Kai Ling Ting

Kai Ling Ting has spent close to two decades learning that innovation doesn’t happen by magic. It comes from disciplined strategy, the right partnerships, and teams brave enough to test bold ideas with leaders who own the outcomes.

She leads innovation, R&D, and emerging technologies at ADQ, a sovereign investor based in Abu Dhabi. There, she works with over 60 leaders across more than 20 companies, spanning industries from energy and logistics to healthcare, food, and agriculture. Before ADQ, she was Head of Innovation at Etihad Aviation Group, with earlier roles across Abu Dhabi and Singapore.

Her approach: manage innovation like an investment portfolio, with clear priorities, rapid testing, and honest accounting. She works across the full ecosystem because she knows good ideas rarely scale without the right people around them.

She mentors founders who are ready to move from vision to execution, and brings the kind of direct, grounded perspective that comes from doing it inside large, complex organisations.