Dubai-based Micropolis raises $4m; UVL starts Muscat drone delivery trials

Good morning!

Here’s your weekly roundup of Middle East AI News!

Dubai-based AV start-up Micropolis Robotics has closed a $4 million Seed funding round; Muscat's first drone delivery trial gets the green light; and Dubai's RTA plans trials by the end of this year in order to launch a driverless taxi service in 2023 with GM's autonomous vehicle unit Cruise.

Scroll down to check out these and more stories below!

Stay safe and have a great day!

/Carrington

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Startups

UAE's AV start-up Micropolis raises $4m to fuel growth — www.thenationalnews.com

#UAE #funding - Dubai-based autonomous vehicle start-up Micropolis Robotics, focused on developing the next generation of autonomous rover, has closed a $4 million Seed funding round led by San Francisco-based venture capital firm Mindrock Capital. (The National)

Drones

Drone delivery trials launched in Muscat — www.muscatdaily.com

#Oman #dronedelivery - UVL Robotics launched a first-of-its-kind drone parcel delivery service in Muscat yesterday. In the first phase, parcels will be delivered to residents of Muscat Bay residential complex in Qantab and surrounding areas. (Muscat Daily)

Ibtechar develops GNSS-based device to track drones — menafn.com

#Qatar #drones - Ibtechar, one of Qatar's top practical innovation and turnkey solutions providers, has developed a drone tracker and a GPS system that ensure the safety and security of critical infrastructure, VIP residents, national borders, and military facilities. (The Peninsula)

Autonomous Vehicles

Dubai to start driverless taxi service by 2023 — www.thenationalnews.com

#UAE #robotaxis - Dubai's Roads and Transport Authority (RTA) announced today that trials for Cruise robotaxis will start by the end of 2022. The authority is currently developing the digital maps needed for the  driverless vehicles. (The National)

Cybersecurity

Israeli cyber security firm ThetaRay seals first Emirati contract — www.reuters.com

#Israel #UAE #banking - Mashreq Bank will use a transaction monitoring tool for correspondent banking developed by Israeli cybersecurity firm ThetaRay to detect financial crimes, according to an announcement made on Monday. (Reuters)

Cloud

Serbia's AI and cloud MoU with Group 42 could lead to cloud infrastructure investment — www.ekapija.com

#UAE #Serbia #cloud - Serbia's Office for IT and egovernment signed an MoU with Group 42 (G42) during a visit to the UAE. Director Mihailo Jovanovic commented that the MoU could be a good foundation for a potential investment in the country's national hybrid cloud infrastructure. (EKAPIJA)

Smart Cities

Sharjah's Beeah to feature digital twin of its new headquarters in the metaverse — www.thenationalnews.com

#UAE #digitaltwins - BEEAH Group, the Sharjah-based environmental management company, will create a digital twin of its new headquarters in the metaverse, according to the company. The digital twin of the Zaha Hadid-designed facility, will not only replicate the physical structure. but also the systems, tracking data parameters in real-time. (The National)

Robots paint luxury building in Dubai, ten times faster than humans — www.arabnews.com

#UAE #construction - Emaar Properties has deployed robots from Singapore-based MYRO International to complete the painting works of its luxury high-rise residential project in Downtown Dubai. (Arab News)

Data Law

Data protection law issued in Oman — www.lexology.com

#Oman #datalaw - Oman has become the latest country in the Middle East to issue national privacy legislation with the publication of a new Personal Data Protection Law. Royal Decree 6/2022 promulgating the Personal Data Protection Law (PDPL) was issued on 9 February 2022. (Lexology)

Open Data

stc launches Open Data Initiative — lab.stc.com.sa

#Saudi #opendata - stc has launched an Open Data Initiative via stc lab, offering free-to-use open data sets to help support Saudi Arabia's fast-growing data community. The telecom giant launched the open data initiative to help data scientists, researchers, students and universities process, analyse and model real data. (STC)

Healthcare

Alameda Healthcare Group partners with CMR Surgical for robotic surgery — dailynewsegypt.com

#Egypt #roboticsurgery - Alameda Healthcare Group will purchase four CMR Surgical Versius robots over the next 4 years, following the signing of an MoU. (Daily News Egypt)

AI Diplomacy

Mohamed bin Zayed, President of Turkey review regional, global developments — wam.ae

#Turkey #UAE #techfund - Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan called for the establishment of a joint technology fund between Turkey and the UAE, during this state visit to the Emirates this week. (Emirates News Agency)

Philippines, UAE to explore AI collaboration — www.pna.gov.ph

#Philippines #UAE #diplomacy - The Philippines and UAE will explore possible collaboration on AI. The Department of Science and Technology (DOST) participated in a diplomatic mission to the UAE earlier this month. (PNA)

Customs

Dubai Customs piloting a variety of unmanned — gulfnews.com

#UAE #customs - Dubai Customs is piloting a variety of unmanned systems for investigating contraband, security patrols and the inspection of vessels. Unmanned underwater vehicles (UUVs) and smart electric vehicles are among those being tested by the department. (Gulf News)

Defence

Hezbollah has started producing drones, can create precision missiles: Nasrallah — english.alarabiya.net

#Lebanon #UAVs - Lebanon’s Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah said on Wednesday the group has been producing drones and has the capability of turning thousands of rockets to precision missiles. (Al Arabiya)

Events

DIFC AI Festival (21-23 Feb, 2022) — www.difc.ae

#Dubai #DIFC - The DIFC AI Festival - An AI festival bringing together fintech startups, global tech firms and educators to illuminate AI technologies, innovations and impact, will take place from 21-23 February at the DIFC Innovation Hub. (DIFC)

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About Carrington Malin — www.carringtonmalin.com Carrington Malin helps large organisations, digital brands and fast growing tech ventures with brand, communications and go-to-market strategies.