New maritime robot challenge; ADIO brings more R&D to Abu Dhabi
Good morning!
Here’s your weekly roundup of Middle East AI News!
Lots of news to share today, including some great startup stories: Arabic AI voice startup Xina AI's Seed funding; Eureka AI's move to Abu Dhabi, new smart glasses for the blind and visually impaired from Amal Glass; and Canadian AI cleantech startup BluWave-ai's partnership with Dubai Taxi.
Meanwhile, with Expo 2020 Dubai starting tomorrow, official robotics sponsor Terminus Group and Talabat have announced that robots will be used for food deliveries at the expo site. Terminus also officially opened its MENA headquarters in Dubai. Scroll down for these stories and more.
Stay safe and have a great weekend!
/Carrington
Startup News
Jordan-based Arabic interactive AI voice platform Xina AI raises $1m for expansion — www.forbesmiddleeast.com
#Jordan #funding - Jordan-based Arabic conversational AI startup Xina AI has raised $1 million in investment in a Seed round that will support further development of its AI Arabic interactive voice assistant (IVA) and its expansion plans for the Middle East region. (Forbes Middle East)
ADIO brings Eureka AI to Abu Dhabi — www.wam.ae
#UAE #funding - Abu Dhabi Investment Office (ADIO) has signed a partnership with Indonesian enterprise AI software platform Eureka AI. Eureka will establish its technology R&D and operational headquarters in Abu Dhabi, moving its senior leadership team, data scientists and engineers to the UAE capital. (Emirates News Agency)
Amal Glass launches version 2 of smart glasses for the blind and visually impaired — www.tradearabia.com
#UAE #smartglasses - Dubai-based Amal Glass has launched Version 2 of its smart glasses product for the blind and visually impaired. The company aims to use AI to enable users to become self-dependent and eliminate the need for multiple devices, guide dogs or human assistance. Running on an Android OS, the glasses have Arabic and English language support. (Trade Arabia)
Investment
KAUST joins VCPEA to support Saudi deep tech ventures — www.kaust.edu.sa
#Saudi #funding - King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST) and Venture Capital and Private Equity Association (VCPEA) have signed an agreement that could boost development of a deep tech, early-stage pipeline of startups into the Kingdom's growing ecosystem. (KAUST)
Digital Policy
Saudi Digital Government Authority announces new Digital Government Policy — www.arabnews.com
#Saudi #digitalgovernment - The Digital Government Authority (DGA) of Saudi Arabia today launched a new Digital Government Policy aimed at simplifying the digital transformation for the public sector. The new Digital Government Policy focuses on four pillars: engagement, digital transformation, capabilities, and governance. (Arab News)
Healthcare
NYU researchers develop new AI tool to improve accuracy of breast cancer detection — wam.ae
#UAE #USA #radiology - A team of researchers from New York University (NYU) Langone, which is renowned for evidence-based clinical care, and New York University Abu Dhabi (NYUAD) have developed new AI tool to improve accuracy of breastcancer detection. (Emirates News Agency)
Transport
Dubai Taxi plans AI-enabled fleet electrification — www.tradearabia.com
#Canada #UAE #transport - Dubai Taxi has partnered with Canadian AI cleantech startup BluWave-ai to work towards AI-enabled fleet electrification and optimisation. The partnership leverages BluWave-ai's 9 USPTO patents in the field of energy optimisation and electric fleets. (Trade Arabia)
Robotics
Three day UAE National Robot Olympiad competition kicks-off from October 1 — www.zawya.com
#UAE #WRO2021 - Over 800 students from across the UAE’s education ecosystem will battle it out over three days in the UAE National World Robot Olympiad 2021. The virtual competition will be held between October 1-3 and will challenge 308 teams on their robotics and STEM subject skills and knowledge. (Zawya)
Abu Dhabi’s ASPIRE launches $3 million-plus MBZIRC Maritime Grand Challenge — wam.ae
#UAE #MBZIRC - The Mohamed Bin Zayed International Robotics Challenge (MBZIRC) will be held in Abu Dhabi in June 2023, where tech innovators will compete with their marine safety and security solutions to win US$3 million in prize money. The competition is organised by ASPIRE, the programme management unit of Abu Dhabi's Advanced Technology Research Council (ATRC). (Emirates News Agency)
Expo 2020 Dubai
Expo 2020 robotics sponsor Terminus Group inaugurates MENA headquarters in Dubai — gulfbusiness.com
#UAE #robotics - Robotics and smart city IoT operator Terminus Group has officially opened its first Middle East and North Africa (MENA) headquarters in Dubai. Terminus is Expo 2020 Dubai's Official Robotics Partner and the only Expo Premier Partner from China. Expo 2020 starts tomorrow. (Gulf Business)
Expo 2020: Talabat and Terminus Group to use robots to deliver food at the event — www.thenationalnews.com
#UAE #fooddelivery - Food delivery service Talabat and China's Terminus Group will use robots to deliver food to customers at Expo 2020 Dubai. The robots were jointly developed by both companies and are expected to deliver thousands of food orders from Talabat's cloud kitchen to customers are the Expo site. (The National)
Agtech
Egypt automates wheat silos processes using IBM AI-powered software — www.zawya.com
#Egypt #wheat - IBM has collaborated with ACME SAICO to automate 22 wheat silos across Egypt by the end of 2021 using IBM AI-powered automation software. The project supports the Ministry of Supply and Internal Trade’s plans to digitise the wheat supply chain and implement governance systems. (Zawya)
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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.