AI News

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19 Jul 20265 Safar 1448 AH

AI now features in 1 in 30 new Gulf jobs

Data from GulfTalent indicates that AI-related skills now account for 3.4% of all professional vacancies in the UAE, Saudi Arabia, and Qatar, up from 1.2% four years ago. The tech sector leads AI recruitment, with approximately 31.6% of vacancies involving AI, followed by banking and audit. While the Gulf surpasses the US and UK, it still trails behind Singapore. The data suggests a significant rise in AI requirements for senior leadership roles, while sectors like construction and hospitality show minimal adoption of AI skills, indicating a slow transition in these areas.

Infrastructure

19 Jul 20265 Safar 1448 AH

China team cuts 3D optical chip production time from hours to seconds

Artificial intelligence has led to unprecedented demand for computing, positioning photonic chips at the forefront of the race for next-generation AI hardware. Photonic technologies are viewed as a solution to overcome bandwidth and power limitations, yet translating this potential into mass-producible hardware often faces manufacturing challenges. A Chinese research team claims to have overcome one of the major bottlenecks in this field, potentially paving the way for advancements in future AI hardware development.

Models

18 Jul 20264 Safar 1448 AH

Study Reveals AI Patents Outperform Non-AI Innovations

A recent study revealed that innovations involving artificial intelligence are valued 9.6% higher than non-AI ideas. Conducted by Suraj Srinivasan from Harvard Business School, the research team analyzed 1.8 million patents from 2001 to 2023. The findings highlight the growing importance of AI in driving innovation. The study found that AI patents have an initial raw value of $16.7 million, compared to $11.3 million for non-AI patents. Notably, 31% of AI patents are classified as breakthrough ideas, indicating their potential for significant innovation. This underscores the competitive edge AI technologies provide.

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Rising Energy Consumption of Data Centers Amid AI Growth

How can data centers enhance their energy efficiency amid rising consumption?

Models

Launch of Kimi Kai 3 AI Model Raises Concerns in the US

18 Jul 20264 Safar 1448 AH

Models

18 Jul 20264 Safar 1448 AH

Launch of Kimi Kai 3 AI Model Raises Concerns in the US

The Chinese startup Monshot AI launched its AI model Kimi Kai 3 on Friday, garnering significant admiration for its capabilities, which are comparable to advanced US systems. The new model boasts 2.8 trillion parameters, nearly double that of Deep Seek's model released in April. Since the launch of Deep Seek's tool in December 2024, Chinese AI companies have been reshaping the sector with open-source models available for free, challenging the economic foundations set by major Western firms. Kimi Kai 3's performance positions it close to advanced models like Anthropic's Fable 5 and OpenAI's GPT 5.6 Sol.

Business

Alibaba targets Nvidia’s dominant software ecosystem with open-source AI stack

18 Jul 20264 Safar 1448 AH

Business

18 Jul 20264 Safar 1448 AH

Alibaba targets Nvidia’s dominant software ecosystem with open-source AI stack

Alibaba's chip design unit, T-Head, has announced the open-sourcing of its proprietary software stack, aiming to enhance developer operations and challenge Nvidia's dominance. This announcement was made at the World AI Conference in Shanghai, where T-Head revealed that it would make the full technical stack of SAIL available to the public. SAIL serves as the foundational software architecture for T-Head's Zhenwu series of AI chips, facilitating developers in building new applications. This move comes as competition intensifies in the chip market, with T-Head seeking to provide a strong alternative to Nvidia's CUDA ecosystem.

$Open-weight models now match frontier cyber performance from just four months ago at a fraction of the cost$

Governance

Open-weight models now match frontier cyber performance from just four months ago at a fraction of the cost

18 Jul 20264 Safar 1448 AH

$Open-weight models now match frontier cyber performance from just four months ago at a fraction of the cost$

Governance

18 Jul 20264 Safar 1448 AH

Open-weight models now match frontier cyber performance from just four months ago at a fraction of the cost

The British AI Security Institute warns that open-weight models like GLM-5.2 and DeepSeek V4-Pro now lag behind closed frontier models in cyber capabilities by four to seven months. At the start of 2025, the gap was still between six to ten months, indicating a decline in the performance of open models. The study also found that safety measures on open models are largely ineffective, leaving defenders with less time to prepare. This suggests that companies and stakeholders need to reassess their strategies against cyber threats, as the timing gap in performance could negatively impact cybersecurity in the near future.

Agents

Tencent WorkBuddy APP Launches on HarmonyOS, iOS, and Android Simultaneously: Cross-Platform AI Work Agent Goes Mobile

18 Jul 20264 Safar 1448 AH

Agents

18 Jul 20264 Safar 1448 AH

Tencent WorkBuddy APP Launches on HarmonyOS, iOS, and Android Simultaneously: Cross-Platform AI Work Agent Goes Mobile

Tencent has officially launched the WorkBuddy app on iOS, Android, and HarmonyOS, marking it as the first native AI agent application on Huawei's HarmonyOS ecosystem. The app brings desktop WorkBuddy capabilities to mobile, supporting direct connections to local computers or independent cloud operation. Its dual-mode architecture allows users full access to desktop features in computer-connected mode, enhancing productivity.

Arab AI Scene

This week’s top stories — July 12–18

18 Jul 20264 Safar 1448 AH

Arab AI Scene

18 Jul 20264 Safar 1448 AH

This week’s top stories — July 12–18

HUMAIN has announced plans to build a national AI orchestration platform aimed at bridging infrastructure gaps and reducing AI inference costs across the Kingdom. This initiative comes alongside several developments in Saudi Arabia, including SDAIA's launch of a National AI Risk Framework and the Ministry of Economy's introduction of an AI-powered national economic data platform. Additionally, the startup Think secured the region's largest AI infrastructure pre-seed funding round, while the Ministry of Culture signed a partnership with SDAIA to enhance AI usage across sixteen cultural sectors.

Arab AI Scene

HBKU to host landmark conference on AI Ethics

18 Jul 20264 Safar 1448 AH

Arab AI Scene

18 Jul 20264 Safar 1448 AH

HBKU to host landmark conference on AI Ethics

Hamad Bin Khalifa University will host a conference addressing the global ethical implications of AI technologies on September 28-29, 2025, at the Qatar National Convention Centre. The event, titled _AI Ethics: The Convergence of Technology and Diverse Moral Traditions_, will gather academics, policymakers, and tech experts to discuss how AI can ethically serve humanity while considering cultural values.