Good morning!
Here’s your weekly Middle East AI News! Running a little late, due to work pressures!
IMX, the world’s second largest naval exercise and the biggest maritime unmanned systems exercise began last Sunday, with tests, trials and events across the Arabian Gulf, Arabian Sea, Gulf of Oman, Red Sea, Indian Ocean and East African coastal regions. So, you’ll find a few stories from IMX 2023 if you scroll down below. Also see my Linkedin post from yesterday.
Other news this week includes G42’s hiring across Asia to support the $10 billion tech fund announced last year, and ADNOC brings in AI to make refueling easier and more personalised for UAE motorists.
I also link to The National’s Business Extra podcast’s interview with MBZUAI president Eric Xing at the end of this newsletter.
Thanks for reading!
/Carrington
Smart Cities
ADNOC’s AI petrol station to remember your car
#UAE #petrolstations - ADNOC ‘Fill & Go’, becomes the Middle East’s first fuel distributor to introduce an innovative AI-powered personal service app at its service stations. The solution allows ADNOC petrol stations to recognise vehicles and respond by offering a hyper-personalised fueling experience. (ITP.net)
Venture Capital
G42’s $10b fund taps JD.com exec for China deals
#China #UAE #funds - Abu Dhabi AI and cloud computing group G42’s $10 billion tech fund has hired a former executive from Chinese e-commerce giant JD.com Inc. Jason Hu, as it expands its footprint across Asia, according to Bloomberg. The company has reportedly been hiring dozens of new employees across Asia. (Bloomberg - subscription)
Web3
Dropp signs Web3 deal with Aramco
#Saudi #web3 - US-based droppGroup (dropp) has signed a Web3 technology agreement with Saudi oil giant Aramco to explore an experiential on-boarding and training ecosystem, and a fully interoperable tokenised network and Web3 rewards programme. (Zawya)
Entertainment
Saudi commission explores AI in movie making
#Saudi #film - The Saudi Ministry of Culture’s Film Commission recently held a meeting to explore the use of AI technologies in developing the movie industry. The session highlighted the latest AI developments in the sector, showcased examples of its usage in film production, and its role in processing big data. (Arab News)
AI diplomacy
UAE participates in G20 digital economy working group
#UAE #G20 - Saqr Binghalib, Executive Director of the Office of Artificial Intelligence, Digital Economy and Remote Work Applications in the UAE Government, took part in the first meeting of the G20 Digital Economy Working Group. The meeting discussed the importance of enhancing digital transformation and digital infrastructure. (Emirates News Agency)
Saudi officials visit South Korea’s Naver
#Saudi #SouthKorea #Naver - Officials from the Saudi Data and AI Authority (SDAIA), the National Information Center (NIC) and the National Data Management Office (NDMO) visited Naver during a visit to South Korea. The delegation visited the Internet giant's second office building 1784, the world’s first robot-friendly building. (Business Korea)
Industry 4.0
BHAG Digital sets up under NextGenFDI programme
#UAE #NextGenFDI - Industry 4.0 software company BHAG Digital is one of nine companies announced by the Ministry of Economy to open operations in the UAE under the government's NextGenFDI program. BHAG develops solutions for Industry 4.0 by optimising the manufacturing process and are also planning to manufacture hardware in the UAE. (Trade Arabia)
Drones
Mayman Aerospace gets $3m funding from Tawazun
#UAE #funding - Tawazun Council’s investment arm, Strategic Development Fund, is investing $3 million in Mayman Aerospace through its venture capital program. Mayman Aerospace, which is owned by JetPack Aviation, is a US-based manufacturer of the Speeder Air Utility Vehicle (AUV). (Dronelife)
Defence
U.S. Navy, 50 partners start IMX 2023
#Bahrain #IMX2023 - U.S. Naval Forces Central Command (NAVCENT) began IMX 2023 on Sunday, the largest naval exercise in the Middle East Africa and the biggest unmanned system exercise in the world. More than 30 unmanned and artificial intelligence systems will be trialed during the three-week exercise. (US Navy)
Medevac drone-boat to be trialed at IMX
#Bahrain #IMX2023 - The U.S. Navy will be testing out using a high-speed drone boat for ship-to-shore medical evacuation during IMX 2023. However, the tests will be carried out using a medical mannequin to simulate a human patient. (Defense One)
Royal Navy joins IMX to push technology and training boundaries
#Bahrain #UK #IMX2023 - The UK’s Royal Navy will push technological boundaries and share its drug-busting and maritime security expertise in the second largest naval exercise in the world getting under way across the Middle East. (Royal Navy)
Saudi requests AMRAAMs for use against UAVs
#Saudi #US #droneattacks - The US Department of State has approved a request from Saudi Arabia to buy up to 280 Raytheon AIM-120C Advanced Medium Range Air-to-Air Missiles (AMRAAMs) in order to replace inventory used to intercept unmanned air vehicle (UAV) attacks on the kingdom. The deal value is estimated at $650 million. (Flight Global)
Morocco military orders Proximus counter drone unit
#Morocco #antidrone - Morocco’s Royal Armed Forces (Farmaroc) have acquired a Bukovel AD mobile counter drone system supplied by Ukrainian equipment supplier PROXIMUS according to Farmaroc. The unit comprises a ground station with detection and control modules and GPS/GLONASS jamming capability. (Unmanned Airspace)
Video
MBZUAI president on AI careers and ChatGPT
#UAE #education - Professor Eric Xing of the Mohamed bin Zayed University of Artificial Intelligence (MBZUAI) joins The National's Kelsey Warner to talk about job prospects for fresh MBZUAI grads, the less-discussed risks of ChatGPT and other AI topics. (The National)