Traffic on Al Saada Bridge in Abu Dhabi. Victor Besa / The National
Traffic on Al Saada Bridge in Abu Dhabi. Victor Besa / The National
Traffic on Al Saada Bridge in Abu Dhabi. Victor Besa / The National
Traffic on Al Saada Bridge in Abu Dhabi. Victor Besa / The National

Google AI to help improve traffic flow in Abu Dhabi


Kelsey Warner
  • English
  • Arabic

Google is working with Abu Dhabi's transport authority to boost the number of green lights in the emirate, using machine learning technology to reduce stop-and-go traffic and, in turn, cut down on air pollution.

The US-based tech company announced several ways it plans to collaborate with the UAE on artificial intelligence initiatives at an event hosted at the Mohammed bin Zayed University of Artificial Intelligence (MBZUAI) in Abu Dhabi on Thursday.

“We’re at an exciting inflection point” in AI development, said Karan Bhatia, global vice president for government relations and public policy at Google.

“Building this transformational technology responsibly must be a collective effort that involves researchers, social scientists, industry experts, governments and people.”

Project Green Light is a pilot programme, also under way in Hamburg, Germany, and Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, to gather data on traffic patterns and build AI models that can make recommendations – for example, increasing the number of seconds of green time between certain hours.

Such modifications can help reduce congestion and greenhouse gas emissions, and also improve the flow of traffic and air quality in the city.

Along with the traffic pilot, Google plans to offer research awards to the faculty at MBZUAI to help improve Arabic representation in AI foundation models, with a focus on identifying research that has a societal impact in sustainability and climate change.

In addition to the financial support, MBZUAI faculty will be able to request in-kind support in Google cloud computing.

“AI research and development is central to the UAE’s economic diversification, sustainable growth and global competitiveness strategy, and partnerships with key industry leaders are important for the continued application of the university’s pioneering research,” said Sultan Al Hajji, MBZUAI vice president of public affairs and alumni relations.

This week, Google will also co-host its first quarterly Al Majlis event with the UAE Ministry of State for Digital Economy, AI and Remote Working System, to discuss and advance AI principles and policies.

The event will cover the topic of responsible innovation with leaders in government, academia and businesses in tourism, media and publishing, retail and telecoms.

Future Majlis discussions will address AI's impact on sustainability, health care and the future of work.

“There is so much we can accomplish and so much we must get right – together. There's significant value in collaborative leadership in AI and we look forward to doing more with local partners in the UAE and to help advance AI research and solutions that meet the needs of the country,” Mr Bhatia said.

From left, Google executive Karan Bhatia with Sultan Al Hajji from MBZUAI and Mohamed Karmastaji from Abu Dhabi's Integrated Transport Centre. Photo: Google
From left, Google executive Karan Bhatia with Sultan Al Hajji from MBZUAI and Mohamed Karmastaji from Abu Dhabi's Integrated Transport Centre. Photo: Google
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Scores

New Zealand 266 for 9 in 50 overs
Pakistan 219 all out in 47.2 overs 

New Zealand win by 47 runs

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Torque: 1075Nm
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Benefits of first-time home buyers' scheme
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Medicus AI

Started: 2016

Founder(s): Dr Baher Al Hakim, Dr Nadine Nehme and Makram Saleh

Based: Vienna, Austria; started in Dubai

Sector: Health Tech

Staff: 119

Funding: €7.7 million (Dh31m)

 

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Engine: Electric motor generating 54.2kWh (Cooper SE and Aceman SE), 64.6kW (Countryman All4 SE)
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Europa League final

Who: Marseille v Atletico Madrid
Where: Parc OL, Lyon, France
When: Wednesday, 10.45pm kick off (UAE)
TV: BeIN Sports

If you go

The flights
Emirates and Etihad fly direct to Nairobi, with fares starting from Dh1,695. The resort can be reached from Nairobi via a 35-minute flight from Wilson Airport or Jomo Kenyatta International Airport, or by road, which takes at least three hours.

The rooms
Rooms at Fairmont Mount Kenya range from Dh1,870 per night for a deluxe room to Dh11,000 per night for the William Holden Cottage.

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Dimuth Karunaratne (c), Lasith Malinga, Angelo Mathews, Thisara Perera, Kusal Perera, Dhananjaya de Silva, Kusal Mendis, Isuru Udana, Milinda Siriwardana, Avishka Fernando, Jeevan Mendis, Lahiru Thirimanne, Jeffrey Vandersay, Nuwan Pradeep, Suranga Lakmal.

The specs: 2018 Nissan 370Z Nismo

The specs: 2018 Nissan 370Z Nismo
Price, base / as tested: Dh182,178
Engine: 3.7-litre V6
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Tuesday, October 29

Qualifier one, 2.10pm – Netherlands v UAE

Qualifier two, 7.30pm – Namibia v Oman

Wednesday, October 30

Qualifier three, 2.10pm – Scotland v loser of qualifier one

Qualifier four, 7.30pm – Hong Kong v loser of qualifier two

Thursday, October 31

Fifth-place playoff, 2.10pm – winner of qualifier three v winner of qualifier four

Friday, November 1

Semi-final one, 2.10pm – Ireland v winner of qualifier one

Semi-final two, 7.30pm – PNG v winner of qualifier two

Saturday, November 2

Third-place playoff, 2.10pm

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The National Archives, Abu Dhabi

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Much of the material can be viewed on line at the Arabian Gulf Digital Archive - https://www.agda.ae/en

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Shabab Al Ahli 1

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Juventus 1 (Dybala 45')

Lazio 3 (Alberto 16', Lulic 73', Cataldi 90 4')

Red card: Rodrigo Bentancur (Juventus)

MATCH INFO

Bangla Tigers 108-5 (10 ovs)

Ingram 37, Rossouw 26, Pretorius 2-10

Deccan Gladiators 109-4 (9.5 ovs)

Watson 41, Devcich 27, Wiese 2-15

Gladiators win by six wickets

Updated: May 25, 2023, 1:58 PM`