A three-day Global AI Summit in Riyadh, hosted by the Saudi Data and Artificial Intelligence Authority (SDAIA), brought together private sector leaders, government officials, and renowned academic professionals for a series of discussions on the future of AI. Under the slogan “AI For the Good of Humanity” the Summit focused on the importance of understanding where AI innovation and progress stands now, where the field is headed, and how society can ensure that progress does not violate ethical use.
AI NOW provided attendees with practical tools through keynotes, workshops, panels, and technology demonstrations that will drive their roadmaps.
AI NEXT looked ahead to the change makers and pioneers who are paving the way for AI to solve some of the world’s most meaningful challenges.
AI NEVER challenged the audience and speakers to engage in debates about the ethics and responsible use of AI across various domains and topics.
To set the tone for the Summit, the opening remarks were delivered by H.E. Dr. Abdullah Alswaha, Minister of Communications and Information Technology of Saudi Arabia. Dr. Abdullah Alswaha discussed the Kingdom’s growing leadership and commitment to innovation in AI.
“During the G20 in 2020, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia drove global consensus towards the OECD principles of trustworthy AI. AI must be inclusive, human-centered, transparent, robust, and accountable. Beyond the ethical application of AI, it is critical that we advance AI truly together as humankind, sharing our best practices, our expertise, our resources, and our challenges to ensure no one is left behind in unlocking the potential of AI,” stated H.E. Alswaha.
A series of announcements were made at the Summit aimed at advancing the use of data to solve some of the world’s biggest challenges in healthcare, energy, and sustainability. To celebrate the occasion, Abdullah Alghamdi, President of SDAIA, highlighted, “I look forward to announcing several groundbreaking initiatives with our global partners to deliver on the promise of this Summit: AI for the Good of Humanity.”
Riyadh AI Call to Action Declaration and KSA AI Ethics marked the first of many agreements announced that aim to drive the responsible use of AI globally. Riyadh AI Call to Action (RAICA) Declaration was signed, outlining the Digital Cooperation Organization’s (DCO) long-term vision to use AI technology to benefit people, communities, nations, and the world.
Deemah Al Yahya, Secretary General of DCO, emphasized, “DCO was created with the ethos of establishing an inclusive digital economy through collaboration across diverse entities at all levels. The RAICA declaration is this idea put into practice. By signing this declaration, all DCO member states are reaffirming their shared desire to usher in a brighter future for all by harnessing the huge potential of AI to improve the lives of people around the world.”
The Summit brought together over 200 speakers from 90 countries and 10,000 participants. Attendees, speakers, and partners engaged in a rich dialogue on how AI can solve complex problems, empower businesses, shape the future and ultimately transform society. Speakers at the Summit included Amin Nasser, CEO of Aramco, Sebastian Thrun, CEO of Kitty Hawk, and Dr. Jürgen Schmidhuber, Director of AI Initiative at KAUST, H.E. Fajad Al-Jalajel, Minister of Health, H.E. Dr. Majid Bin Abdullah Al Kassabi, Minister of Commerce, and H.E. Bandar Ibrahim Alkhorayef, Minister of Industry and Mineral Resources.
In the spirit of co-creation, speakers and participants were invited to contribute to the concept of AI, which will go beyond the scope of the Summit. This landmark event and accompanying announcements became a unique input to the Data & AI National Strategy to elevate the Kingdom as a global leader in data-driven economies as part of Vision 2030 goals.
