Future Beat | The National

Hello there, Some have increasingly made the argument that in the future, our attention will be one of the most precious commodities. I think that's a fair prediction, especially given how much we're bombarded with information and potential distractions on smartphones, tablets and smartwatches. All that digital bombardment has led to ample speculation that our attention spans, especially those of younger people, are getting shorter. Some have even gone as far as describing the younger content consumers as a “Goldfish Generation”. The label was debated this week in Abu Dhabi at the Global Media Congress. While many said that it was not a fair comment, there was agreement about the sheer volume of content available at our fingertips. Make no mistake, what we do with this content will play an important role in the future. The Big Story In brief | A few of the biggest players in artificial intelligence development recently made their case in the UAE for open-source development of AI and large language models, the backbone of AI. “The message this summit sends is that AI in general is something for everyone, for humanity. It shouldn’t be controlled by a handful of people,” said Hakim Hacid, chief researcher of Technology Innovation Institute's artificial intelligence and digital science research centre, which organised the inaugural open-source AI summit in Abu Dhabi. Proponents of AI models often say the open-source mentality democratises artificial intelligence, whereas closed-source models only allow for those with access to larger computing infrastructures to develop the technology. Why it matters | The debate revolving around open or closed architectures in computer science goes back to the 1970s. Somewhere along the line, especially in the last 10 years, a happy medium formed in that debate where it was accepted that both sides acknowledged the pros and cons of open-source development while also taking note of the upsides to closed ecosystems. Artificial intelligence, however, has reignited the overall debate. Although it's hardly a zero-sum game, currently, at least in terms of altruistic ideas of levelling the AI playing field, the open-source AI development arguments seem to be in the driver's seat. What that means ultimately is that more people will have a say in where AI goes in the months and years ahead. Quoted | “We believe that there are brilliant people out there who have brilliant ideas, and to implement them they need to compute. That’s why the foundation of open-source AI development is so important” – Hakim Hacid , chief researcher of Technology Innovation Institute's artificial intelligence and digital science research centre Global AI vibrancy | Stanford evaluates 36 countries for AI competitiveness Promises and pitfalls | A former US energy secretary explains the hopes and fears of AI in the context of energy production and consumption Scaling agriculture technology | UAE and Bill Gates unveil AI-powered agriculture solutions Antibody solution | First new asthma attack treatment in 50 years could be 'game-changing' Dangerous smog engulfing Indian and Pakistani cities could be tackled by planting more trees, building homes off-site and composting rice straw instead of setting fire to harvested fields, experts have told The National . This is a signal: Environmental concerns often take a back seat to other concerns in our world because they sometimes can be difficult to see at first glance. The increasingly polluted air quality in both India and Pakistan, however, is the exact opposite in that those affected can immediately see and to some extent, taste the environmental problem within seconds. That immediacy is prompting an array of potential solutions that don't necessarily require an international consensus, but rather, individual and stakeholder action. Trees can easily be planted and composting rice straw can easily be implemented without much debate. Expect to see more of these solutions pitched in the months and years ahead as smog continues to cloud the headlines. Saudi Arabia’s 'driverless transport' Riyadh Metro launches first phase How Corgea hopes to leverage AI to redefine cyber security Opinion: Is the grass greener on the BlueSky side? Air taxi company set for 2025 Abu Dhabi launch aims to be 'Uber of the skies ' UAE launches digital KYC platform to boost financial transparency