Ai Everything 2026 in Abu Dhabi; MBZUAI releases Arabic LMM
Middle East AI News weekly digest...
Good morning!
Welcome to this week’s Middle East AI News! And it’s another long one!
Two days of Ai Everything GLOBAL already over and one more day today! This week’s big news from the show is that next year’s Ai Everything Global will take place in Abu Dhabi from May 11th to 13th. Next week, of course, Riyadh’s tech mega event returns: Leap25!
Lots of news in today’s newsletter - with a number of significant announcements about MBZUAI! Last weekend a new board of trustees was announced for MBZUAI, including Dr Lisa Su, CEO of AMD. The news followed a presidential visit to the university. Meanwhile, yesterday researchers released a new Arabic language LMM!
Click to view the full version of this newsletter on the website.
If you’re attending Ai Everything GLOBAL and you haven’t met Weights & Biases, this is your last chance! You can find them in Hall 1 on Booth H1-12.
Thanks for reading!
/Carrington
Ai Everything Global
Abu Dhabi to host Ai Everything Global in 2026
#UAE #AIIndustry – Abu Dhabi will host the Ai Everything Global Summit & Expo in 2026, reinforcing the UAE’s AI leadership. Organised by Dubai World Trade Centre with ADNEC Group and Abu Dhabi’s Department of Culture & Tourism, the event will run from May 11–13, 2026. (Middle East AI News)
LLMs
MBZUAI releases Arabic multimodal AI model
#UAE #LMMs – Abu Dhabi’s Mohamed bin Zayed University of Artificial Intelligence has released AIN, the first bilingual Arabic-English large multimodal model. With 7 billion parameters, AIN outperforms GPT-4o and Gemini 1.5 Pro in key benchmarks and excels in OCR, remote sensing, and medical imaging. It is now integrated into WhatsApp and Telegram. (Middle East AI News)
GenAI
Meta AI launches in Arabic across MENA
#MENA #AIassistants – Meta AI has launched in the Middle East and North Africa, bringing its generative AI assistant to Arabic users in the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Morocco, and Iraq (with more countries to follow). The assistant is available via Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp, and Messenger. (Middle East AI News)
MBZUAI
UAE President visits MBZUAI, reaffirms AI focus
#UAE #R&D – UAE President Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan visited Mohamed bin Zayed University of Artificial Intelligence (MBZUAI), highlighting AI’s top position in the national agenda. He explored AI-driven research in energy, climate, medicine, and robotics, meeting students and faculty. (Middle East AI News)
MBZUAI appoints new board, adds AMD CEO Lisa Su
#UAE #newboard – Mohamed bin Zayed University of Artificial Intelligence (MBZUAI) has appointed a new board of trustees, reinforcing its alignment with Abu Dhabi’s AI strategy. AMD CEO Dr Lisa Su joins as a trustee, bolstering the university’s global standing. (Middle East AI News)
Funding
OpenAI’s Sam Altman to meet MGX for funding talks
#UAE #OpenAI – OpenAI CEO Sam Altman is set to visit Abu Dhabi this week for talks with investment group MGX on potential funding. The visit follows his Asia tour, where OpenAI announced a partnership with Japan’s SoftBank. The discussions come as OpenAI faces rising competition from China’s DeepSeek. (Reuters)
Rasam Ventures secures funding from Qatar Investment Authority
#Qatar #fundoffjunds – Rasam Ventures, Qatar’s first independent venture capital fund manager, has received funding from the Qatar Investment Authority for its Rasam Innovation Fund 1. This is the first investment under QIA’s $1 billion holding fund programme. (Zawya)
Dubai’s Qeen.ai raises $10 million in major seed round
#UAE #ecommerce – Dubai-based AI startup Qeen.ai has secured $10 million in seed funding from Prosus Ventures, Wamda Capital, 10x Founders, and Dara Holdings. The funding will scale its AI-driven e-commerce solutions. (Middle East AI News)
Saudi AI startup vminds.ai secures pre-seed funding
#Saudi #learning – Saudi AI startup vminds.ai has secured a six-figure pre-seed investment to launch its self-learning AI platform. The company consolidates over 150 AI tools for individuals and enterprises. (Middle East AI News)
Digital Twins
MBRSC partners with Japan’s SpaceData for digital twins
#UAE #digitaltwins – Dubai’s Mohammed Bin Rashid Space Centre (MBRSC) has signed an MoU with Japan’s SpaceData to develop advanced digital twin solutions for Dubai and space missions. The collaboration will enhance tourism, business, and disaster response through a detailed digital twin of the city. (Middle East AI News)
AI Policy
Saudi Arabia certifies 40 AI service providers
#Saudi #serviceproviders – Saudi Data and Artificial Intelligence Authority (SDAIA) has awarded AI service provider accreditation certificates to 40 entities, including homegrown leaders Elm, Lucidya, Mozn, Quant, and SCAI. The certification aims to boost AI adoption in the Kingdom. (Middle East AI News)
Arab League calls for AI regulations
#MENA #AIregs – The Arab League has urged member states to develop AI regulations and standards to stay competitive. Secretary-General Ahmed Aboul Gheit stressed the need for regional AI frameworks. (Arab News)
UAE study calls for responsible AI to shape future services
#UAE #responsibleAI – A new study by the UAE’s AI, Digital Economy, and Remote Work Applications Office highlights the need for responsible AI to drive innovation across public and private sectors. The findings, based on a high-level roundtable, stress AI’s role in societal progress. Download PDF. (Emirates 24/7)
Semiconductor
EdgeCortix to expand into Riyadh under Saudi semiconductor initiative
#Saudi #semiconductors – Japan’s EdgeCortix has been selected by Saudi Arabia’s Ministry of Investment to join the National Semiconductor Hub, launching a subsidiary in Riyadh. The hub aims to attract 50 fabless chip firms by 2030, train 5,000 engineers, and boost semiconductor innovation in the Kingdom. (Business Wire)
Drones
Saudi approves Matternet’s M2 drone for operations
#Saudi #approvals – US drone company Matternet has received approval from Saudi Arabia’s General Authority of Civil Aviation (GACA) to operate its M2 drone in the Kingdom. It is the first such approval, positioning Matternet to expand its presence in the region. (AAM Middle East)
Dubai showcases flying taxi prototype at Museum of the Future
#UAE #airmobility – Dubai’s Museum of the Future is now displaying an aerial taxi prototype by Joby Aviation, developed in partnership with the RTA. Part of Dubai’s Self-Driving Strategy, the electric, zero-emission vehicle supports the city’s goal of 25% autonomous transport by 2030. (Time Out Dubai)
Cybersecurity
UAE Cabinet approves National Cybersecurity Strategy
#UAE #nationalstrategy – The UAE Cabinet has approved the National Cybersecurity Strategy, built on five pillars: governance, protection, innovation, capacity-building, and partnerships. The Cabinet also greenlit a government API-First Policy to accelerate system integration. (UAE Media Office)
Saudi offers cybersecurity scholarships at top universities
#Saudi #scholarships – The National Cybersecurity Authority, in partnership with the Ministry of Education, has launched phase two of its Cybersecurity Postgraduate Scholarship Program. It includes scholarships at 30 prestigious global universities and research grants in cybersecurity. (SPA)
Innovation
Morocco’s CGEM launches AI initiative for 1000 SMEs
#Morocco #SMEs – The General Confederation of Moroccan Enterprises (CGEM) has launched "Generation AI: Boosting 1000 Moroccan SMEs," in partnership with the EBRD and LinkedIn. The initiative will provide LinkedIn learning licenses to help SMEs adopt AI, improving competitiveness and productivity. (Morocco World News)
Nestlé partners with Dubai AI Campus for AI-driven innovation
#UAE #product – Nestlé has signed an MoU with Dubai AI Campus to develop an AI-powered tool for product innovation. The tool will analyze trends and consumer insights to accelerate product development. (Emirates 24/7)
Africa
Smart Africa launches AI Council to drive AI growth
#Morocco #AIpolicy – Smart Africa has launched the Africa AI Council to position the continent as a key player in AI innovation and economic growth. Representing 40 nations, the Council will engage stakeholders at major AI summits before its formal unveiling at Rwanda’s Global AI Summit. (Tech Africa News)
Awards
Baghdad opens Excellence Award for AI developers
#Iraq #awards – The University of Information Technology and Communications in Baghdad has opened applications for the Excellence Award for Developers in AI. Organised with Al-Mustaqbal University, the award is part of the Third Annual National Forum on AI, set for February 27th. (UOITC)
[ This newsletter was AI edited & human edited ]