Artificial intelligence could soon be used to tailor UAE government employees’ working hours to their own personal productivity.
The initiative, which is being studied by the Federal Authority for Government Human Resources, is one of a host of practical applications for AI in everyday life.
On Tuesday, 41 business leaders who took a three-month course at Mohamed bin Zayed University for Artificial Intelligence celebrated their graduation.
They were brimming with ideas of how to transform their places of work.
It is an general artificial intelligence crash course for all topics.
Eric Xing,
MBZUAI President
Shayma Al Awadhi is director of human resources at the management system Bayanati at the Federal Authority for Government Human Resources.
She said she will use the skills gleaned on the course for a project of hers that measures employees’ productivity.
“One of the main projects that I’m currently working on is an application called Motamaken, which basically is a productivity calculation platform that uses artificial intelligence to analyse your work trends,” Ms Al Awadhi said.
“So, for example, you could be more productive after working hours, or you could be more productive during working hours, and what affects your productivity,” she said.
The course aimed to support UAE government and business sectors. Participants were required to complete 12 rigorous weeks of coursework, lectures and collaborative project work.
Dr Jamal Al Kaabi, undersecretary at the Department of Health in Abu Dhabi, joined the programme after the Covid-19 pandemic made him realise the potential of artificial intelligence.
He believes wearable technology and AI could be crucial in providing home services and follow-up care for the elderly.
“We came across one important project, which was to utilise artificial intelligence to help us read X-rays for the patient because most of the physicians were busy during Covid-19,” Dr Al Kaabi said.
“I’m a physician by education but I want to add knowledge as an undersecretary of the Department of Health.
“I want to understand how I can use AI in the future, not only for diagnosis but also for treatment.”
Dr Al Kaabi said remote follow-up could become widespread, with sensors used to feed data back to care services.
“For example, having sensors on the legs of the elderly that can predict falls,” he said.
The group are the first to graduate from this “executive programme”, which was delivered at weekends by MBZUAI instructors and international counterparts from Harvard University, the University of Oxford, MIT, Carnegie Mellon University and the University of California, Berkeley, among other prestigious institutions.
It also featured visits to Abu Dhabi National Oil Company; Emirates Post; G42; DIFC FinTech Hive; the Federal Competitiveness and Statistics Centre; and Al Ain Zoo. Site visits were geared to demonstrate ways in which AI has been used in each organisation.
“Right now, it is a general artificial intelligence crash course for all topics,” said Dr Eric Xing, president of MBZUAI.
“But if we have a large demand at the same time from the healthcare sector or from the national security sector, then there will be a reprogramming. That’s something we are experimenting with.”
Dr Sultan Al Jaber, Minister of Industry and Advanced Technology and chairman of the Board of Trustees of MBZUAI, said the programme demonstrates the UAE’s commitment to building a community of future innovators and leaders.
“The skills and knowledge they have gained will enable them to incorporate innovative AI solutions within their organisations, enhancing their performance and competitiveness,” said Dr Al Jaber.
“Integrating AI applications throughout organisations in the public and private sectors is an important step to achieving the vision of our nation’s leadership, as outlined in the UAE National Strategy for Artificial Intelligence 2031.”
MBZUAI was established in 2019. Its aim is to attract students from around the world to study AI and support the UAE’s diversification.
Admissions for the executive programme’s autumn intake are open. More information can be found at www.mbzuai.ac.ae.
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HIV on the rise in the region
A 2019 United Nations special analysis on Aids reveals 37 per cent of new HIV infections in the Mena region are from people injecting drugs.
New HIV infections have also risen by 29 per cent in western Europe and Asia, and by 7 per cent in Latin America, but declined elsewhere.
Egypt has shown the highest increase in recorded cases of HIV since 2010, up by 196 per cent.
Access to HIV testing, treatment and care in the region is well below the global average.
Few statistics have been published on the number of cases in the UAE, although a UNAIDS report said 1.5 per cent of the prison population has the virus.
Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.
Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.
“Within the next two to three years, we are looking at reaching $2 to $3 billion as a conservative estimate and we do see an opportunity to do so,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.
“We have buying power. We can negotiate on their (client’s) behalf with asset managers to provide them lower fees than they otherwise would have to get on their own,” he added.
Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.
From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.
Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.
BCG is forecasting MEA wealth will rise to $12tn by 2021, growing at an annual average of 8 per cent.
Drivers of wealth generation in the region will be split evenly between new wealth creation and growth of performance of existing assets, according to BCG.
Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.
“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.
“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.
“In this environment, we have seen a de facto increase in the risk that clients are taking in things like illiquid investments, private equity investments, infrastructure and private debt, those kind of investments were higher illiquidity results in incrementally higher returns.”
The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”
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UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
