INTELLIGENT TECHNOLOGY

INNOVATION

Unveiled during a roundtable on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly in New York, attended by senior government representatives from Kuwait, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, the framework includes plans to invest more than US $ 10 billion in capital and operating expenditure across the region between now and 2030.

“ Microsoft’ s economic ties to the Middle East run deep, and our commitment to the region has always been, and will remain, steadfast. As AI reshapes economies around the world, the Middle East has an important opportunity to lead. Our responsibility is not only to invest in the technology that enables that progress, but to help provide the digital resilience, security and continuity it depends on. This new framework reflects that responsibility and our determination to help the region translate AI ambition into enduring economic and societal benefit,” said Brad Smith, Vice Chair and President, Microsoft. visions advance, strengthening digital resilience, maintaining business continuity and creating lasting opportunity across the region.”

The framework reflects Microsoft ' s focus on enabling countries to benefit from AI and cloud technologies while maintaining confidence in the security, resilience and sovereignty of their digital infrastructure.

The company is also expanding strategic partnerships with governments and national AI organisations, including HUMAIN, G42, QAI and the Government of Kuwait.

These efforts will be complemented by digital government initiatives including TAMM in the UAE, SDAIA ' s ALLaM in Saudi Arabia, TASMU in Qatar and Microsoft 365 Copilot adoption across the Government of Kuwait.

Microsoft will establish a Middle East Digital Resilience initiative, making digital resilience a central element of its regional strategy. The programme will help organisations strengthen continuity and recovery through resilience assessments, reference architectures, readiness guidance and enablement programmes.

The company also plans to invest more than US $ 400 million in subsea and terrestrial connectivity across the Middle East by 2030. This will build on existing investments, including the SeaMeWe-6 subsea cable system, which has landing points in Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the UAE.

Microsoft will expand its data protection, sovereignty and business continuity commitments to eligible governments and customers across the region, supported by Microsoft Sovereign Public Cloud, Sovereign Private Cloud and Project Digital Shield.

Cybersecurity cooperation will also be expanded through partnerships with national cybersecurity authorities across Kuwait, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the UAE, supported by dedicated Microsoft cybersecurity champions in each country.

People and skills form the third pillar of Microsoft ' s regional framework.

Building on its existing commitment to help skill more than 4.2 million people across Kuwait, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the UAE by 2030, Microsoft will continue investing in AI skills, workforce readiness and public sector capability building. •

Naim Yazbeck, President, Microsoft Middle East and Africa, added:“ Microsoft has been part of the Middle East’ s transformation for more than 35 years, and we’ re committed to being here for decades to come. Countries across the region aren’ t waiting for the future of AI to be written elsewhere – they’ re helping shape it themselves, and our role is to be a long-term partner in that journey. These tangible initiatives expand our commitment as innovation accelerates and national

28

INTELLIGENT CIO MIDDLE EAST www. intelligentcio. com