DUBAI, United Arab Emirates, March 5 (UPI) -- Dubai has unveiled plans to construct a $136 million "Museum of the Future," which officials hope will become the "Eiffel Tower of Dubai."

The building will be located in downtown Dubai near the Emirates Towers. Construction begins this week and the museum will open in 2017.


"The Museum of the Future will be an incubator for ideas and real designs, a driver for innovation and a global destination for inventors and entrepreneurs," Shaikh Mohammad Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice-President and Prime Minister of the United Arab Emirates and Ruler of Dubai said at the unveiling event.

A new approach to innovation by Dubai's government is meant to be reflected in the museum's motto: "See the future, create the future." Dubai has been investing in innovation and technology, including for drones and robots.

"Our President has declared 2015 to be the year of innovation in the UAE. Today we show how serious and committed we are to that mission by turning the UAE into a major international destination for innovators," Rashid Al Maktoum added.

Today we have launched Museum of the Future, featuring innovation labs and a permanent exhibit for future inventions pic.twitter.com/IfwTIWSRN0 — HH Sheikh Mohammed (@HHShkMohd) March 4, 2015

Building architect Shaun Killa spoke about the design.

"The solid element of the building symbolizes what we know today representing what we know to be the future, and the void represents what we don't know," Shaun Killa, the building's architect, told Al Arabiya News. "So we constantly are looking towards the future and discovering new possibilities."