Latest news with #AlBannai
Al Etihad
22-05-2025
- Business
- Al Etihad
UAE unveils most advanced Arabic-language model
22 May 2025 11:00 ABU DHABI (ALETIHAD)The UAE's Technology Innovation Institute (TII), the applied research arm of Abu Dhabi's Advanced Technology Research Council (ATRC), has launched two major artificial intelligence models—Falcon Arabic, the region's most advanced Arabic-language AI model, and Falcon H1, a high-performance, low-footprint model designed for use on everyday devices and in limited-resource by Faisal Al Bannai, Advisor to the UAE President and Secretary General of ATRC, during his keynote at the Make it in the Emirates event, the launches mark a strategic move to consolidate the UAE's leadership in sovereign and accessible AI Arabic is the first Arabic model in the Falcon series and is trained on high-quality native Arabic data, covering both Modern Standard Arabic and regional dialects. Based on the Falcon 3-7B architecture, it is the best-performing Arabic language model available in the Middle East, topping the Open Arabic LLM Leaderboard. Remarkably, it matches or exceeds the performance of models up to ten times its size—proving that smart architecture can outperform raw scale.'We're proud to finally bring Arabic to Falcon,' said Al Bannai. 'And prouder still that the best-performing large language model in the Arab world was built in the UAE.'Falcon H1 introduces a new hybrid architecture that combines the strengths of Transformers and Mamba technologies. With model sizes ranging from 500 million to 34 billion parameters, it is designed for a wide spectrum of real-world applications—from edge devices to large-scale enterprise deployments. The flagship 34B version outperforms equivalent models from Meta's LLaMA and Alibaba's Qwen in both performance and efficiency.'Today, AI leadership is not about scale for the sake of scale. It's about making powerful tools useful, usable, and universal,' Al Bannai said. 'Falcon H1 reflects our commitment to delivering AI that works for everyone—not just the few.'Dr. Najwa Aaraj, CEO of TII, noted: 'We approached Falcon H1 not just as a research milestone but as an engineering challenge. This model is built for real-world utility, especially in settings where resources are limited but ambitions are high.'All Falcon models are open source and available on Hugging Face and under a permissive license promoting ethical AI use. TII says Falcon models have been downloaded more than 55 million times worldwide. They are already being used in real-world applications, including AgriLLM—a tool developed in partnership with the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation to help farmers tackle climate challenges. Falcon H1 supports more than 100 languages thanks to a newly designed multilingual tokenizer, broadening its global usability. It excels in tasks involving mathematics, reasoning, coding, long-context understanding, and multilingual comprehension. Make it in the Emirates Continue full coverage Source: Aletihad - Abu Dhabi
The National
05-05-2025
- Business
- The National
Governments urged to keep up with new tech by focusing on use cases and oversight
Governments are being urged to take a careful approach to new technologies and strike a balance between utility and oversight, a senior UAE official has said. Technology such as artificial intelligence is bringing a "challenging dilemma" to governments that need to keep pace with ethical considerations while trying to maintain an edge in innovation, said Faisal Al Bannai, adviser to the UAE President for Strategic Research and Advanced Technology Affairs. "The issue at the moment is that AI is such an impactful technology, many governments are unable to put the brakes on how fast it's evolving due to the fact that it can impact ... in a very large way," Mr Al Bannai, who is also secretary general of the Advanced Technology Research Council, said at the Governance of Emerging Technologies Summit in Abu Dhabi on Monday. "We want to accelerate all of the experimentation in this space, and yet that must come with ethical considerations. It's a big dilemma at the moment – do you put the brakes ... until you have high assurance [that it will work]?" Mr Al Bannai noted that many countries and technology players are putting checks and balances in place to help decide whether to roll out certain tech-powered services. Overregulation is also "a bit challenging at the moment" because, with the fast pace of technology, reaching out too far may result in unintended outcomes, he added. "It's a very fine line between doing what is possible and at the same time being extremely aggressive in the AI race ... it seems to be extremely hard to put any massive brakes on," Mr Al Bannai said. The growth of ethical innovation is expected to be shaped by the new generation, who are becoming increasingly aware of the role they have to play in the future of society, Dr Sultan Al Neyadi, Minister of State for Youth Affairs, said at Gets. "We stand at the threshold of a new epoch where the governance of technologies such as artificial intelligence and quantum computing holds unprecedented promise, yet the promise of these innovations is only as great as our ability to govern them with wisdom and foresight," Dr Al Neyadi said. The minister said that the new generation, who are increasingly building their own solutions and contributing to societal and economic growth, have strong ideas of fairness, inclusivity and justice, which are "essential to the creation of governance frameworks that are resilient, adaptive and just". The UAE is investing heavily in new technology and is rapidly becoming a vital player in the global AI space. In addition to numerous programmes rolled out by the government to support innovators in the Emirates, the government has also increasingly committed to overseas co-operation, such as November's introduction of an international policy on AI to help prevent the misuse of the technology. "Today we should not be silent watchers or observers in what is going on in the arena of technology – we have to be active participants," said Dr Hamad Al Shamsi, the UAE's attorney general. "We have to lead technology, not be led by technology. We should not refuse development, but we have to seek for fair technological use [for all]."
Tahawul Tech
26-03-2025
- Business
- Tahawul Tech
Global policy makers, tech giants to convene in Abu Dhabi for inaugural summit on Governance of Emerging Technologies
Shaping Responsible Governance of AI and Emerging Technologies in a Future Digital Economy Dubai — The Advanced Technology Research Council (ATRC) today announced the inaugural Governance of Emerging Technologies Summit (GETS), set to take place at the St. Regis Saadiyat Island Resort in Abu Dhabi on 5–6 May 2025. The summit will convene over 500 regional and international attendees to drive global collaboration on the governance of emerging technologies such as artificial intelligence (AI) and quantum computing. Organised under the theme 'Shaping Responsible Governance of AI and Emerging Technologies in a Future Digital Economy', the summit seeks to establish robust frameworks for tech governance and encourage inclusive dialogue among diverse stakeholders. It will focus on justice as well as key sectors including finance, manufacturing, healthcare, education, and creative industries. Hosted by ATRC with the UAE Public Prosecution as a strategic partner, GETS 2025 lays the foundation for global governance strategies and the future of emerging technologies in key sectors such as criminal justice, healthcare, finance, and creative industries. GETS 2025 is a landmark initiative that underscores the United Arab Emirates' commitment to shaping the global dialogue on ethical innovation and the responsible use of emerging technologies, and reflects the country's open and collaborative approach to innovation policy. The summit will convene a diverse array of leaders across sectors. Attendees will include government and policy leaders, global tech and industry executives, researchers and academics, startups, and society representatives, with a strong emphasis on youth leadership. The summit aims to address one of today's most pressing challenges — shaping responsible innovation that safeguards society while advancing technological progress. It will foster dialogue on responsible innovation with global tech leaders and shape a future where governance, innovation, and inclusivity converge to create sustainable and forward-thinking solutions. Faisal Al Bannai, Advisor to the President of the UAE for Strategic Research and Advanced Technology Affairs and Secretary General of The Advanced Technology Research Council (ATRC), emphasized the importance of collaboration. 'GETS is a pivotal step toward building a safer, more just, and inclusive future for emerging technologies. As we navigate the challenges of AI and other disruptive innovations, the need for collaborative governance becomes increasingly clear. This platform is an opportunity to create shared principles that will shape the future of technology for the benefit of all,' said Al Bannai. Echoing this sentiment and highlighting the critical role of legal expertise in shaping the future of tech governance, Chancellor Dr. Hamad Saif Al Shamsi, UAE Attorney-General, said: 'We are witnessing an accelerating technological revolution. Emerging technologies such as AI, Web3, and quantum computing offer unprecedented opportunities for progress and prosperity. Alongside these, lies a critical need to establish strong governance foundations that ensure a safe, just, and sustainable society.' Al Shamsi emphasized that GETS 2025 is a leading global platform to exchange knowledge and set standards for responsible innovation. 'The UAE Public Prosecution is committed to ensuring that technological advancement serves humanity and fosters a future that is safer, fairer, and more inclusive. This mission demands continuous global cooperation and support,' he concluded.
