
Zoom Uses Oracle Cloud Infrastructure to Power its AI-first Work Platform in Saudi Arabia
Zoom Communications, Inc., an AI-first work platform for human connection, is using Oracle Cloud Infrastructure (OCI) to support its next-generation AI assistant, Zoom AI Companion, in Saudi Arabia. OCI is helping Zoom keep customer data in-region and deliver AI-first solutions. This provides users with AI personal assistants that help prioritize their work and deliver context-driven responses to help prepare for, execute, and follow up after meetings.
Zoom AI Companion helps users streamline their workdays by helping with a range of different tasks, including summarizing meetings, chat threads, and phone conversations, drafting chat messages, creating searchable smart recordings, answering meeting questions, and more, within the Zoom Workplace app. To support compliance with Saudi Arabian regulations while maintaining top-tier performance, Zoom optimized its AI models to run on efficient OCI GPU shapes. The launch of AI Companion in Saudi Arabia builds on the successful market entry of Zoom in Saudi Arabia and aligns with Zoom's broader goal of supporting Saudi Arabia's digital transformation as outlined in Vision 2030.
'Saudi Arabia is a key market for Zoom, and we continue to invest in Zoom Workplace and AI Companion to provide solutions that meet the unique needs of businesses here,' said Velchamy Sankarlingam, president of product and engineering, Zoom. 'By optimizing AI Companion to operate efficiently with GPU shapes in a local OCI region, we're enabling Saudi companies to take full advantage of AI without facing constraints.'
'Oracle and Zoom have a longstanding partnership, and we are pleased to be able to help local businesses in Saudi Arabia leverage AI-first solutions like Zoom AI Companion in their daily operations,' said Karan Batta, senior vice president, Oracle Cloud Infrastructure. 'The successful introduction of AI Companion in Saudi Arabia demonstrates how OCI's powerful sovereignty capabilities and AI infrastructure are helping the world's most innovative organizations deploy enhanced AI solutions while meeting regulatory and compliance standards around the globe.'
Zoom selected OCI for its advantages in performance, scalability, reliability, and superior cloud security, which helped Zoom increase its service capacity for concurrent users. Now, OCI is enabling inferencing of Zoom AI Companion in the Oracle Cloud Riyadh Region and the Oracle Cloud Jeddah Region to serve Zoom's customers in Saudi Arabia.
OCI AI infrastructure accelerates AI inferencing
AI innovators like Zoom are leveraging OCI's purpose-built AI capabilities to run the most demanding AI workloads faster and more reliably. OCI bare metal GPU instances can power applications that include natural language processing, computer vision, and recommendation systems. Oracle's dedicated engineering support team works with customers from planning to launch to help ensure success. Compared to other hyperscalers, OCI offers superior technical and economical flexibility including lower pricing, flexible deployments with compute and bare metal, and easier migration of on-premises applications.
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Al Bawaba
2 days ago
- Al Bawaba
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'Through our agentic Virtual Agent and effortless AI agent creation with Zoom AI Studio, we aim to empower businesses with AI that proactively takes action on behalf of customers, making it simpler than ever for businesses to deploy scalable, high-quality support solutions.'Reimagining self-service with agentic AI: Zoom Virtual AgentThe next evolution of Zoom Virtual Agent now embeds agentic AI at its core, allowing it to move beyond answering simple customer questions to deliver real resolutions. It combines natural, fluid, and highly scalable automation with proactive reasoning to autonomously solve complex, end-to-end customer scenarios. Now available across both chat and voice channels, the upgraded Zoom Virtual Agent is built to meet the rising demand for self-service that's fast, accurate, and seamless across channels. 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To learn more about how Zoom Virtual Agent transforms self-service, visit the Zoom insight into action with AI-first supervisor toolsZoom's new analytics and quality management updates give CX leaders the visibility and speed they need to drive meaningful improvements across their contact center operations, enabling simplified workdays for supervisors, expedited contact center agent upskilling, and, ultimately, increased customer Analytics, now available, delivers the next generation of Zoom Contact Center reporting with enhanced data visualization, customizable dashboards, and journey-level insights across both Zoom Phone and Zoom Contact Center. Designed to align with widely accepted industry benchmarks, CX Analytics helps teams assess operational efficiency, agent engagement, and service quality across the Zoom Contact Center platform. 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Jordan News
05-06-2025
- Jordan News
Farewell to the Chinese Ambassador and Prospects for Jordanian-Chinese Partnership - Jordan News
Before Ambassador Chen Chuandong finished his speech in the celebration hall in central Amman, his tears preceded his words, transforming the farewell stage into a humane space pulsating with intimacy. The man spent four and a half years in the Kingdom, during which he led a path of cooperation that took the form of a growing strategic partnership, and the Chinese and Arab civilizations embodied a model of understanding based on mutual respect and mutual benefit. The following article traces the most important milestones of this period, examining the significance of the farewell moment and the prospects it opens for the next decade. اضافة اعلان First: The Farewell Scene... When Emotion Speaks in Diplomatic Tones At the end of the ceremony, the ambassador's voice trembled as he recalled the names of the Jordanian places that had sheltered him, from the alleys of Jabal Luweibdeh to the balconies of Jerash, suspended in the memory of history. The scene seemed exceptional in a world where emotions are usually controlled by the rhythm of protocol. However, the man chose to express his gratitude with Eastern frankness, not devoid of the warmth of Beijing. Those tears, as one of the attendees commented, "were not shed on the airport asphalt, but on the soil of a second homeland that its owner loved until the last day of his mission." This emotional dimension does not detract from the professional nature of the outcome; it merely confirms that relations between peoples, when formulated sincerely, transcend the language of technical interests to touch the hearts of individuals. Second: Ten Years of Strategic Partnership... A Busy Achievements Calendar A full decade ago, in 2015, Amman and Beijing announced the elevation of their relations to a strategic partnership. Since then, and particularly during Ambassador Chen's tenure, three key themes have been crystallized: Economy and Trade: The volume of trade increased from $360 million in 2020 to $537 million in 2024, with an annual growth rate of nearly 21%. These figures may seem modest compared to larger markets, but they reflect a new structure in the trade basket, with fertilizers, solar panels, and textiles emerging as key components. Most importantly, Chinese companies now own the largest stake in the Arab Potash Company, increasing fertilizer production and contributing to Chinese food security, while providing revenues and job opportunities to the Jordanian treasury. Energy and Green Transformation: Chinese institutions have invested in wind farms in the Tafilah region and photovoltaic projects in several areas, helping Jordan double the contribution of renewable energy to its electricity mix. This cooperation aligns with the Kingdom's Vision 2030 to reduce emissions and ensure security of supply. Belt and Road Initiative: Signing a Memorandum of Understanding and opening the door to the establishment of logistics corridors linking Aqaba to Chinese Red Sea ports, in addition to projects to digitize ports and railways. This is how the Chinese philosophy is translated: seamless trade intersects with Jordan's ambition to become a regional hub linking Asia, Europe, and Africa. Third: Culture and Education... The Bridge That Politics Cannot Destroy The strength of relations between countries is not measured by trade balance indicators alone, but rather by the depth of cultural exchange and human interaction they reflect. The Jerash Festival has become a model for this cultural convergence, hosting Chinese troupes for successive years, presenting performances of traditional music and contemporary dance. The closing evenings of these troupes have become among the most anticipated events in the historic amphitheaters. On the other hand, the "Tea for Harmony" event has transformed from a simple initiative to bring Jordanian and Chinese cultures together in a garden at the University of Jordan, into a well-established annual event that attracts hundreds of families. Visitors learn about Chinese tea-making rituals and their ancient history, while Jordanian participants enjoy maqluba and mansaf dishes, a scene that embodies the true meaning of cultural exchange and the rich diversity between peoples. Language education: Approximately 600 Jordanian students are learning Chinese at Confucius Institutes, while 500 Chinese students are immersed in the beauty of the Arabic language at Jordanian universities. These generations are the true fuel for the sustainability of the relationship. Training programs: Last year alone, 600 Jordanians took short courses in Beijing, Shenzhen, and Suzhou, covering artificial intelligence, urban policy, and heritage management. They return with new ideas and personal friendships. Fourth: Political Harmony and Common Positions At the diplomatic level, observers can almost detect a remarkable harmony between Amman and Beijing on key issues. The Palestinian issue—which tops Jordan's foreign policy agenda—enjoys unwavering Chinese support for a two-state solution. The two countries translated this discourse by sending humanitarian aid to Gaza in late 2023, carried out by a joint airlift. Jordan, for its part, affirms at every forum its commitment to the "One China" principle as a pillar of international stability. Fifth: The Compass of Domestic Development... What Does Jordan Mean to Beijing? Chinese experts describe Jordan as a "laboratory of stability" in a turbulent region. The Kingdom, under the leadership of His Majesty King Abdullah II, has weathered the storms of the "Arab Spring" without institutional collapse and has gradually modernized its political system. From Beijing's perspective, this promising climate of sustainability is an ideal environment for long-term investments, free from the sovereign risks threatening mega-projects in some neighboring countries. The Chinese side also benefits from Jordan's geopolitical location; the Kingdom is a transit gateway to the markets of Iraq and Syria, and linking the port of Aqaba to the Belt and Road Initiative will provide China with an alternative artery to the Suez Canal in emergencies. Sixth: Challenges and Opportunities in the Next Five Years Diversifying Partnerships: Despite China's momentum, Jordan is keen not to limit its economic options to a single entity. The balance between East and West will remain the motto of the next phase, requiring Beijing to offer more competitive offers while respecting the unique characteristics of the Jordanian market. Deepening Local Manufacturing: The current model focuses on importing Chinese components and assembling them in Jordan. Jordanian decision-makers aspire to transfer deeper technologies, enabling the establishment of real industries that attract Jordanian engineers. Soft diplomacy and deepening success narratives: Jordanian citizens see the Chinese presence as an added value to their daily lives, not just numbers in the news. Here, cultural grant programs and popular media play a pivotal role. Seventh: Chen's Tears... A Farewell Message or a Promise of a Reunion? When the ambassador was asked after his speech about the reason for his tears, he responded with a brief statement: "I loved Jordan more than I expected." 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This is a moment for both nations to co-create a development model that fuses innovation with cultural diversity and adapts technology to Jordan's unique context, all while benefiting from China's openness and experience. Though Ambassador Chen is preparing to leave Amman, the legacy he leaves behind—from solar panels glinting in the desert sun to the harmonies of "Zhong Rui" echoing through the Jerash Amphitheater—will endure. It serves as lasting proof that when diplomacy is guided by empathy and vision, it writes more than agreements; it writes relationships. In a world where headlines fade fast, perhaps the most enduring mark of an ambassador is this simple line etched into the history of two nations: 'A friendship was born here.'


Jordan News
27-05-2025
- Jordan News
Mutual Threats Between Trump and Putin: U.S. Considers Sanctions, Russia Warns of Cracking Down on Western Companies
As tensions between Washington and Moscow intensify, former U.S. President Donald Trump is reportedly considering imposing new sanctions on Russia in response to the ongoing war in Ukraine, while Russian President Vladimir Putin has threatened to "choke" remaining Western companies operating in Russia. اضافة اعلان According to The Wall Street Journal, Trump's administration is contemplating sanctions that stop short of targeting Russia's banking sector. Instead, options under review include measures intended to pressure Putin into agreeing to a 30-day ceasefire to revive stalled peace talks. Despite the public tough talk, Trump has left the door open to reversing course. 'He's killing a lot of people. I don't know what's wrong with him—what the hell happened to him?' Trump said of Putin, expressing frustration with the Russian president's stance and the slow pace of negotiations. Trump, who once promised to end the war on his first day in office, is now reportedly considering walking away from peace efforts altogether if his next push doesn't yield results. The consequences of such a move remain unclear, including whether the U.S. would continue military aid to Ukraine. White House spokesperson Caroline Leavitt reaffirmed that Trump remains committed to negotiating peace but is keeping 'all options on the table.' Putin, meanwhile, responded sharply. During a meeting with Russian business leaders, he voiced support for efforts to curtail Western tech firms like Zoom and Microsoft, which now offer only limited services in Russia. 'We need to choke them. I absolutely agree and say this without hesitation,' Putin declared. He criticized Western companies that withdrew following Russia's invasion of Ukraine, accusing them of attempting to strangle the Russian economy despite the favorable conditions Russia had provided for them. 'We didn't expel anyone—they left on their own,' he said, warning that those who departed shouldn't expect a warm welcome if they try to return. Putin also reinforced restrictions that complicate the exit process for Western businesses, often forcing them to sell assets at heavy losses. While some companies have retained buy-back options, others like McDonald's have exited completely. 'Now if they want to come back, should we roll out the red carpet? Of course not,' Putin said. Speculation is rising that some U.S. firms might be exploring reentry amid Trump's efforts to reset relations with Moscow. Kirill Dmitriev, head of Russia's sovereign wealth fund and Putin's economic envoy, claimed in April that several American companies had expressed interest in returning. However, none have made public declarations so far. These mutual threats and maneuvers signal a deepening rift between the two powers, underscoring the volatile mix of diplomacy, economics, and military posturing defining the Ukraine conflict's broader geopolitical impact.