Artificial intelligence has become a key revenue generator for enterprises as the use of the technology continues to grow, and the Middle East is well positioned to benefit from this, Google Cloud's top executive for the region has said.
The need to adopt AI – especially its evolved, more advanced iterations – has increased, with companies putting in “massive investments” to cater to the “massive demands” of using data and capitalising on it, Abdulrahman Al Thehaiban, Google Cloud's managing director for the Middle East, Africa and Turkey, told The National.
Data collection, especially in today's technology-driven world, is the process of gathering data intended to be used for a variety of purposes such as marketing, decision making, research and strategic planning, as well as predicting consumer behaviour to cater to their preferences and several others.
“Before the pandemic, digital transformation was a key pillar of many of strategies, including government visions in Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Qatar and Kuwait,” Mr Al Thehaiban said in an interview at the Gitex Global technology conference in Dubai.
“During the pandemic, many learnt its importance of being a key enabler of driving businesses and serving citizens from a government perspective.”
“And now, it has become the key pillar of execution. There is a new era of focus on the digital transformation journey that enabled organisations to collect massive amounts of data … and that created the element of AI and the need to adopt it.”
AI plays an important role in data collection, especially when it comes to handling massive amounts of data, sorting it and using them for specific needs.
In tandem with machine learning algorithms, it is able to help organisations to arrive at strategies, based on the information that is gathered.
Among the sectors that benefit the most from collected data are e-commerce, travel, news, media and entertainment, health care, marketing, banking and finance, and social media.
The Middle East is a high-potential market for new technology, especially AI, because of its evolving economic dynamics and the willingness to invest by governments, Mr Al Thehaiban said.
The region is looking at a potentially huge economic impact from AI – $320 billion by 2030, according to data from PwC.
Saudi Arabia, the Arab world's biggest economy, is expected to benefit the most, with the contribution of AI set to hit $135.2 billion, or 12.4 per cent of gross domestic product, it said.
The UAE, the second largest Arab economy, is forecast to reap $96 billion, or 13.6 per cent of its economy.
AI's contribution to the rest of the GCC – Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman and Qatar – by that year, would be about $46 billion, or 8.2 per cent of GDP, while in Egypt, the Arab world's most populous country, it is expected to be $42.7 billion, or 7.7 per cent, the global consultancy said.
However, Mr Al Thehaiban cautioned that AI-driven data, especially with the arrival of generative AI, must be handled ethically.
“When you have data in your hands, you must deal with it in a responsible way – not in a corrupt or irresponsible way,” he said.
For data centres – another key pillar of Google's global investments and strategy – the company had said it was considering plans to build more data centres in the Middle East, Google Cloud chief executive Thomas Kurian told The National last year.
Google currently has three data centres in the region – in Dammam, Doha and Tel Aviv. The company considers three factors – infrastructure, commercial viability and “very, very important” policies and regulations – when selecting a country to build a data centre, Mr Al Thehaiban said.
“We have a dedicated [a] team that helps customers and governments … [informing them of] the best business practices, and what it take to address policies and regulations, because that's a key fundamental,” he said.
Three ways to limit your social media use
Clinical psychologist, Dr Saliha Afridi at The Lighthouse Arabia suggests three easy things you can do every day to cut back on the time you spend online.
1. Put the social media app in a folder on the second or third screen of your phone so it has to remain a conscious decision to open, rather than something your fingers gravitate towards without consideration.
2. Schedule a time to use social media instead of consistently throughout the day. I recommend setting aside certain times of the day or week when you upload pictures or share information.
3. Take a mental snapshot rather than a photo on your phone. Instead of sharing it with your social world, try to absorb the moment, connect with your feeling, experience the moment with all five of your senses. You will have a memory of that moment more vividly and for far longer than if you take a picture of it.
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UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
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We are bringing you the inside story from the World Economic Forum's Annual Meeting in Davos, a gathering of hundreds of world leaders, top executives and billionaires.
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
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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
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TEACHERS' PAY - WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW
Pay varies significantly depending on the school, its rating and the curriculum. Here's a rough guide as of January 2021:
- top end schools tend to pay Dh16,000-17,000 a month - plus a monthly housing allowance of up to Dh6,000. These tend to be British curriculum schools rated 'outstanding' or 'very good', followed by American schools
- average salary across curriculums and skill levels is about Dh10,000, recruiters say
- it is becoming more common for schools to provide accommodation, sometimes in an apartment block with other teachers, rather than hand teachers a cash housing allowance
- some strong performing schools have cut back on salaries since the pandemic began, sometimes offering Dh16,000 including the housing allowance, which reflects the slump in rental costs, and sheer demand for jobs
- maths and science teachers are most in demand and some schools will pay up to Dh3,000 more than other teachers in recognition of their technical skills
- at the other end of the market, teachers in some Indian schools, where fees are lower and competition among applicants is intense, can be paid as low as Dh3,000 per month
- in Indian schools, it has also become common for teachers to share residential accommodation, living in a block with colleagues
Gender pay parity on track in the UAE
The UAE has a good record on gender pay parity, according to Mercer's Total Remuneration Study.
"In some of the lower levels of jobs women tend to be paid more than men, primarily because men are employed in blue collar jobs and women tend to be employed in white collar jobs which pay better," said Ted Raffoul, career products leader, Mena at Mercer. "I am yet to see a company in the UAE – particularly when you are looking at a blue chip multinationals or some of the bigger local companies – that actively discriminates when it comes to gender on pay."
Mr Raffoul said most gender issues are actually due to the cultural class, as the population is dominated by Asian and Arab cultures where men are generally expected to work and earn whereas women are meant to start a family.
"For that reason, we see a different gender gap. There are less women in senior roles because women tend to focus less on this but that’s not due to any companies having a policy penalising women for any reasons – it’s a cultural thing," he said.
As a result, Mr Raffoul said many companies in the UAE are coming up with benefit package programmes to help working mothers and the career development of women in general.
How to apply for a drone permit
- Individuals must register on UAE Drone app or website using their UAE Pass
- Add all their personal details, including name, nationality, passport number, Emiratis ID, email and phone number
- Upload the training certificate from a centre accredited by the GCAA
- Submit their request
What are the regulations?
- Fly it within visual line of sight
- Never over populated areas
- Ensure maximum flying height of 400 feet (122 metres) above ground level is not crossed
- Users must avoid flying over restricted areas listed on the UAE Drone app
- Only fly the drone during the day, and never at night
- Should have a live feed of the drone flight
- Drones must weigh 5 kg or less
