STEP has grown exponentially over the course of five years into a festival, since it initially started out as a series of workshops. It has become the largest tech experiential festival in the Middle East with over 250 startups showcasing, four conferences and over 6000 attendees for its two days event held in Dubai Internet City on 28-29 March. It also showcased local talent and performances highlighting its entertainment segment. STEP X focused on innovation, the future including smart cities, autonomous vehicles, artificial intelligence, cloud, IoT, and regulation. STEP Start works as a foundation for startups and entrepreneurs. It hosted startup mentorship sessions with Vijay Tirathrai, Rana Nawas and Zach Finkelstein among many more including a flagship pitch competition, and other partner activations.

STEP Digital discussed global trends on digital, advertising, content, and media with speakers including Christian Eid, Asad Rehman and Dina Amin among others. STEP Money reflected on financial technology including blockchain, cryptocurrency, and payments across roundtables via workshops and talks. The guest speakers included Tatiana Zalan and Mohammad Ali Yousef among others.