The Vision

Amrita Sethi—renowned for inventing the SoundBYTE art style—wanted to push boundaries beyond canvas and screen. Collaborating with DIFC, she envisioned a public, interactive art experience that would represent Dubai’s future-facing mindset, innovation ecosystem, and the power of technology to shape culture.

Her signature SoundBYTEs transform spoken words into sound wave visuals. With DIFC, she scaled this concept to urban architecture, combining augmented reality, blockchain, voice, and visual storytelling into a fully immersive digital-meets-physical installation.

Artwork Details

The Mural

• Dimensions: Over 40 meters wide

• Medium: Physical paint integrated with digital overlays

• Location Context: Positioned in the heart of DIFC, a symbol of financial and technological leadership in the Middle East

The Phrase

The SoundBYTE visualizes the phrase:

"The future is now. The future is Dubai."

The soundwave of Amrita speaking this phrase was captured and then transformed into a sprawling cityscape illustration. Every curve of the waveform blends into detailed depictions of Dubai’s skyline—Burj Khalifa, Museum of the Future, DIFC’s own architecture, and more—creating a hyper-symbolic tapestry of voice and vision.

The Technology

Augmented Reality (AR)

Visitors can scan the mural using a smartphone app or QR code, triggering an AR animation that brings the mural to life. The buildings animate, the sound plays, and the viewer hears Amrita’s voice echoing the same phrase the mural is based on—bridging audio, visual, and experiential storytelling.

NFT Integration

The mural is minted as an NFT on the blockchain, making it a permanent digital artifact of Dubai’s embrace of the creative digital economy. Viewers can scan to learn about NFT ownership, provenance, and explore a virtual collection.

Goals of the Collaboration

• Celebrate Dubai’s innovation leadership through public art

• Showcase the power of combining sound, AI, AR, and NFTs

• Inspire a new generation of artists and technologists to explore new mediums

• Make art interactive, educational, and accessible

Impact

• First AR NFT Mural in the UAE

• Landmark public artwork in one of the most prestigious business hubs in the world

• Featured in international media, including Forbes, Entrepreneur Middle East, and Wired

• Sparked public interest in NFTs and AR art in the Middle East

• Became a cultural symbol for Dubai’s role in the future of blockchain, metaverse, and immersive design

Media & Press

• Wired Middle East: "The mural blurs the line between physical reality and digital future."

• Entrepreneur Middle East: "This is not just art. It’s an experience."

• DIFC’s Official Channels: "A celebration of innovation at the intersection of finance, art, and technology."

Quote from Amrita Sethi

“When you speak, you create. My art allows people to see that creation process. With DIFC, we didn’t just create a mural—we created a time capsule of Dubai’s voice as it shapes the future.”

Quote from DIFC

“This partnership with Amrita represents the DIFC’s vision for a smart, creative economy. ‘Future NFT Dubai’ is more than an artwork—it’s a legacy piece of Dubai’s future-forward identity.”

Extended Vision

This mural is part of a larger global vision Amrita holds—to create a SoundBYTE AR mural in every major city, capturing the spirit of each location through voice and technology. Dubai was the first, marking the start of a new global digital art movement.

Call to Explore

Visitors can experience the full mural in person at DIFC Innovation Hub or interact with the digital version through Amrita’s Website and upcoming virtual gallery features.