Microsoft takes $1.5b stake in G42; Skyports nets $110m funding
Microsoft takes $1.5b stake in G42; Skyports nets $110m funding
Middle East AI News weekly digest...
Good morning!
Welcome to this week’s Middle East AI News!
Another shorter newsletter as the region gets going after the Eid Al Fitr holidays.
The biggest news of the week, of course, is Microsoft’s $1.5 billion investment in Abu Dhabi AI group G42. It is not often that Microsoft takes a stake in other technology companies and certainly not in one in the Arab world! There are many angles to this story and I’ve tried to cover the main ones in my article (see link below).
Meanwhile, vertiport developer and operator Skyports has closed its Series C round with $110 million, giving it the funding it needs to build out vertiports in the UAE to support air taxi services in 2026.
Scroll down for all the latest news!
No live show today. However, next week (April 25th), I’ll be talking to Anton Alexander, CTO of Dammam-based technology company Watad about the company’s Arabic-English bilingual LLM, trained exclusively on Saudi data! Click here for more!
As always, thanks for reading!
/Carrington
Microsoft's $1.5 billion investment in G42
#UAE #investment - US software giant Microsoft has invested $1.5 billion in Abu Dhabi's AI powerhouse G42. A pivotal moment for G42 and proof positive for Abu Dhabi's growing AI ecosystem. The strategic investment cements the partnership between the two technology companies and a lot more! (Middle East AI News)
Advanced Mobility
Skyports raises $110 million in Series C
#UK #UAE #eVTOLs - UK-based Skyports Infrastructure, a leader in vertiport infrastructure has announced that construction concern ACS Group is the lead investor in the company's Series C funding round, which has raised more than $110 million. In February, Skyports and eVTOL manufacturer Joby Aviation, signed agreements with Dubai’s Roads and Transport Authority to launch passenger air taxi services by 2026. (Skyports)
R&D
University of Tunis will establish AI institute
#Tunisia #R&D - Ministry of Higher Education and Scientific Research is working to set up the country's first artificial intelligence institute at the University of Tunis, covering all related AI fields. The plan is to open the new institute at the start of the next academic year. (AllAfrica)
Smart Cities
LocationMind to develop dataviz for Abu Dhabi transport
#UAE #Japan #transport - Abu Dhabi's Integrated Transport Centre (ITC) has signed an MoU with Japanese big data and GIS company Location Mind. The agreement includes the development of comprehensive real-time data visualisation and analysis for traffic systems in Abu Dhabi. (LinkedIn)
Saudi logistics startup combines AI and crowdsourcing
#Saudi #logistics - Pieship, a new last-mile logistics startup in Saudi Arabia, is using AI and crowdsourcing to optimize delivery routes and schedules, reduce costs, and enhance customer experience. Formed last year, the company offers warehouse management solutions, apps and solutions for logistics services. (Arab News)
Reports
Saudi Arabia ranked among top nations for AI strategy
#Saudi #AIpolicy - The recently issued Stanford University International AI Index for 2024 ranks Saudi Arabia among the leading nations globally for developing a national strategy on AI. (SPA)
Middle East firms investing across AI technologies
#MiddleEast #sentiment - The new IDC CIO PlayBook 2024 sponsored by Lenovo shows that 30% of respondents across the Middle East believe AI is a game-changer, while 62% consider it a hygiene factor. Meanwhile, an equal proportion of investment is being made in generative AI (25%), interpretative AI (25%) and machine learning (25%). Download page (Zawya)
DMCC release Web3 trends report
#UAE #Web3 - Dubai Multi Commodities Centre (DMCC) has released a special edition of its Future of Trade thought leadership report focused on Web3, examining the key drivers of growth, innovation and digital decentralisation in a number of technology trends. Download page. (Dubai Media Office)
Education
Digital School to empower 100,000 Iraqi students
#UAE #Iraq #elearning - Dubai's Digital School, an initiative by Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Global Initiatives, has initiated a new phase of partnership with the Iraqi Kurdistan Regional Government. The aim is to empower 100,000 students with advanced digital educational services within three years. (Zawya)
Sport
Abu Dhabi's Autonomous Racing League
#UAE #racing - Excitement builds among AI researchers ahead of the first Abu Dhabi Autonomous Racing League (A2RL), a self-driving vehicle race, which will take place at Yas Marina Circuit on April 27. (The National)