Charles Hoskinson outlines why the nation’s regulatory clarity, appetite for innovation, and strategic vision are redefining blockchain, AI, and next-generation digital infrastructure.
The UAE’s rapid rise as a global leader in digital assets, fintech, and regulatory innovation has captured the attention of some of the world’s most influential technology pioneers—including Charles Hoskinson, CEO of Input Output and Founder of Cardano. His engagement with the region comes at a pivotal moment, as Abu Dhabi and Dubai advance cohesive national strategies that unite blockchain, AI, digital identity, privacy, and next-generation financial infrastructure.
Hoskinson views the UAE has a rare environment where regulators, innovators, and policymakers collaborate with shared intent, creating a level of clarity and ambition unmatched in most global markets. With institutions such as ADGM and VARA providing predictable regulatory foundations, the country has become a magnet for exchanges, tokenisation platforms, enterprise blockchain projects, and AI-driven innovation.
In this interview with Tahawultech.com, Hoskinson outlines why Input Output is deepening its regional presence through a new Abu Dhabi office, how Midnight seeks to redefine enterprise privacy in regulated environments, and what Cardano’s next chapter looks like amid rising digital-sovereignty debates. Hoskinson also reflects on the global convergence of AI, blockchain, and national digital infrastructure—and why the UAE is uniquely positioned to shape this transformation.
Interview Excerpts:
How is the UAE becoming the global epicenter for digital assets, fintech, and next-generation tech regulation?
The UAE has taken a decisive national stance that digital assets and next-generation technologies are part of its long-term economic architecture. What makes the UAE unique is the level of coordination between regulators, policymakers, and innovators. In Abu Dhabi and Dubai, it is normal to see regulators actively collaborating with technology builders to shape frameworks that are both innovation-friendly and grounded in real-world safeguards. This is rare anywhere else in the world. Institutions like ADGM and VARA have created regulatory clarity at a time when many major economies are still struggling to define even the basics. That predictability has attracted exchanges, stablecoin projects, tokenisation platforms, and Web3 ecosystems from across the globe. Right now, the UAE is ahead of many jurisdictions, having positioned itself as a neutral financial hub between East and West, backed by strong financial infrastructure, competitive tax policy, and a cohesive digital strategy. The result is a thriving environment where blockchain, fintech, and frontier technologies are becoming strategically integrated into national development goals. This convergence of clarity, ambition, and infrastructure is why the UAE is rapidly becoming the global epicenter for digital assets.
What role will your new Abu Dhabi office play in expanding Input Output’s work across AI, healthtech, fintech, and Web3 infrastructure?
Our presence in Abu Dhabi is a strategic commitment to the region. The ADGM is one of the most forward-thinking financial centers in the world, and establishing a permanent presence there gives Input Output the foundation to scale our work across multiple verticals, including AI, healthtech, fintech, and decentralised infrastructure. Our team will focus on building long-term partnerships with governments, enterprises, and technology institutions throughout the Middle East. The UAE is one of the few places where national-level strategies for AI, blockchain, and digital transformation are aligned, and this makes it an ideal environment for deploying critical infrastructure. We will also be expanding our engineering footprint, supporting startups and enterprise builders, and collaborating on applied research in areas like digital identity, privacy, and verifiable data systems. This office is just the beginning of a broader commitment to grow our presence, talent base, and ecosystem development efforts across the region.
How does Midnight enable privacy-enhanced, enterprise-ready blockchain adoption aligned with regulatory needs?
Midnight delivers a form of rational privacy that is designed specifically for real-world, regulated environments. Rather than offering full anonymity or opaque systems, Midnight provides selective-disclosure capabilities that allow users or organisations to reveal data when legally required while keeping everything else private. This is the type of privacy model enterprises, financial institutions, and governments have been waiting for. The launch of the NIGHT token marked one of the most engaged token distributions in recent blockchain history, and which hit the exchanges during Abu Dhabi Finance Week. Midnight’s dual-tonomics model l, combining NIGHT with DUST, supports scalable capacity, and private smart contracts. This architecture makes Midnight suitable for everything from enterprise supply chains to financial compliance systems, cross-border transactions, and consumer applications that require privacy with accountability.
“With the mainnet approaching, Midnight will provide the privacy infrastructure the industry has been missing and give enterprises a pathway to adopt blockchain without running into regulatory barriers.”
What is the next chapter for Cardano as decentralised systems evolve amid rising geopolitical and digital-sovereignty pressures?
The next chapter for Cardano is defined by greater coordination, stronger governance, and a shift toward real-world adoption. Cardano’s recent approval of a 70 million ADA treasury package reflects a mature, globally distributed community that is capable of directing its own evolution. These funds are accelerating infrastructure upgrades across wallets, exchanges, interoperability layers, and developer tools ahead of major protocol advancements. Geopolitical tension and rising debates over digital sovereignty have made decentralised systems more relevant than ever. Nations and institutions are realising that they need verifiable, transparent systems that preserve autonomy while enabling global interoperability. Cardano is entering one of its most aligned development phases, with Midnight mainnet, Hydra scaling upgrades, Lace expansion, and advanced governance tooling converging over the next couple of years. As the world moves toward a more fragmented and digitally interdependent landscape, Cardano offers resilient, scalable systems that do not depend on centralised control.
How do you see blockchain, AI, and national digital infrastructure converging—and where can the UAE lead globally in this shift?
Blockchain, AI, and national digital infrastructure are converging into a single technological stack that will define how societies operate. AI systems require verifiable data, secure provenance, and auditability. Blockchain provides exactly that. At the same time, nations are building digital identity systems, payment rails, and cross-border infrastructure that demand privacy, trust, and interoperability. These systems cannot be built with siloed technologies—they need decentralised foundations. The UAE has the ability to lead this convergence because it has already aligned national strategy, regulatory clarity, and technology adoption. It is one of the few countries developing digital infrastructure with the long-term view that AI and blockchain are complementary and mutually reinforcing. By combining regulatory foresight, world-class financial centers, and a rapidly growing innovation ecosystem, the UAE can set global standards for how AI-enabled digital economies operate. This is one of the reasons we are expanding our presence here. The UAE understands that these technologies are a nation-building infrastructure for the future.