Archer UAE service by end 2025; Beeah building own LLM
Middle East AI News weekly digest...
Good morning!
Welcome to this week’s Middle East AI News!
Archer Aviation CEO this week confirmed that the company plans to begin Abu Dhabi-Dubai air taxi services by the end of 2025. Crucially, he also confirmed that Archer has assurances from the UAE authorities that the eVTOL company will received regulatory approvals for a 2025 launch.
More interesting news below! Beeah Group is building its own proprietary LLM, the UAE’s largest bank has partnered with Microsoft to create an AI Innovation Hub, and MBZUAI has confirmed Professor Timothy Baldwin as the university’s provost.
Sadly, there will be no Middle East AI News LIVE show today or next week due to the Eid holidays! The next live show will be Thursday April 18th.
Thanks for reading! And Eid Mubarak!
/Carrington
Advanced Air Mobility
Archer confirms UAE flights by end of 2025
#UAE #electricmobility - eVTOL company Archer Aviation founder & CEO Adam Goldstein confirmed in an interview with Bloomberg that the San Jose-based company plans to fly from Abu Dhabi and Dubai by the end of 2025. Goldstein noted that the company has been assured by regulators that it has approval for the flights. Archer aims to launch before Joby Aviation, which has also announced planned air taxi services for the UAE. (Seeking Alpha)
LLMs
Beeah developing LLM
#UAE #GenAI - Sharjah-based waste management pioneer Beeah Group is developing a proprietary large language model and AI assistant to support decision-making. The new virtual assistant is being trained on Beeah historical data and will support decision-making at all levels. (Emirates News Agency)
Emotech embraces multiple LLMs
#UAE #Arabic - Abu Dhabi and London-based AI startup Emotech, has now integrated its platform's dialogue system with multiple large language models. The integration allows the AI platform to offer video avatars fluent in 15 languages, including a variety of different Arabic language dialects. (LinkedIn)
Funding
Edtech Sprints secures $3 million funding
#Egypt #funding - Egyptian edtech startup Sprints, has secured $3 million in a bridge funding round led by Disruptech Ventures, with participation from EdVentures, CFYE and other investors. Sprints offers an AI-powered end-to-end education to recruitment platform, upskilling students for new tech jobs. (TechPadi)
Digital Transformation
FAB and Microsoft to create AI Innovation Hub
#UAE #banking - The UAE's largest bank, First Abu Dhabi Bank (FAB) and Microsoft, are to create an AI Innovation Hub, to develop the next generation of AI-enabled banking and financial services innovation platforms, together with Microsoft partner Core42. (Emirates News Agency)
Riyadh Air partners with Artefact for AI solutions
#Saudi #aviation - Riyadh Air, a new airline wholly owned by Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund (PIF), has begun a partnership with global consultancy Artefact. Together they will build the airline's data analytics platform and develop AI solutions across its main business and corporate functions. (SPA)
Startups
UAE ranked top for entrepreneurship
#UAE #startups - The United Arab Emirates has been ranked first globally in the Global Entrepreneurship Monitor for the third consecutive year, recognised as the best place worldwide to start and conduct new business ventures. (Emirates 24/7)
Saudi app to democratise fashion advice
#Saudi #fashion - Jeddah-based AI-powered fashion app Taffi, aims to democratise fashion styling advice, offering virtual ‘styling as a service’. The app's assistant Amira, provides an AI hyper-personalized fashion and style advisor. (Al Arabiya)
Cloud
Informatica launches Saudi data management cloud
#Saudi #cloud - Informatica has launched its AI-powered Intelligent Data Management Cloud in Saudi Arabia. The investment includes establishing a new Point of Delivery in Riyadh, and reflects a commitment to support local, scalable, cloud-first data management services. (Yahoo!)
Logistics
Einride to deploy operations in second half of 2024
#UAE #logistics - Swedish freight technology company Einride expects to deploy initial autonomous truck operations in the second half of 2024. Sretching across Abu Dhabi, Dubai and Sharjah, the company’s logistics grid will include 2,000 electric vehicles and 200 autonomous vehicles. (Gulf News)
Medical
DataPathology uses AI to screen for cervical cancer
#Morocco #medtech - Moroccan AI medtech startup, DataPathology, is using artificial intelligence and image processing technologies to analyse tissue samples and detect signs of cervical cancer faster, and more accurately. DataPathology now runs a network of laboratories for fast diagnosis using AI. (AFDB)
Data Policy
Upcoming changes to Saudi PDPL
#Saudi #PDPL - Saudi Data and Artificial Intelligence Authority (SDAIA) recently published proposed changes to the Transfer Regulations of the Personal Data Protection Law. The changes are open for public consultation until April 18th. (Al Tamimi & Co.)
AI Diplomacy
Kenya and UAE sign technology cooperation agreement
#UAE #Kenya #FDI - UAE Ministry of Investment and Kenya's Ministry of Information, Communications and the Digital Economy have signed an Investment Memorandum establishing a framework for investment cooperation in technology, to include data centres and large language models. (Emirates News Agency)
Executive Moves
MBZUAI appoints provost
#UAE #education - Mohamed bin Zayed University of Artificial Intelligence (MBZUAI) has named its new permanent provost, Professor Timothy Baldwin. A professor in natural language processing, Baldwin is a Melbourne Laureate Professor and has been with Abu Dhabi's AI university for just over two years. (The National)
Events
Dubai Museum of the Future to host Machines Can See Summit
#UAE #MachinesCanSee - The second edition of the Machines Can See Summit will take place at Dubai Museum of the Future on Wednesday April 17th. One of the largest regular AI-focused summits in the Middle East attended by 5,000 delegates, the agenda has separate tracks for science and business. (Intelligent CIO)
