Second Autonomous e-Mobility Forum in Doha: Qatar sets out its electric and driverless roadmap

Ministry of Transport hosted more than 40 speakers and 20 exhibitors at QNCC on 7-8 September, with robotaxis, EV charging and vehicle cybersecurity on the agenda.

The second Autonomous e-Mobility Forum (AEMOB) ran at the Qatar National Convention Centre on 7 and 8 September, followed by an ecosystem tour on 9 September. The Ministry of Transport hosted the event, held under the patronage of the Minister of Transport H E Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulla bin Mohammed Al Thani. Opening the forum, Ministry of Transport Undersecretary H E Mohammed Abdullah Al-Maadeed said transport has become "a strategic industry and key driver of development" and described the move to electric mobility and autonomous driving as "a defining feature of the industry's future". He said the shift needs energy capacity, digital infrastructure, safety standards, regulation and local technology skills to succeed, and that under the Third National Development Strategy Qatar is moving its focus from building infrastructure to getting more out of what it has, through electric mobility, intelligent transport systems and preparation for autonomous vehicles. The programme covered more than 50 sessions across ten tracks, with over 40 speakers and 20 exhibition spaces showing autonomous vehicles, EV solutions and smart infrastructure. Qatar University, the University of Doha for Science and Technology and Kahramaa took part, the latter in workshops on integrating chargers with the grid. Sessions also looked at electric vertical take-off aircraft, port and vessel electrification, fast charging and the experience of owning an EV in Qatar. Cybersecurity was a recurring theme. Dr Hamid Menouar of the Qatar Mobility Innovations Center told delegates that the real exposure in driverless fleets is vehicle-to-everything communication, where cars must exchange live data with traffic infrastructure and each other without pre-authentication. He warned that false traffic alerts or spoofed signals could reroute vehicles into engineered gridlock or create immediate physical danger, and that the ecosystem faces "severe exploitation if robust defenses are not implemented". The forum follows Mowasalat (Karwa)'s robotaxi trials in central Doha, West Bay and Hamad International Airport, which completed 2,500 supervised trips before the ministry approved a second phase with no safety officer on board along three pre-approved routes. Sources: The Peninsula, 7 and 10 September 2026; Qatar Living, 9 September 2026.