Israeli tech eyes UAE; Abu Dhabi's AWI fund invests in Entropik

Good morning!

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

Israel's technology sector has been quick to react to Saturday's news that the UAE's boycott of Israeli products has ended, paving the way for bilateral trade. Dozens of Israeli tech firms, including AI ventures are already investigating business, investment and export deals.

In light of the Emirates' focus on AI and building a digital economy, there are some obvious matches between UAE plans and Israel's developing technology sector - and none are more obvious than AI. Business and AI consultant Uri Eliabayev wrote about this in the the Israeli newspaper Haaretz this wwek.

Also scroll down for news of the latest Indian startup investment by Abu Dhabi's Alpha Wave Incubation fund, Smart Dubai's new Smart City diploma programme and the British entrepreneur who wants to bring robotic maintenance solutions to GCC oil refineries.

Meanwhile, whilst Saudi's Future Investment Initiative organisers have now confirmed that the event has been postponed until January 2021. No announcement has yet been made about the Global AI Summit (also run by FII), which still displays the 14-15 September dates on its website.

Stay safe and have a great weekend!

/Carrington

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Abraham Accord

Beyond secret cyber deals, Israel and UAE ties may be a boon for AI — www.haaretz.com

#Israel #UAE #AbrahamAccord - "The UAE is the only country in the world to have an artificial intelligence minister and it has even opened a university dedicated to the field - they have much to gain from cooperating with Israel." (Haaretz - subscription)

Startup News

Abu Dhabi's Alpha Wave invests in Entropik Tech — www.wamda.com

#India #UAE #funding - Bangalore-based emotion recognition platform Entropik Tech is the latest Indian startup to receive funding from ADQ's $300-million Alpha Wave Incubation venture fund. The $8 million Series-A funding round will be used to ramp up its deep tech abilities and support global expansion, including opening a Middle East HQ in Abu Dhabi. (Wamda)

WorkAround receives funding from Dubai's Falcon Network — www.sme10x.com

#UAE #funding - Boston-based WorkAround, which  provides a scalable data tagging and verification platform for AI and machine learning applications is among 6 startups that have received $450,000 in angel funding from Dubai's Falcon Network. (SME10X)

B2B e-commerce Fatura aims to deploy technology in local trading — dailynewsegypt.com

#Egypt #retail - Egypt-based B2B e-commerce platform Fatura aims to link 30,000 wholesalers and retailers in 15 governorates via an AI-powered trading platform. (Daily News Egypt)

Smart Cities

Schneider Electric bags smart grid deal in Egypt — www.zawya.com

#Egypt #smartcities - Energy management and automation company Schneider Electric has signed an agreement with Egypt's Ministry of Electricity and Renewable Energy to establish distribution control centres in the country. (Zawya)

Education

Smart Dubai launches new professional diploma to enhance skills of ‘Smart City Experience Specialists’ — www.smartdubai.ae

#UAE #skills - Smart Dubai has launched a Professional Diploma to enhance the skills of the city’s ‘Smart City Experience Specialists’ and introduce them to best practices to improve the design and quality of experiencing current digital services and help create new ones to drive Dubai’s digital transformation and build a smarter city. (Smart Dubai)

SDAIA to train 100 youth in AI in Makkah region — saudigazette.com.sa

#Saudi #skills - Saudi Data and Artificial Intelligence Authority will hold training programmes for 100 young Saudi men and women in the Makkah region in the field of data and AI. (Saudi Gazette)

Energy

Meet the British tech entrepreneur who wants to shake up the Gulf oil sector — www.arabianbusiness.com

#UAE #Saudi #energy - Ahmed Hadid, founder of AI startup Hybird, is planning to bring robotics to Gulf oil refineries, saving companies billions of dollars in routine maintenance. He already has oil giants ADNOC and Aramco on his books through a deal with SAP. (Arabian Business)

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About Carrington Malin — www.carringtonmalin.com

Carrington Malin is a UAE-based entrepreneur, marketer and writer who focuses on emerging technologies.