UAE puts R&D on the national agenda; Resecurity opens Riyadh R&D centre
Good morning!
And welcome to the 100th edition of Middle East AI News!
I started Middle East AI News nearly two years ago now, with an inaugural issue on February 6th, 2020. So, thanks for being a reader!
This week, the UAE places R&D firmly on the national agenda with the newly formed Emirates Research and Development Council (ERDC) holding its first meeting. Investment in UAE R&D has increased significantly in recent years, but this is the first initiative to define national policy, priorities and aim to support local and global collaboration.
Scroll down for lots more interesting news, including Oman's first cashierless store (see my Linkedin newsletter later this morning for more detail); Resecurity's new R&D centre in Riyadh; the launch of The UAE Coders' HQ; and a new laureate professor joins Abu Dhabi's graduate AI university.
Meanwhile, a final FYI - the organisers of The International Cybersecurity Forum 2022 (due to take place in Riyadh from February 1st) have now postponed the event. New dates have yet to be announced.
Stay safe and have a great day!
/Carrington
R&D
Newly formed Emirates Research and Development Council holds first meeting — www.linkedin.com
#UAE #R&D - UAE foreign minister H.H. Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed Al Nahyan chaired the first meeting of the Emirates Research and Development Council (ERDC), formally kicking off the activities of the newly formed body. The ERDC will play a key role in aligning the UAE's economic development and research needs, with R&D goals, investment, local/global collaboration. (Linkedin)
US firm Resecurity opens new AI-driven R&D centre in Saudi Arabia — gulfbusiness.com
#Saudi #cybersecurity - California-based cybersecurity and intelligence company Resecurity has opened a dedicated R&D centre in Riyadh. Critical research domains for the new Riyadh R&D centre include data science, AI and cognitive security technologies. (Gulf Business)
How Abu Dhabi aims to turn R&D into profits — www.arabianbusiness.com
#UAE #R&D - Abu Dhabi’s Advanced Technology Research Council (ATRC) has announced the launch of VentureOne, a new commercialisation arm. VentureOne aims to bring innovative research solutions to market at speed and monetise the IP being generated. (Arabian Business)
Coding
UAE launches The Coders' HQ to support a new generation of coders — www.thenationalnews.com
#UAE #coding - The UAE government has launched The Coders' HQ, a new programme aimed at developing the nation's coder ecosystem, as the Gulf country positions itself as a global hub for innovation. The programme will provide training, hold coding challenges, organise events and build a community. (The National)
Startups
Omantel launches Innovation Labs to enable Omani tech startups — www.zawya.com
#Oman #startups - Omantel, has launched the Omantel Innovation Labs to cultivate entrepreneurial skills and accelerate growth of tech startups across five technological verticals: 5G, IoT, cybersecurity, customer experience , and Big Data. (Zawya)
Education
Michael Jordan joins MBZUAI as laureate professor — mbzuai.ac.ae
#UAE #talent - Celebrated academic and thought leader in machine learning and AI research, UC Berkeley Distinguished Professor Michael I. Jordan, has been named laureate professor at Mohamed Bin Zayed University of Artificial Intelligence (MBZUAI) and honorary director of a new Laureate Faculty Program. (MBZUAI)
Injazat and Zayed University team up to develop student-led EdTech solutions — www.thenationalnews.com
#UAE #education - Abu Dhabi-based technology company Injazat - part of the G42 Group - and Zayed University have signed a preliminary agreement to mentor students on education technology projects, aimed at empowering national talent in developing digital solutions. (The National)
Retail
Oman Oil opens cashierless store in collaboration with Omantel — www.zawya.com
#Oman #retail - Oman Oil has opened its first automated self-service store in collaboration with Omantel, at a filling station convenience store located at the telco’s headquarters in Madinat al Irfan. The Ahlain Store is a queue-free, cashless, grab and go experience that uses Omantel's E-Dukkan app. (Zawya)
Smart robot to distribute Zamzam water — www.arabnews.com
#Saudi #water - The Presidency of the Two Holy Mosques Affairs will use a smart robot from Chinese firm Pudu Robotics to distribute Zamzam water to worshippers inside the Grand Mosque in Makkah (Mecca). The robot will be able to distribute 30 bottles per round, with each round lasting for 10 minutes, and can operate for eight hours at a time without recharging. (Arab News)
Meteorology
Meteorological Authority predicts weather with AI — egyptian-gazette.com
#Egypt #weather - The Ministry of Communications and Information Technology is to develop AI-powered solutions to better forecast weather and predict natural disasters, under a new agreement signed with the Egyptian Meteorological Authority (EMA) of the Ministry of Civil Aviation. (Egyptian Gazette)
Smart Cities
Kahramaa installs 200,000 smart electricity meters — menafn.com
#Qatar #smartmetering - Qatar General Electricity and Water Corporation, or Kahrama, has replaced 200,000 regular metres with smart ones, under its Smart Metering Infrastructure Project. Kahramaa plans to install a total of 600,000 advanced digital meters. (The Peninsula)
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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.