Merger to form AI spacetech giant; RTA budgets 50 AI projects
Middle East AI News weekly digest...
Good morning!
Welcome to this week’s Middle East AI News!
The message from my email editor telling me that my weekly newsletter is over the maximum email length has now become part of the weekly routine! Lots going on as we end a momentous year in technology for the Middle East.
The top news this week is the merger between Abu Dhabi geospatial services company Bayanat and satellite company Yahsat to create a $4 billion AI space technology and services firm to be called Space42! The impact of this could be felt across many different areas including AI-powered satellite services and technology development, the R&D ecosystem, the startup ecosystem, plus all sectors that could benefit from a new generation of satellite and geospatial data services.
Meanwhile, plenty happening in transport and electric mobility this week, as Ethmar Holdings’ company Wings Logistics Hub commits to acquiring 100 EHang eVTOLs, Lucid assembles the first 800 EVs in its new Saudi factory, and the Kingdoms new EV charging company EVIC opens and R&D centre. Scroll down for lots more!
Later today, I’ll be hosting Middle East AI News LIVE - THURSDAY DEEP DIVE on LinkedIn at 12 noon KSA | 1pm UAE time | 9am GMT!
I will be talking to Muhammad Khalid, founder of AI REV and School Hack AI, the UAE-based ChatGPT-powered edtech platform that equips students to enhance their studies with AI and help develop skills for the jobs of tomorrow.
Click here to attend today’s THURSDAY DEEP DIVE!
Thanks for reading!
/Carrington
Satellite
Bayanat, Yahsat to merge creating Space42
#UAE #spacetech - The boards of G42 geospatial AI services company Bayanat and Mubadala satellite services subsidiary Yahsat have recommended a merger to create an AI-powered spacetech giant with global reach and implied market capitlisation of AED 15 billion ($4.08 billion). Both companies are listed on Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange (ADX). The merger is expected to become effective in the second half of 2024 and the new entity will be called ‘Space42’. (Middle East AI News 🎧)
Transport
Dubai RTA strategy identifies 50 AI projects
#UAE #mobility - Dubai's Roads and Transport Authority has unveiled its Digital Strategy 2023, 2030, which will invest AED 1.6 billion ($440m) in some 82 projects and initiatives. Fifty artificial intelligence projects have been identified to develop solutions for different use cases. (RTA)
R&D
Omantel & SQ University launch research fund
#Oman #R&D - Omantel and Sultan Qaboos University have signed a five-year partnership agreement to foster scientific research for information and communication technology and artificial intelligence. The two organisations will launch the Applied Research Fund to provide support to faculty members and researchers. (Zawya)
Data Science
Aramco expands downstream data science team
#Saudi #datascience - Saudi oil giant Aramco, is expanding its AI and Big Data unit to support data-driven investment decision making and help maximise profit. Called Global Optimizer, after the core AI model that it uses, the department now has about 70 people and is still expanding. (Reuters)
Startups
DIFC Innovation Hub startups have raised $600m
#UAE #funding - DIFC Innovation Hub has so far graduated over 200 start-ups who have collectively raised over $600 million in funding, according to the hubs CEO Mohammad AlBlooshi, speaking at an annual Investor Day. (Emirates News Agency)
iSchool raises $4.5m
#Egypt #funding - iSchool, an Egyptian startup that teaches programming to children, has secured $4.5 million in a funding round led by VenturesWave Capital, an Irish venture capital firm. The round also included UK Capital OneStop, Webit Investment Network, and Oraseya Capital, the investment arm of Dubai’s Integrated Economic Zone Authority. (Wamda)
HRtech startupVelents closes seed round
#Saudi #funding - Riyadh-based Velents, an AI-powered platform that automates the hiring process to mitigate bias and cut hiring costs, has closed its seed investment round in line with its plans to expand across the Middle East and Europe A15 led the first round along with Nibras Capital, AUC Venture Lab, and some local investors from the Middle East. (Zawya)
Digital Transformation
Saudi Arabia saved $6bn through digital services
#Saudi #services - The Ministry of Interior's digital services platform, Absher, has saved Saudi Arabia more than 6 billion dollars by providing digital channels to citizens, residents and visitors, according to Ahmed Al-Suwaiyan, governor of Digital Government Authority. Speaking at the Digital Government Forum in Riyadh this week, he also stated that 36 per cent of medical consultations in Saudi Arabia are provided remotely, via digital channels. (Arab News)
KPMG Saudi & Microsoft open emerging tech CoE
#Saudi #digitaltransformation - His Excellency, Haytham AlOhali, Saudi Arabia's Vice Minister of the Ministry of Communications & Information Technology, opened KPMG Saudi Arabia, and Microsoft's, Saudi Centre for Emerging Technologies in Riyadh this week, attended by some of the Kingdom's business, government and technology leaders. (LinkedIn, Arabic)
Healthcare
AI could predict next malaria outbreak
#UAE #Indonesia #malaria - A research team at Mohamed bin Zayed University of Artificial Intelligence (MBZUAI) is working on potentially groundbreaking research in the fight against malaria. The team can predict geographical areas vulnerable to the disease based on potential weather conditions, heat and humidity. (The National)
eVTOL
Abu Dhabi company to buy 100 EHang EH 216 eVTOLs
#UAE #eVTOL - Urban air mobility company EHang, has signed a partnership with Abu Dhabi-based Wings Logistics Hub, under which it will supply 100 EHang EH 216, electric vertical-takeoff-and-landing aircraft. EHang will also join Abu Dhabi's Smart Autonomous Vehicle Industry Cluster (SAVI). (Yahoo!)
Electric Vehicles
EVIC opens EV charging R&D centre
#Saudi #R&D - Saudi Arabia's new Electric Vehicle Infrastructure Company (EVIC), has announced the region's first electric vehicle charging research and development centre in Riyadh. A joint venture between the Public Investment Fund and the Saudi Electricity Company, EVIC was launched in November with plans to install over 5,000 fast chargers, in 10,000 locations across the country. (Arab News)
Lucid assembles 800 EVs in Saudi factory
#Saudi #EVs - Electric vehicle group Lucid has assembled almost 800 cars in its Saudi Arabian factory, since it opened in September. The plant is Lucid's second, and first outside the United States, which has been built with an initial capacity of 5,000 electric vehicles per year. (Arab News)
Education
Registrations open for Data Governance Camp
#Saudi #datapolicy - Saudi Data and Artificial Intelligence Authority (SDAIA) has opened registrations for its Data Governance Camp, targeting graduates in technical, administrative and legal fields. The authority aims to train 60 Saudi graduates on how to protect sensitive information. (Arab News)
Emirates Robotics Competition to take place in February
#UAE #robotics - Dubai Future Foundation has announced that 61 teams, from universities across the UAE, will compete in the second edition of the Emirates Robotics Competition. Organised by Dubai Future Labs, Khalifa University, and Rochester Institute of Technology, the competition will take place in February. (Dubai Media Office)
Drones
Global drone race final scheduled for AlUla
#Saudi #dronerace - The Royal Commission for AlUla, in collaboration with the Saudi Federation for Cybersecurity, and the Saudi E-Sports Federation, will host the Drone Champions League Super Final 2023 this month, an international racing drone event - in the ancient city of AlUla. (Zawya)