17 Apr
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Given the growing relevance of AI, Middle Eastern countries are putting AI capabilities at the center of their national economic strategies, such as the UAE National AI Strategy 2031 and Saudi Vision 2030. According to recent estimates, AI's contribution to economic growth has a significant positive impact. By 2031, the Middle East's GDP will have increased by more than $300 billion. The UAE has placed a premium on its commitment to "intelligence" as a result of the adoption and implementation of AI-driven exponential technologies to transform business, government, and society.
After estimating that AI could contribute $ 182 billion to the economy by 2035, the UAE made history by appointing the country's first AI minister. The UAE initiative aims to improve government performance as well as foster an innovative culture and a prosperous business climate. The UAE's broader goals in 2071, which aim to make the UAE one of the best and most innovative countries in the world over the next five decades, include embedding AI throughout society.
Turkey's politicians are also developing a roadmap for their AI strategy, defined as the computerization of intelligent beings' decision-making, search for meaning, and learning in dynamic environments.
In this regard, the Digital Transformation Office of the Presidency of the Republic of Turkey and the Ministry of Industry and Technology have prepared a document in accordance with the 11th Development Plan. The vision of "Digital Turkey" and the "National Technology Movement" outline Turkey's priorities in this area as well as the steps to be taken.
Through the adoption of digital technology, products, and services in social, economic, and public activities, as well as data-driven value creation, Turkey has something to offer in the international arena.
Meanwhile, the National Technology Movement aims to improve Turkey's human and infrastructure capacity to produce products using nationally recognized advanced technologies, strengthen economic and technological independence, and implement policies and actions that promote the advancement of critical technologies.
The AI national strategy's introduction was written by Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan himself. "AI-based systems have a transformative effect on production processes, daily life, and institutional structures," he said, adding that humanity is accordingly on the verge of entering a new era.
"AI technologies, which are becoming more widely used, are expected to have a greater impact on the global economy's structure than the cyber revolution," Erdogan said. He also named Ismail Al-Jazari, the founder of cybernetics and one of the greatest Muslim scientists and engineers of the Islamic Golden Age, as well as Professor Cahit Arf, the first Turkish AI researcher.
Erdogan stated, "We believe the time has arrived for our country to advance in AI." "We get to an agreement that involves the construction and operation of these systems based on our common values by developing AI systems with the experience of our civilization."
The National AI Strategy is organized around six strategic goals: training AI experts and creating job opportunities in the field, supporting research, entrepreneurship, and innovation, ensuring access to high-quality data and technical infrastructure, accelerating the social economy, compatibility, strengthening international, structural and trade cooperation to accelerate power transformation.
The AI sector's share of GDP must reach 5% by 2025, and it must employ at least 50,000 people, according to the strategy's objectives.
International organizations will play a key role in the framework's oversight and standardization processes for cross-border data sharing using trustworthy and responsible AI. Turkey, on the other hand, is rumored to be one of the top 20 AI nations.
Over the next five years, global AI spending is expected to double, to about $ 50 billion, according to the strategy (42 426.41 billion). According to several studies, AI will contribute approximately $ 13-15.7 trillion to the global economy by 2030, with a 13-14 percent growth rate.
The amount of data generated in the next three years is expected to surpass that of the previous 30 years. While there are over 2,000 AI-focused startups in the US and China, there are only about 200 in Turkey. Around half of Turkey's AI initiatives are housed in technology parks (also known as techno-parks), with Istanbul accounting for 73% of them.
Efforts to prepare Turkey's public institutions for the adoption of next-generation technologies and effective DDDM processes are still underway. In this regard, the Digital Transformation Office of the Presidency of the Republic of Turkey and the General Directorate of National Technology under the Ministry of Industry and Technology have established the Office for Big Data and AI Applications.
The Scientific and Technological Research Council of Turkey (TÜBİTAK) was also founded to develop AI technology solutions by bringing together academic research centers and the private sector.
Top 100 academic institutions, top 10 health care institutions, top 10 non-profits/NGOs, top 10 government institutions, top 5 companies, and top 100 research organizations are listed in the Nature Index 2020 Artificial Intelligence. The top 25 fastest-growing research organizations, as well as the top 25 AI nations.
According to the table, China ranks first with 318534 scientific publications between 2015 and 2019, while Iran ranks thirteenth with 30221.
The University of Tehran is also ranked 59th among the top 100 research organizations in AI (next data).
The University of Granada's SCImago ranking database ranks countries and universities based on the number of scholarly articles published by higher education institutions in the Scopus database. This ranking is determined by a combination of three factors: research, innovation, and society. AI is a subset of computer science according to SCImago Version 202. Iran is therefore ranked 15th globally and first in Western Asia. Iran is also ranked 36th in the world and third in Western Asia in cognitive sciences, a subset of psychology and one of the disciplines related to AI, and 15th in the world and first in Western Asia in electrical and electronic engineering, both of which are associated with AI.
Computer Science Rankings is another important global ranking that can show how Iranian universities rank in computer science, AI, software, and robotics (CSRankings). Google Scholar indexes are used to display researchers' articles in this ranking.
CSRankings is a measurement-based ranking from the world's top computer science institutes, which ranks universities worldwide and only displays the top 50. Between 2011 and 2021, this ranking looks at the criteria for each university. The Sharif University of Technology, the Institute for Research in Fundamental Sciences (IPM), and the Iran University of Science and Technology are among the top 100 universities in Asia, according to CSRanking.
According to Shahram Moin, Director of the Information and Communications Technology Research Institute's Innovation and Development Center for Artificial Intelligence, the national roadmap was developed over the course of a year and will be completed by the end of 2021.
During the development of this strategy, he added, strategic documents in the field of AI from 23 countries were evaluated, and the environment, health, transportation, online education, energy, robotics, industry, agriculture, and security development were prioritized. The strategy's objectives include meeting 80% of the country's research needs, increasing AI's share of industry to 45%, increasing AI's share of GDP to 12%, and allocating $ 8 billion to industrial development.
This document includes 47 micro-policies, 39 general actions, and 155 projects and events. The 14 macro policies' goal, according to Moin, is to support AI products, create a technology development base, strengthen AI companies, and use AI to solve extremely complex problems.
This document includes 47 micro-policies, 39 general actions, and 155 projects and events. The 14 macro policies' goal, according to Moin, is to support AI products, create a technology development base, strengthen AI companies, and use AI to solve extremely complex problems.
Azerbaijan's Ministry of Economy recently announced the creation of a national AI project. The work done in this field was discussed at the Working Group's first meeting on Fourth Industrial Revolution (4SI) technologies. The program also included presentations on IoT, big data, and its analysis and processing. It's worth noting that more than 60 countries have AI plans, programs, and initiatives, with only 40 developing national strategies that have been approved as a separate document. This set of technologies is extremely valuable to Azerbaijan. More than 15 companies in Azerbaijan currently offer consulting and research in various AI fields. In April 2021, an online symposium on AI in digital government was held. The E-GOV Development Center (EGDC) of the State Agency for Public Service and Social Innovations hosted a three-day conference, which drew 58 speakers from 22 countries. The world conference was held in honor of Lotfi A. Zadeh, a late world-renowned scientist.
As reported by Oxford Insights, Azerbaijan ranks 65th in the AI application index. Azerbaijan has been a pioneer in the application of AI in the South Caucasus for several years. On this list, Georgia, Armenia, Turkey, Iran, and Russia are ranked 72nd, 77th, 67th, 75th, and 33rd, respectively.
Although developing a national AI strategy is a priority for Armenia, the country does not want to provide a detailed report or program, preferring instead to provide a long-term vision for AI development with a number of specific actions aimed at establishing close links between government, researchers, and the private sector.
Thus, a number of pivots have been prioritized:
