Tech Mubadala acquires majority stake in Spanish IT company Abu Dhabi’s Mubadala Capital has agreed to acquire a controlling stake in Babel, a Madrid-based IT and digital transformation services provider. The acquisition, which is subject to regulatory approval, further expands Mubadala’s presence in the business services sector, following its earlier purchase of Dutch safety-critical training company RelyOn Nutec this year. The terms of the […] October 4, 2024
Artificial Intelligence UAE’s MGX part of OpenAI’s $6.6bn fund raising UAE technology investment company MGX was among the investors in the latest round of funding for OpenAI, the company behind ChatGPT. OpenAI said it raised $6.6 billion from investors in the latest round, the largest ever venture capital deal, valuing the company at $157 billion. Venture capital company Thrive Capital led the round with a […] October 3, 2024
Artificial Intelligence Cerebras says success hinges on UAE’s G42 as it prepares for IPO Cerebras Systems trebled its revenue to almost $79 million in 2023, but ahead of its initial public offering the AI chipmaker has warned that its financial growth is heavily tied to its partnership with the UAE’s G42. The company, which is based in California and generated $136.4 million in the first six months of this […] October 2, 2024
Analysis Transport What the rise of robotaxi means for your car insurance As the Middle East continues to test autonomous vehicles, the big issue is the potential increase in multi-million-dollar lawsuits as a result of AV accidents, and the debate over who is liable for such payouts. Cruise, which is owned by General Motors and has been designated as the exclusive robotaxi service provider in Dubai until […] September 26, 2024
Tech Defence and tech at forefront of UAE leader’s historic US visit Defence and technology were among the key topics of discussion during UAE President Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan’s official visit to the US this week. “The strategic and enduring partnership that unites our countries is unwavering,” said Sheikh Mohamed, after what was the first meeting between sitting UAE and US presidents on American soil […] September 25, 2024
Tech Ooredoo secures $552m loan for data centre expansion Qatar’s telecom major Ooredoo has secured a QR2 billion ($552 million) financing deal to accelerate the development of its data centres and artificial intelligence (AI) ventures. The 10-year hybrid facility, comprising both commercial and Islamic tranches, was provided by Qatar National Bank, Doha Bank and Masraf Al Rayan. The company claimed this is the “largest […] September 25, 2024
Tech Global chip giants explore opening UAE factories Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. (TSMC) and Samsung Electronics, the world’s largest chip makers, are exploring the possibility of opening mega-manufacturing facilities in the UAE. The terms of discussion include projects to be funded by the UAE, with Abu Dhabi-based sovereign Mubadala playing a key role, The Wall Street Journal reported, citing unnamed sources. Executives from TSMC recently […] September 23, 2024
Artificial Intelligence G42 links with Nvidia to launch climate tech lab The UAE-based artificial intelligence company G42 has formed a partnership with Nvidia, the US computer chip giant, to set up a climate tech laboratory in Abu Dhabi, aimed at better predicting the weather using AI. In what is Nvidia’s first partnership with the UAE company, the lab will “serve as a hub for research and […] September 20, 2024
Trade Sharjah’s Microsoft deal ‘will not harm China relationship’ Sharjah, the third largest emirate by population in the UAE, will not undermine its growing relations with China through its AI partnership with the American giant Microsoft, a prominent investment official has said. This week Sharjah unveiled the first AI-generated trade licence system in the world, developed jointly by Invest in Sharjah, Sharjah Publishing City […] September 19, 2024
Video length: 03:30 VIDEO Artificial Intelligence Dubai AI leaders call for global regulations Digital economy leaders in the UAE called for the global unification of artificial intelligence regulations at the launch of DMCC’s AI Centre last week. Dubai issued a universal blueprint for AI earlier this year, but a unified framework governing the growing AI technology sector is still lacking. “How can you disregard the artificial intelligence sector […] September 18, 2024
Tech UAE’s MGX joins $30bn AI infrastructure initiative UAE technology investment company MGX is part of a new $30 billion initiative, which will invest in building data centres and energy infrastructure. Other members of the Global AI Infrastructure Investment Partnership (GAIIP) are US-based BlackRock, Global Infrastructure Partners and Microsoft. The proceeds, which will be raised through private equity capital, may reach up to […] September 18, 2024
Tech UAE’s G42 and Microsoft aim for ‘responsible’ AI goals UAE artificial intelligence (AI) company G42 and US tech giant Microsoft will open two centres in Abu Dhabi to advance work on “responsible” AI practices. The first centre will see academic researchers and AI practitioners from the private sector develop, document and share emerging “responsible” AI best practices in the Middle East and the Global […] September 18, 2024
Retail Saudi retail in tech race to lock in consumer loyalty Saudi and Gulf retailers are running to catch up when it comes to deploying sophisticated tools being used in other markets to develop consumer loyalty, creating an opening for innovative companies, according to analysts. “The Middle East is a bit behind the curve,” said Premal Patel, managing director of Catalina UK, a retail consultancy. “Technology […] September 17, 2024
Tech Shortage of IT specialists slows Turkish business growth A shortage of trained IT specialists is slowing Turkish companies’ growth and their development of artificial intelligence applications, according to a new report. The report, issued by Turkey’s state statistics agency Turkstat, found some sectors had a strong uptake of ecommerce sales and services. Almost half of all accommodation and food service providers took advantage […] September 17, 2024
Artificial Intelligence Aramco partners with US startup Groq for AI data centre Saudi Aramco’s digital arm is partnering with US semiconductor startup Groq to build the world’s largest artificial intelligence inferencing data centre. Unlike regular data centres, which handle a range of computing tasks, an AI inferencing data centre is designed specifically to run AI models that make rapid predictions or decisions. The facility will use Groq’s […] September 16, 2024
Trade Saudi Arabia anticipates US easing Nvidia chip ban Saudi Arabia is welcoming reports that the US government is considering lifting export restrictions on Nvidia chips to the kingdom, which maintains close trade ties with US rival China. Asked at an artificial intelligence (AI) forum in Riyadh if he would be content to see exports without limits, minister of industry and mineral resources Bandar […] September 16, 2024
Video length: 05:07 VIDEO Gaming Saudi Arabia plays the long game in a high-stakes market Saudi Arabia has so far channeled $38 billion into the esports sector through its Public Investment Fund subsidiary Savvy Games Group. This includes high-profile acquisitions such as the $4.9 billion purchase of the Monopoly Go developer Scopely and the $1.5 billion buyout of ESL FaceIt Group, one of the world’s largest esports companies. Critics have […] September 13, 2024
Artificial Intelligence Aramco to buy AI chips from Abu Dhabi fund-backed Cerebras Saudi Aramco is to buy advanced semiconductor chips from Cerebras Systems, the Abu Dhabi fund-backed chipmaker aiming to challenge Nvidia’s dominance in the AI arena, as it seeks to boost artificial intelligence in the kingdom. The state-owned energy giant will use Cerebras’ CS-3 chips to build and deploy large language models (LLMs) – computer models […] September 13, 2024
Aviation AI could help with pilot shortage, says Emirates COO Artificial intelligence could allow for planes to fly with just one pilot, an Emirates airline executive has said. This would also help ease the Middle East’s pilot shortage and change how the aviation industry operates. Adel Ahmed Al Redha, chief operating officer of Emirates airline, told AGBI that aircraft operations “might go to maybe one […] September 12, 2024
Artificial Intelligence Top Arabic chatbot title claimed by Saudi Arabia’s updated Allam Saudi Arabia’s Arabic language artificial intelligence (AI) chat model, Allam, is now the largest Arabic-language chatbot in the world and will be available on prominent platforms by Microsoft and IBM, officials announced this week. Allam is a “large language model”, or LLM, that was first launched by a subsidiary of the Saudi Data and Artificial […] September 12, 2024
Artificial Intelligence Saudi Arabia sets 12% target for AI’s contribution to GDP Saudi Arabia wants artificial intelligence to account for 12 percent of its GDP by 2030, the government has said. The Public Investment Fund will lead its efforts to build “a robust AI ecosystem”, the Saudi Data and AI Authority said in a report published this week. The State of AI paper said the country was […] September 11, 2024
Artificial Intelligence Saudi Arabia pledges to ‘confront’ risks posed by AI Saudi Arabia is determined to be “at the forefront” of artificial intelligence funding and development, a senior official told an AI conference in Riyadh on Tuesday. However, Abdullah bin Sharaf Alghamdi, head of the Saudi Authority for Data and Artificial Intelligence, also said the kingdom was wary about the security implications of AI and would take […] September 10, 2024
