Can AI really serve the public good?/node/2619236/business-economy
Can AI really serve the public good?
1 / 3
2 / 3
3 / 3
Short Url
https://arab.news/yn6eu
Updated 30 sec ago
KHALED AL-KHAWALDEH
Can AI really serve the public good?
Ethical human use of AI is vital, says CISCO’s Guy Diedrich
Welcomes tight regulations but warns of stifling innovation
Updated 30 sec ago
KHALED AL-KHAWALDEH
DUBAI: As artificial intelligence reshapes economies and societies at unprecedented speed, global technology leaders meeting at the GITEX Global conference have been debating the rapid acceleration of AI disruption.
One of the more poignant conversations on Wednesday this week tackled whether innovation can truly serve the public good, in a session titled “Digital Futures: Global Impact at the Speed of Innovation.”
Guy Diedrich, senior vice president and global innovation officer at Cisco’s Digital Impact Office, argued that the future of AI and emerging technologies depends as much on trust, ethics, and human capital as on algorithms and investment.
He was speaking to Australian journalist and CNBC Anchor Amanda Drury during a live session at the conference.
“Creative Destruction is when you come up with a new innovation, when AI is released, when quantum comes and all of a sudden everything before it gets churned out,” Diedrich said.
“It goes away because you have to make room for that new innovation, for that new economic growth, for that new opportunity.”
He warned that progress will stall if societies fail to invest in people, arguing that there was a symbiotic relationship between social good and capital gains.
“You’re never going to get the full value of that innovation unless you have developed your population, unless they have that intellectual capital in place,” he said. “The two have to go side by side.”
Central to that balance is trust as the true “engine” that drives the digital economy, he said.
Without it, he argued there could be no movement as people would begin opting out — choosing not to share data which would be detrimental to the evolution of AI.
Several high-profile cases, such as a Samsung data leak via ChatGPT in 2023 have created doubt over whether AI can be trusted with sensitive information.
Many have called on governments to place heavier regulations on tech companies, which Diedrich welcomed but cautioned that it could result in hindering innovation.
Future Investment Initiative Foundation and Guggenheim Investments announce strategic partnership ahead of FII9
Updated 5 sec ago
Arab News
RIYADH: The Future Investment Initiative Foundation has announced a strategic partnership with Guggenheim Investments, a global asset management and investment advisory firm.
This partnership builds on the firm's role as Summit Partner for the third Priority Summit in Miami in February, and reflects a deepening collaboration to support the Foundation's mission of “Impacting Humanity,” according to the Saudi Press Agency.
Richard Attias, chairman of the executive committee and CEO-in-Chief, FII, said: “Partnerships with leading firms like Guggenheim Investments enhance our ability to solve our most critical challenges. Their focus on long-term value creation and innovation aligns directly with our mission, and we are delighted to welcome them as a strategic partner as we prepare for the Future Investment Initiative conference.”
Dina DeLorenzo, president of Guggenheim Investments, said: “Our goal is to provide long-term investment strategies that help build lasting value for communities and clients alike.
“The Future Investment Initiative Foundation’s vision of ‘Impacting Humanity’ reflects our commitment to stewardship and sustainable progress, and we look forward to contributing our perspectives and insights to this important global platform.”
Dalal Al-Matrudi: Young Saudi innovator using science to ease pain and inspire change
This combination of compassion and technology earned Al-Matrudi’s team multiple global awards this year
Updated 17 October 2025
Waad Hussain
Alkhobar: For Dalal Al-Matrudi, innovation began not in a lab but at home, watching a loved one battle multiple sclerosis. What started as empathy soon turned into invention, leading her and her team to develop a smart medical device that is now winning awards on international stages.
“Our innovation is a smart medical device designed to assist patients with multiple sclerosis by providing localized muscle massage controlled through a mobile application,” said Al-Matrudi. “It helps relieve pain, reduce muscle stiffness and improve patients’ comfort and daily mobility.”
The device also connects patients directly with their doctors for real-time monitoring. “In emergency situations, it can instantly alert healthcare providers to ensure the patient receives immediate assistance,” she said.
This combination of compassion and technology earned Al-Matrudi’s team multiple global awards this year, including the Gold Medal with Jury’s Honor, the GCC Patent Office Award, and the Grand Prize at the International Invention Fair of the Middle East, or IIFME, hosted by the Kuwait Science Club. The invention was also recognized at the Geneva International Exhibition of Inventions, one of the most prestigious global platforms for innovation.
For Al-Matrudi, 21, who hails from Riyadh, the project was deeply personal. “Our inspiration came from personal experience — one of my family members suffers from multiple sclerosis, and seeing their daily struggle with pain and mobility challenges deeply affected me,” she said.
Together with her teammates, she transformed that emotional drive into a purpose-driven invention. “We wanted to create something practical and compassionate that could truly improve patients’ lives,” she said.
Under the mentorship of Prof. Dr. Kholoud Al-Muqrin, a distinguished professor of nuclear physics known for empowering young Saudi innovators, the team refined their prototype into an award-winning solution. “Her continuous guidance and scientific insight played a vital role in shaping our project and transforming our idea into a tangible, award-winning innovation,” Al-Matrudi said.
She believes the foundation of every great innovation is care. “We believed that technology should serve humanity, and that small ideas born from care can evolve into meaningful advancements that bring relief and hope to many,” she added.
Months of research, design and testing culminated in an unforgettable moment at IIFME 2025.
“The most emotional moment was standing on stage when our team’s name, Team May, was announced as the Grand Prize Winner,” she said. “I remember holding my teammates’ hands tightly, feeling both disbelief and overwhelming pride.”
For Al-Matrudi, the victory symbolized much more than recognition. “It wasn’t just about the prize — it was about realizing that months of dedication, late nights and countless trials were finally worth it,” she said.
She recalls how their mentor’s tears turned the win into a collective triumph. “I could see tears in everyone’s eyes, especially our supervisor’s, which made it even more special,” she said. “That moment reminded me that passion and persistence can turn ideas into achievements that reach beyond borders.”
Although the invention is not directly tied to her academic major, medical physics, Al-Matrudi says her background gave her the edge she needed to design effectively.
“Studying medical physics enhanced my scientific thinking and deepened my knowledge of how the human body interacts with medical devices,” she said. “This understanding helped me design a solution that is both safe and effective.”
She believes the key to meaningful innovation lies in combining technical knowledge with emotional intelligence. “Gaining international recognition encouraged me to continue combining my medical knowledge with creative thinking to develop innovations that make healthcare more compassionate, practical and accessible for all,” she said.
Al-Matrudi’s story reflects a growing wave of young Saudi women who are redefining the global image of innovation.
“I hope my journey shows Saudi women that ambition and creativity have no limits,” she said. “Science and innovation are not exclusive fields — they welcome curiosity, persistence and passion.”
Her experience also underscores how inclusion fuels progress. “When women step into these spaces, they bring empathy and fresh perspectives that drive real progress,” she said.
Her message is simple but powerful: “I want every Saudi girl with a dream to believe that she can represent her country globally, no matter her field. Our achievements are proof that with teamwork, guidance and confidence, Saudi women can lead the way in shaping the future of science and technology.”
Today, Al-Matrudi stands as one of the brightest examples of how Saudi youth are translating Vision 2030’s goals into real-world impact. Through her invention, she’s proving that innovation is not just about devices, it’s about dignity, hope and humanity.
As she proudly waved the Saudi flag on stage in Kuwait, surrounded by fellow inventors and mentors, Al-Matrudi’s message was clear: Saudi women are not just participating in the global innovation movement, they’re leading it.
Middle East VC defies global slowdown with record $2.77bn raised in first 9 months of 2025
Updated 17 October 2025
Nour El-Shaeri
RIYADH: Venture capital funding in the Middle East surged to a record $2.77 billion in the first nine months of 2025, defying a global downturn, according to MAGNiTT.
Funding jumped 152 percent year on year, with the number of deals rising 10 percent to 388, highlighting the region’s growing appeal to global investors even as capital flows into Southeast Asia, Africa, and Pakistan weakened.
The surge reflects broader trends in the Middle East venture capital ecosystem, where early-stage and non-mega funding showed robust growth despite global headwinds.
In the third quarter alone, capital surged to $1.2 billion — its highest quarterly total on record — propelled by three mega rounds: XPANCEO’s $250 million series A and Airalo’s $220 million series C in the UAE, and Hala’s $157 million Series B in .
Philip Bahoshy, CEO of MAGNiTT, said: “The first nine months of 2025 marked the recovery of the MENA venture capital ecosystem. Not only did the region cross $3 billion in funding by September, but it also outperformed Southeast Asia for the first time for the first nine months of the year.”
He added: “The strength of Series A and B pipelines, combined with sovereign-backed support and global investor interest, reinforces MENA’s position as one of the fastest-maturing ecosystems in emerging markets.”
XPANCEO founders Valentyn Volkov and Roman Axelrod. File/Supplied
Within the MENA region, the Gulf states led the gains. The UAE attracted $1.43 billion in the first nine months of 2025, up 188 percent year on year, with strength across both mega rounds with $653 million and non-mega with $775 million.
followed at $1.29 billion, up 158 percent year on year, underpinned by $571 million in mega deals and a near-doubling of non-mega funding to $719 million.
Deal momentum also broadened: recorded 173 transactions, a 38 percent yearly increase, while the UAE posted 164, a 5 percent rise, with both ecosystems expanding at the early stage. Egypt, by contrast, saw funding contract 37 percent year on year.
Sector trends across MENA were led by fintech and enterprise software. Fintech funding in the Middle East climbed to $880 million, up 248 percent year on year, supported by scale rounds such as Tabby’s Series E and Hala’s Series B.
Enterprise software accelerated to $320 million across 52 deals, including a $183 million mega round by Cadena, while non-mega activity doubled year on year.
Elsewhere in MENA and across Africa, signals were mixed. Africa’s nine-month funding rose 8 percent to $839 million even as deal count fell 14 percent to 228, with pre-seed activity weakening and seed/series A value inching higher.
Mergers and acquisitions activity continued to consolidate across the region, with the Middle East leading nine months of dealmaking with 26 transactions and Egypt posting 13 acquisitions, up from three a year earlier.
Outside MENA, Southeast Asia endured the sharpest pullback. Funding dropped 48 percent year on year to $2.5 billion across 319 deals in the nine-month period of 2025.
The third quarter was the weakest quarter in over seven years, with $541 million across 80 deals and no mega rounds; the share of capital from international investors also fell markedly from the second quarter.
Pakistan and Turkiye proved comparatively resilient in value terms, amassing $450 million in nine months, up 40 percent yearly, despite a 32 percent drop in deals to 121.
Across all EVMs, venture funding reached $6.56 billion in nine months, down 6 percent year on year, with total deals sliding 18 percent to 1,056. The decline was concentrated in mega rounds with a 19 percent yearly drop, while non-mega funding was broadly flat.
International investors drove a larger share of venture capital flows into the Middle East in the third quarter, supplying 59 percent of total funding and 64 percent of all $20 million-plus rounds.
Founded in 2018 by Esam Al-Nahdi and Maher Loubieh, HALA offers SME banking and freelancer solutions. File
In , non-Saudi investors accounted for a record 55 percent of active backers, with the number of unique investors up 44 percent year on year.
Despite the dominance of large deals, non-mega funding in the region rose 14 percent quarter on quarter and 71 percent year on year, signaling broader momentum.
Across the EVMs, early-stage activity hit its lowest level since 2016, though the Middle East again bucked the trend, with pre-seed and seed rounds up 17 percent year on year— led by record deal counts in and the UAE.
Series dynamics also shifted. Series A totals were inflated by XPANCEO’s $250 million round; excluding it, Series A funding fell 17 percent year on year, while Series B rose to $1.34 billion on stronger non-mega activity.
Africa’s mid-stage gap widened, with Series A and B funding down 81 percent quarter on quarter to $39 million.
Turkiye, Vietnam, and South Africa all recorded sharp gains from smaller bases, while Singapore, Egypt, Indonesia, and Kenya posted declines.
M&A softened to 72 deals in the first nine months — down from 78 a year earlier — with the third quarter marking the lowest quarterly total in more than five years.
A new translation tool aims to make the country’s multilingual legal system more accessible and inclusive
Updated 17 October 2025
KHALED AL-KHAWALDEH
DUBAI: The UAE’s Federal Public Prosecution has launched a new artificial intelligence-powered translation service aimed at improving accessibility and inclusivity for non-Arabic speakers.
Speaking at GITEX Dubai this week, Khalifa Ibrahim Al Hammadi public prosecution member in the public procsecution of uae told Arab News the country hoped to become a world leader in integrating AI into the legal system. He cited the Bayan translation service, launched at the event in conjunction with Emirati AI company, Presight.
“It is designed to support investigations and trials by offering seamless two-way voice and text translation, with dialect recognition — including the Emirati dialect,” said Hammadi.
The UAE’s courts are often difficult to navigate for the country’s enormous expat population, which includes over 200 nationalities. Arabic is the official language of the UAE’s legal system, while English is common in business and commercial contracts, and translations are needed. In disputes, UAE courts give precedence to the Arabic version of any contract.
The public prosecution office hopes the new AI service will make the process much easier.
“The platform features speech-to-text and text-to-speech capabilities, extracts text from documents and images, and includes a multilingual legal dictionary,” Hammadi said.
“It also comes with an intelligent governance dashboard for auditing and quality assurance. Ultimately, it enhances translation accuracy, speeds up legal procedures, and strengthens the overall efficiency of our judicial system."
AI is being used in legal systems globally to speed up case processing, help in legal research, and improve access to justice. China has seen the rise of virtual smart courts while tools for contract analysis have rapidly gained popularity in the US.
The UAE is hoping to become a leader in the field, launching its own internal legal chatbot and undergoing a mass legal filing digitization campaign.
Some challenges remain with using AI in legal proceedings, particularly due to risks of bias, lack of transparency, data privacy concerns and unclear accountability when errors occur. However, Hammadi says he is confident the UAE’s systems will adapt and evolve.
From fraud to foresight: How AI is redefining forensics in
Proactive risk management is replacing reactive crisis response in Kingdom’s corporate culture
Updated 17 October 2025
Waad Hussain
ALKHOBAR: As ’s Vision 2030 accelerates, the Kingdom’s rapid transformation is exposing organizations to new layers of forensic risk — from AI-driven cyberattacks to complex compliance demands.
Regional data shows that while opportunities are booming, vulnerabilities are growing just as fast.
’s decade of transformation is compressing decades of progress into a few short years, creating both immense opportunity and unprecedented forensic challenges.
AI is transforming the forensic landscape, helping investigators detect fraud, cyberattacks, and compliance risks faster and with greater precision across ’s digital economy. (StockCake)
According to PwC’s Capital Projects and Infrastructure Survey 2025 (Middle East), 63 percent of executives in the region reported cost overruns or delays linked to governance and procurement weaknesses, highlighting the difficulty of managing megaprojects at scale.
Meanwhile, the Global Economic Crime Survey 2024 found that 46 percent of organizations globally experienced fraud, corruption, or economic crime within the past two years — a figure that mirrors rising regional trends.
“The forensic landscape in the Middle East is evolving at a formidable pace,” said Rana Shasha’a, PwC Middle East forensic leader. “The sheer scale of investment in megaprojects and infrastructure programs brings exposure to procurement fraud, conflicts of interest, and delivery risks.”
Rana Shasha’a, PwC Middle East Forensic Leader, says the region’s shift toward AI-powered forensics marks a cultural and strategic turning point in how organizations manage risk and build trust. (linked.in)
Artificial intelligence has transformed both business operations and criminal tactics. PwC’s Global Digital Trust Insights: Middle East 2025 shows that 70 percent of Middle East executives believe GenAI has already increased their cyber risk exposure, compared to 55 percent globally.
“AI is augmenting business capabilities at an incredible pace, but the same technology is being weaponized by cybercriminals,” Shasha’a said. “We’re now seeing scalable, hyper-personalized attacks — from GenAI-powered phishing to identity theft and disinformation campaigns.”
Recent high-profile attacks across the region have demonstrated that cybercrime can ripple through entire supply chains, inflicting reputational and financial damage far beyond the initial breach. Forensic investigators, she explained, are now required to navigate AI-enabled crimes that demand new technical depth and speed.
Opinion
This section contains relevant reference points, placed in (Opinion field)
With billions invested in Vision 2030 projects — from giga-developments to fintech expansion — Saudi regulators are tightening oversight.
“Nazaha is driving a national anti-fraud strategy, SAMA is raising standards on financial fraud and cyber controls, the CMA is pushing for stronger governance and disclosure, and the new data protection law is reshaping how evidence and personal data are handled,” said Shasha’a.
These measures signal that compliance is no longer a tick-box exercise. PwC’s Global Compliance Survey 2025 found that 85 percent of executives say compliance requirements have become more complex in the past three years, and 82 percent plan to invest more in technology to automate compliance.
For organizations, this means embedding forensic readiness into operations — from procurement checks to contract oversight — to detect and mitigate risks before they escalate.
Stronger governance frameworks, new data laws, and national anti-fraud strategies are reshaping how Saudi regulators and organizations safeguard integrity in the AI era. (lawdit.co.uk)
Not all sectors face the same threats. Shasha’a noted that financial services and fintech remain prime targets for cyberattacks, while energy and infrastructure projects carry high procurement and contractor-related risks.
“Family businesses, which are central to Middle Eastern economies, often have less formal governance structures and greater reliance on related-party transactions, leaving them exposed if transparency is lacking,” she said.
Beyond industry boundaries, reputational risk remains constant. “A single breach or fraud can quickly become a crisis of trust,” she warned.
As technology reshapes the threat landscape, it is also revolutionizing how forensic experts respond. Forensic teams across the region now rely on AI-driven anomaly detection to sift through millions of records in hours rather than weeks — a leap that has already exposed previously undetectable fraud schemes.
“AI can connect far more data points than any human team,” Shasha’a explained. “It’s enabling faster action, sharper prevention, and more resilient risk management.”
DID YOU KNOW?
• AI can analyze millions of records in hours, uncovering fraud schemes previously undetectable.
• Family businesses remain particularly vulnerable due to less formal governance and related-party transactions.
• Forensics is now embedded in governance, shifting from reactive response to proactive risk management.
In cybercrime cases, AI-driven malware analysis and GenAI-powered forensic chatbots are accelerating investigations while uncovering deeper patterns of misconduct. The result is not just faster response times but a proactive model in which digital forensics becomes integral to governance.
The region’s approach to forensics is shifting fundamentally. What was once a reactive field — stepping in after a crisis — is now a core pillar of corporate resilience.
“The role of forensics has expanded beyond crisis response,” Shasha’a said. “Organizations are embedding forensic thinking into governance, using continuous monitoring, anomaly detection, and tighter controls.”
Financial services and fintech firms face growing exposure to AI-enabled fraud and cyber threats, driving demand for advanced forensic tools and real-time risk detection. (netscribes.com)
This evolution is cultural as much as technical. Leadership teams increasingly view prevention as cheaper and more strategic than remediation, and regulators reinforce this mindset through stricter disclosure and cyber-resilience requirements.
Across the region, the forensic transformation is not just about compliance — it’s about trust.
“The future of forensics in the Middle East will be defined by scale, sophistication, and integration,” Shasha’a concluded.
“Forensics will no longer be a separate response function; it will be built into governance, compliance, and transformation programs as a frontline defense.”
As and its neighbors continue to digitize at record speed, the ability to anticipate and neutralize risks will determine which organizations thrive and which fall behind.
