narrative, and how do you ensure the brand remains both visionary and credible as it moves deeper into AI leadership?
du’s AI Park in Warsan is envisioned as an ambitious 500,000 square metre hub featuring multiple liquid-cooled hyperscale data centres capable of delivering up to 1 GW of capacity over time, designed specifically as a sovereign AI hub for the UAE, while du Tech’s National Hybrid AI extends its National Hypercloud into an innovative platform that seamlessly blends public, private, and sovereign AI capabilities for organisations throughout the UAE.
These strategic initiatives elevate du to a national AI backbone that builds the infrastructure, platforms, and ecosystems necessary to power AI innovation across government and industry sectors.
AI Park is an ecosystem designed to host AI companies, startups, research initiatives, and innovation programmes. It's emphasis on sovereignty, data residency, and national infrastructure positions du as the trusted, locally anchored alternative to global hyperscale providers, creating strong alignment with UAE policy priorities and national strategic objectives. Investment in talent and local capability building will position AI Park as a destination where Emirati and resident talent can learn, build, and scale AI solutions, strengthening du's role in developing the UAE's human capital alongside its technological infrastructure.
