A concept electric car showcased at the e& stand at Gitex Global in Dubai. Pawan Singh / The National
A concept electric car showcased at the e& stand at Gitex Global in Dubai. Pawan Singh / The National
A concept electric car showcased at the e& stand at Gitex Global in Dubai. Pawan Singh / The National
A concept electric car showcased at the e& stand at Gitex Global in Dubai. Pawan Singh / The National

UAE's e& signs $1bn partnership with AWS to accelerate cloud adoption


Alkesh Sharma
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UAE telecoms and technology company e& has entered into a partnership valued at more than $1 billion with Amazon Web Services, the world's largest cloud services provider, to accelerate the adoption of cloud solutions and drive digital transformation in the region.

The partnership, announced at Gitex Global in Dubai, will focus on delivering services such as cloud storage, computing, networking, cybersecurity, artificial intelligence and machine learning over the next six years, the companies said in a joint statement on Tuesday.

E& said that it will harness AWS's suite of 200 services to modernise key platforms, including Starzplay Arabia, a TV streaming service in which e& holds a majority stake, and Careem, the super app that offers services such as food delivery, mobility and digital payments.

The UAE company said it will also enable small and medium-sized businesses to access the AWS marketplace.

“We are enabling businesses across the region to lead in an AI-powered, data-driven economy,” said Hatem Dowidar, group chief executive of e&, which serves more than 175 million subscribers in 34 countries.

“By investing in both critical infrastructure and talent development, we are … supporting the region’s economy, digital resilience, and … its people, who will be instrumental in realising the UAE’s vision of becoming a world-leading digital powerhouse.”

With a 31 per cent market share, AWS is the biggest player in global cloud infrastructure services. Photo: AWS
With a 31 per cent market share, AWS is the biggest player in global cloud infrastructure services. Photo: AWS

AWS launched its second Middle East cloud region in the UAE in 2022, alongside a planned $5 billion investment in the local economy through 2036. In August 2022, the company announced that its facility would contribute an estimated $11 billion to the UAE’s economy over the next 15 years.

AWS said it will enable regional companies to access generative AI technology using its Amazon Bedrock solutions, helping them boost productivity and improve customer experience. The Seattle-based company, a cloud subsidiary of Amazon – the world’s largest e-commerce firm – provides on-demand cloud computing platforms to businesses.

Cloud companies around the world are recording growing demand amid the AI boom. Nearly 68 per cent of Middle East companies surveyed by PwC last year said they planned to migrate most of their operations to the cloud within two years. Consultancy Telecom Advisory Services expects public cloud adoption to unlock $733 billion in economic value across the Middle East and North Africa by 2033, according to its report last year.

The cloud computing market in Middle East and Africa is expected to reach more than $178.52 billion by 2030, growing at a compound annual growth rate of 18.8 per cent from 2024 to 2030, according to California-based Grand View Research.

With a 31 per cent market share, AWS is the biggest player in the global cloud infrastructure services sector, followed by Microsoft Azure with 25 per cent and Google Cloud with 10 per cent, data from Statista shows.

The e& partnership will fast-track the UAE's 2031 vision that aims to raise its gross domestic product to Dh3 trillion ($816.88 billion) by the next decade, said Tanuja Randery, vice president for Europe, Middle East and Africa at AWS.

AWS and e& will also work on developing a local upskilling initiative, with plans to provide training opportunities to thousands of individuals, including UAE nationals, in cloud technologies and AI.

Hatem Dowidar of e& said the company is enabling businesses across the region to lead in an AI-powered, data-driven economy. Leslie Pableo / The National
Hatem Dowidar of e& said the company is enabling businesses across the region to lead in an AI-powered, data-driven economy. Leslie Pableo / The National

“Our investment in developing the skills of UAE nationals will have a positive impact on the region’s economic growth and technological leadership,” said Ms Randery.

Separately, Microsoft said at Gitex on Tuesday that its cloud ecosystem is projected to contribute $74.4 billion to the UAE economy and create more than 152,530 jobs by 2028. These jobs will be created both directly within Microsoft and indirectly through its partner ecosystem and cloud-using customers, according to a report by International Data Corporation that was sponsored by Microsoft.

Over the next four years, Microsoft and its partner ecosystem will spend approximately $5.1 billion in the UAE’s data centre regions for services and products in local economies, it said. “This investment will fuel the growth of enterprises, particularly those looking to harness the power of cloud and AI,” it added.

Sole survivors
  • Cecelia Crocker was on board Northwest Airlines Flight 255 in 1987 when it crashed in Detroit, killing 154 people, including her parents and brother. The plane had hit a light pole on take off
  • George Lamson Jr, from Minnesota, was on a Galaxy Airlines flight that crashed in Reno in 1985, killing 68 people. His entire seat was launched out of the plane
  • Bahia Bakari, then 12, survived when a Yemenia Airways flight crashed near the Comoros in 2009, killing 152. She was found clinging to wreckage after floating in the ocean for 13 hours.
  • Jim Polehinke was the co-pilot and sole survivor of a 2006 Comair flight that crashed in Lexington, Kentucky, killing 49.
The smuggler

Eldarir had arrived at JFK in January 2020 with three suitcases, containing goods he valued at $300, when he was directed to a search area.
Officers found 41 gold artefacts among the bags, including amulets from a funerary set which prepared the deceased for the afterlife.
Also found was a cartouche of a Ptolemaic king on a relief that was originally part of a royal building or temple. 
The largest single group of items found in Eldarir’s cases were 400 shabtis, or figurines.

Khouli conviction

Khouli smuggled items into the US by making false declarations to customs about the country of origin and value of the items.
According to Immigration and Customs Enforcement, he provided “false provenances which stated that [two] Egyptian antiquities were part of a collection assembled by Khouli's father in Israel in the 1960s” when in fact “Khouli acquired the Egyptian antiquities from other dealers”.
He was sentenced to one year of probation, six months of home confinement and 200 hours of community service in 2012 after admitting buying and smuggling Egyptian antiquities, including coffins, funerary boats and limestone figures.

For sale

A number of other items said to come from the collection of Ezeldeen Taha Eldarir are currently or recently for sale.
Their provenance is described in near identical terms as the British Museum shabti: bought from Salahaddin Sirmali, "authenticated and appraised" by Hossen Rashed, then imported to the US in 1948.

- An Egyptian Mummy mask dating from 700BC-30BC, is on offer for £11,807 ($15,275) online by a seller in Mexico

- A coffin lid dating back to 664BC-332BC was offered for sale by a Colorado-based art dealer, with a starting price of $65,000

- A shabti that was on sale through a Chicago-based coin dealer, dating from 1567BC-1085BC, is up for $1,950

Key facilities
  • Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
  • Premier League-standard football pitch
  • 400m Olympic running track
  • NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
  • 600-seat auditorium
  • Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
  • An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
  • Specialist robotics and science laboratories
  • AR and VR-enabled learning centres
  • Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
MATCH INFO

World Cup qualifier

Thailand 2 (Dangda 26', Panya 51')

UAE 1 (Mabkhout 45 2')

BEACH SOCCER WORLD CUP

Group A

Paraguay
Japan
Switzerland
USA

Group B

Uruguay
Mexico
Italy
Tahiti

Group C

Belarus
UAE
Senegal
Russia

Group D

Brazil
Oman
Portugal
Nigeria

SPECS
%3Cp%3EEngine%3A%20Supercharged%203.5-litre%20V6%0D%3Cbr%3EPower%3A%20400hp%0D%3Cbr%3ETorque%3A%20430Nm%0D%3Cbr%3EOn%20sale%3A%20Now%0D%3Cbr%3EPrice%3A%20From%20Dh450%2C000%0D%3Cbr%3E%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
Updated: October 15, 2024, 1:52 PM`