Mubadala mulls $6.3B Japan data centre; OpenAI offers UAE inference residency
Middle East AI News weekly digest...
Good morning!
Welcome to this week’s Middle East AI News email digest!
Lots of news to share this week! In this edition, OpenAI brings inference residency to the UAE; Mubadala weighs a $6.3 billion AI data centre in Akita, Japan; Ooredoo commits $800 million to new Zankore neocloud venture; the UAE kicks-off project to put agentic AI to work on policy and governance; and du unveils an AI-native 6G blueprint after live trials in Abu Dhabi.
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/Carrington
Data Centres
Mubadala mulls $6.3B Japan AI data centre
#UAE #datacentres - Abu Dhabi’s Mubadala is considering a $6.3 billion, 500-megawatt AI data centre in Akita Prefecture, northern Japan, according to Bloomberg. The project could bring in domestic and international co-investors while expanding Japan’s computing capacity beyond established hubs constrained by limited land and power. (Middle East AI News)
Ooredoo commits $800M to Zankore neocloud
#Qatar #cloud - Doha-based Ooredoo Group is committing about $800 million for a 49 percent stake in new Indonesia venture Zankore, an AI neocloud venture. Working with Indosat Ooredoo Hutchison, Nokia and NVIDIA, it targets one gigawatt of capacity, starting with 200 megawatts by the first half of 2027. (Middle East AI News)
Inference
OpenAI brings inference residency to UAE
#UAE #cloud - OpenAI has activated inference residency for ChatGPT Enterprise and Edu customers in the UAE, the first MENA market with the capability. Prompts, files and conversations can now be processed entirely on UAE-based GPUs, provided data residency is enabled, strengthening compliance for regulated organisations. (Middle East AI News)
6G
du unveils 6G blueprint after Abu Dhabi trials
#UAE #telecoms - UAE telecom operator du has published an AI-native 6G blueprint developed with Khalifa University, outlining a path towards autonomous networks. Live trials in Mohamed Bin Zayed City delivered nearly 1.5 gigabits per second over existing 5G macro sites. (Middle East AI News)
Agentic AI
UAE moves agentic programme into federal deployment
#UAE #government - The UAE has moved its federal Agentic AI programme into executive-level deployment, with more than 100 officials launching the strategic track in Dubai. The initiative aligns with government goals to convert 50% of federal operations, services and tasks to AI within two years. (Middle East AI News)
ruya deploys agentic systems for banking workflows
#UAE #banking - Ajman-based Islamic digital bank ruya has put three agentic AI use cases into live production with Dubai-based Magure. Agents now manage business onboarding, document verification and transaction workflows inside ruya’s private cloud, while human reviewers retain material decisions and customer data remains in-house. (Middle East AI News)
Dubai targets villa permits in minutes with AI
#UAE #construction - Dubai Municipality is developing an AI system intended to issue villa building permits in minutes rather than days. It will read drawings, check compliance with the Dubai Building Code, assess structural and MEP requirements, and generate permit data automatically during a 26-week rollout linked to Build in Dubai. (Middle East AI News)
Startups
Six startups join Mastercard Lighthouse UAE
#UAE #startups - The UAE AI Office and Mastercard have selected six startups from 14 finalists for the inaugural Mastercard Lighthouse UAE. Loyyal, NewForm Technologies, NodeShift, Polynome, Valura.Ai and zypl.ai will receive four months of mentorship, investor access and support to scale globally. (Middle East AI News)
Education
UAE AI Camp returns with global tech partners
#UAE #AIskills - Dubai’s eighth UAE AI Camp will run from 17 to 29 August, offering workshops, hackathons and practical training for students, employees and SME owners. Government partners include Google, Microsoft, Intel and Accenture, building on more than 34,000 participants across the previous seven editions. (Middle East AI News)
UMAMI launches EGP50 million learning platform in Egypt
#Egypt #education - Egyptian edtech company UMAMI has launched a Learning Operating System in Cairo, backed by phased investment exceeding EGP50 million. Designed for governments, ministries and large institutions across MENA, it connects learning, skills and workforce readiness, while UMAMI has also secured certification under Egypt’s national Startup Charter. (Zawya)
SDAIA launches generative AI bootcamp for creators
#Saudi #creators - SDAIA’s three-day AI Creativity Bootcamp in Riyadh, ran from 10 to 12 August, targets content creators, designers and students. Training covered prompt engineering, visual content production, prototyping, responsible AI and intellectual property, while examining how the technology is reshaping productivity, business models and future creative skills. (Saudi Press Agency)
Responsible AI
Saudi cabinet confirms ICAIRE independent status
#Saudi #policy - Saudi Arabia’s Cabinet has approved ICAIRE’s statute, granting the UNESCO Category 2 centre legal, financial and administrative independence. Based in Riyadh, ICAIRE will advance AI research, ethics, education and policy, while strengthening the Kingdom’s role in international cooperation and global governance of emerging technologies. (Middle East AI News)
Nusuk AI earns Saudi ethics label
#Saudi #travel - Saudi Arabia’s Hajj and Umrah Ministry has received SDAIA’s AI Ethics Label for Nusuk AI, its multilingual digital assistant for pilgrims. The service supports more than 180 languages and has served over 320,000 users since launch, combining large-scale access with nationally recognised AI governance standards. (Saudi Press Agency)
Read Estate
Oman uses AI to curb arbitrary property pricing
#Oman #realestate - Oman’s Ministry of Housing and Urban Planning has introduced a digital property valuation system with Oman Rial to curb arbitrary pricing and overcharging. The platform uses AI, infrastructure proximity and historical transaction data, with specialist teams providing human oversight to improve transparency and valuation accuracy. (Muscat Daily)
Water Resources
Jordan uses smart systems to cut water losses
#Jordan #water - A US-funded smart water project in Jordan is using AI to detect leaks, forecast demand and reduce network losses. Pilot areas have already lowered pressure and water loss, demonstrating how data-driven monitoring can improve efficiency and resilience. (Middle East AI News)
Culture & Heritage
Saudi fund offers SAR500,000 cultural AI grants
#Saudi #culture - Saudi Arabia’s Cultural Development Fund (CDF) has launched grants of up to SAR500,000 ($133,000) for micro, small and medium-sized cultural businesses adopting or developing AI technologies. The programme, accepts applications until 29 September 2026. (Middle East AI News)
Egypt and UK to launch virtual heritage centre
#Egypt #heritage - Egypt and the UK will launch a joint AI and virtual heritage centre in Egypt on 17 August. The initiative will apply digitisation, 3D modelling and AI to archaeology, Egyptology and cultural preservation, supporting research and new methods for documenting and safeguarding heritage. (Egypt State Information Service)
Deepfakes
Qatar warns public over deepfake scams
#Qatar #cybersecurity - Qatar’s Ministry of Interior has warned residents about AI-generated deepfakes capable of manipulating voices and video. The ministry urged people to verify the source and authenticity of digital material before trusting or sharing it, highlighting the growing risk of deceptive synthetic media. (Qatar Tribune)
Events
Saudi shifts Global AI Summit to September 2027
#Saudi #GAIN - Saudi Arabia has rescheduled the fourth Global AI Summit (GAIN) to 7–9 September 2027 in Riyadh. SDAIA says the additional time will broaden international participation, deepen strategic partnerships and allow the programme to reflect the rapid evolution of artificial intelligence and advanced technologies worldwide. (Arab News)
[ This newsletter was both AI edited & human edited ]