wamda.com - For the money-rich and time-poor white collar workers of Dubai, chores are largely a thing of the past.

For several years at least, domestic workers and laborers have done the errands and duties in and out of the house that make it possible for business people to work around the clock to keep the city growing.

But the service industry is changing. Like San Francisco’s tech workers before them, Dubai’s wealthy immigrants are turning to the internet and their smartphones to get things done more than ever before. Not only are there startups (in addition to traditional companies) in nearly every category of household chores – from grocery shopping, laundry, maid service, personal grooming and beauty, taxi service, and courier – there are competing startups in each of these categories.

Nearly 78 percent of UAE residents now own smartphones, Nielsen estimates, and the entrepreneurs of both early stage and growth stage service-oriented companies in the UAE are adjusting their business models accordingly – often on the fly.