The Middle East looks to be moving most aggressively in training their employees to embrace and adopt artificial intelligence, Jeff Maggioncalda, chief executive of the learning platform Coursera, has said.
In countries such as Saudi Arabia, the UAE and Qatar, governments and companies are rapidly adopting artificial intelligence, Mr Maggioncalda told The National just before his appearance at the Leap 2024 technology conference in Riyadh on Wednesday.
Mr Maggioncalda, who is approaching his seventh year as Coursera's chief executive, said he has been spending more of his time in the Middle East.
According to a global survey from Boston Consulting Group last month, 11 per cent of executives in the Middle East indicated that their workers were training on generative AI tools, compared to 8 per cent in North America, 7 per cent in the Asia-Pacific region and 5 per cent in Europe.
“In workforce development, the Middle East is leading in upskilling efforts related to GenAI,” the study read.
“This indicates a focused yet ongoing effort in the region to equip the workforce with the necessary skills for the AI landscape.”
Coursera has aimed to enhance AI learning. The company launched Arabic translations of more than 4,200 online courses, growing the overall upskilling and education trends reported in the Middle East.
“It opens up a lot more accessibility to Arabic-speaking learners,” he said.
“It's the transcripts, it's the learning assessments, it's the user interface, the readings and everything.”
According to Coursera, as of last year, 8.9 million of its 142 million global customers are from the Middle East and North Africa, a 25 per cent increase compared to 2022.
Coursera is using AI in most of its product offerings such as Coursera Coach, which is powered by generative AI and can answer questions and share personalised feedback with the user.
“If someone is struggling with the concept or why it’s relevant to their business or relevant to their job, they can speak to coach in whatever language they want,” Mr Maggioncalda said, adding that AI has made translations much quicker to develop and introduce.
Coursera will also soon be launching Course Builder, which will use AI to help instructors produce custom courses for their audiences.
“You can sit there and type in the kind of course you want to teach, and AI creates an outline for a course structure and then allows the instructor to modify it if they want to,” he said.
He added that on a global level, AI has prompted an increase in course sign-ups for customers wanting to train, retrain or learn about AI-related topics.
“The world is facing the need for upskilling that’s only getting bigger and bigger,” he said.
“Developing a habit of learning is going to be critical to maintaining good economic opportunities in front of you.”
Mr Maggioncalda also stressed the importance of Generative AI, which he said could act as a learning assessor or a dissertation committee for users.
“It [Coursera] might eventually ask you, 'how did you come up with this answer?', or 'show how you came to this conclusion,'” he said.
He also addressed the debate concerning the potential for job losses as a result of corporations implementing AI for various work processes.
“I think the curriculum might be affected, but there's a human component for empathy, love and understanding that can't be replicated,” he said, speaking about the potential effect of AI on teachers and educators.
“Call centres, or jobs that are really automated, those jobs are very vulnerable and can easily be automated,” he said.
“It's going to be a blend of things, but it's going to affect companies, businesses, individuals and campuses across the board.”
He expects the company to be profitable in this year and noted that last year ended on a high note.
“Twelve years in and we turned a profitable quarter,” he said, commenting on Coursera's fourth-quarter results. “Revenues have grown nicely.”
How to watch Ireland v Pakistan in UAE
When: The one-off Test starts on Friday, May 11
What time: Each day’s play is scheduled to start at 2pm UAE time.
TV: The match will be broadcast on OSN Sports Cricket HD. Subscribers to the channel can also stream the action live on OSN Play.
EXPATS
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What is graphene?
Graphene is extracted from graphite and is made up of pure carbon.
It is 200 times more resistant than steel and five times lighter than aluminum.
It conducts electricity better than any other material at room temperature.
It is thought that graphene could boost the useful life of batteries by 10 per cent.
Graphene can also detect cancer cells in the early stages of the disease.
The material was first discovered when Andre Geim and Konstantin Novoselov were 'playing' with graphite at the University of Manchester in 2004.
The Equaliser 2
Director Antoine Fuqua
Starring: Denzel Washington, Bill Pullman, Melissa Leo, Ashton Sanders
Three stars
Benefits of first-time home buyers' scheme
- Priority access to new homes from participating developers
- Discounts on sales price of off-plan units
- Flexible payment plans from developers
- Mortgages with better interest rates, faster approval times and reduced fees
- DLD registration fee can be paid through banks or credit cards at zero interest rates
Honeymoonish
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Lexus LX700h specs
Engine: 3.4-litre twin-turbo V6 plus supplementary electric motor
Power: 464hp at 5,200rpm
Torque: 790Nm from 2,000-3,600rpm
Transmission: 10-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 11.7L/100km
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh590,000
ESSENTIALS
The flights
Emirates flies from Dubai to Phnom Penh via Yangon from Dh2,700 return including taxes. Cambodia Bayon Airlines and Cambodia Angkor Air offer return flights from Phnom Penh to Siem Reap from Dh250 return including taxes. The flight takes about 45 minutes.
The hotels
Rooms at the Raffles Le Royal in Phnom Penh cost from $225 (Dh826) per night including taxes. Rooms at the Grand Hotel d'Angkor cost from $261 (Dh960) per night including taxes.
The tours
A cyclo architecture tour of Phnom Penh costs from $20 (Dh75) per person for about three hours, with Khmer Architecture Tours. Tailor-made tours of all of Cambodia, or sites like Angkor alone, can be arranged by About Asia Travel. Emirates Holidays also offers packages.
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Read more from Mina Al-Oraibi
The candidates
Dr Ayham Ammora, scientist and business executive
Ali Azeem, business leader
Tony Booth, professor of education
Lord Browne, former BP chief executive
Dr Mohamed El-Erian, economist
Professor Wyn Evans, astrophysicist
Dr Mark Mann, scientist
Gina MIller, anti-Brexit campaigner
Lord Smith, former Cabinet minister
Sandi Toksvig, broadcaster
GAC GS8 Specs
Engine: 2.0-litre 4cyl turbo
Power: 248hp at 5,200rpm
Torque: 400Nm at 1,750-4,000rpm
Transmission: 8-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 9.1L/100km
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh149,900
More from Neighbourhood Watch:
Volvo ES90 Specs
Engine: Electric single motor (96kW), twin motor (106kW) and twin motor performance (106kW)
Power: 333hp, 449hp, 680hp
Torque: 480Nm, 670Nm, 870Nm
On sale: Later in 2025 or early 2026, depending on region
Price: Exact regional pricing TBA
Brolliology: A History of the Umbrella in Life and Literature
By Marion Rankine
Melville House
Profile of Tarabut Gateway
Founder: Abdulla Almoayed
Based: UAE
Founded: 2017
Number of employees: 35
Sector: FinTech
Raised: $13 million
Backers: Berlin-based venture capital company Target Global, Kingsway, CE Ventures, Entrée Capital, Zamil Investment Group, Global Ventures, Almoayed Technologies and Mad’a Investment.
Indoor cricket in a nutshell
Indoor Cricket World Cup - Sept 16-20, Insportz, Dubai
16 Indoor cricket matches are 16 overs per side
8 There are eight players per team
9 There have been nine Indoor Cricket World Cups for men. Australia have won every one.
5 Five runs are deducted from the score when a wickets falls
4 Batsmen bat in pairs, facing four overs per partnership
Scoring In indoor cricket, runs are scored by way of both physical and bonus runs. Physical runs are scored by both batsmen completing a run from one crease to the other. Bonus runs are scored when the ball hits a net in different zones, but only when at least one physical run is score.
Zones
A Front net, behind the striker and wicketkeeper: 0 runs
B Side nets, between the striker and halfway down the pitch: 1 run
C Side nets between halfway and the bowlers end: 2 runs
D Back net: 4 runs on the bounce, 6 runs on the full
Company%20profile
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What are the GCSE grade equivalents?
- Grade 9 = above an A*
- Grade 8 = between grades A* and A
- Grade 7 = grade A
- Grade 6 = just above a grade B
- Grade 5 = between grades B and C
- Grade 4 = grade C
- Grade 3 = between grades D and E
- Grade 2 = between grades E and F
- Grade 1 = between grades F and G
