Emirates News Agency signs partnership agreement with Mohamed bin Zayed University of Artificial Intelligence

The Emirates News Agency, WAM, has signed a strategic partnership agreement with the Mohamed bin Zayed University of Artificial Intelligence, the news agency reported.  

The partnership aims to strengthen bilateral cooperation in the media and artificial intelligence sectors through the exchange of knowledge, experiences and training. 

Mohammed Jalal Al-Rayssi, director-general of WAM, and Sultan Al-Hajji, vice president for public affairs and alumni relations at MBZUAI, signed the agreement at the agency’s headquarters in Abu Dhabi. 

The partnership agreement states that MBZUAI will be the strategic academic sponsor of the Global Media Congress, which will be held at the Abu Dhabi National Exhibitions Co. in collaboration with WAM, from Nov. 15-17, 2022, at the Abu Dhabi National Exhibition Center.

The university will allocate seats in its executive program to WAM employees in order to support the agency’s efforts to leverage AI and improve its efficiency.

MBZUAI will also provide consultancy services to the agency in the context of establishing an AI laboratory. WAM will use the laboratory to develop and deploy AI applications to support media innovation.

Al-Rayssi emphasized the significance of the partnership, stating that AI has become an essential pillar for sustainable growth across all sectors and that this collaboration will contribute to the launch of promising programs in support of the two sides’ joint cooperation.

Of the agreement, he said it “highlights the pivotal role played by the university in the future vision of the media sector in the UAE, in addition to spreading knowledge and providing promising opportunities for young people.”

“Artificial intelligence will contribute to the advent of a qualitative leap across various sectors, including media, as the applications of computer vision and natural language processing will represent the main driver of this development — the two main areas of research at the university,” Prof. Eric Xing, president of MBZUAI, said.

“We are proud of our partnership with the Emirates News Agency, the leading institution that constantly seeks to raise national standards for media in the UAE. Through this partnership, we will work to provide our scientific expertise, as we look forward to supporting the agency’s efforts during the events of the Global Media Congress,” he added.

The congress, whose first edition will focus on digital communication, aims to reinforce collaboration between media outlets from around the world, providing a platform that brings together industry leaders from different countries.

The global event will include an exhibition and conference at the Abu Dhabi National Exhibition Center, as well as an ambitious program that will allow various media entities to seek potential partnerships and collaboration opportunities.

It will also cover a number of important topics, including digital communications, the impact of AI on modern media, and the integration of advanced technology and innovation in the media sector.

Al-Hajji said in a statement to WAM that this agreement is an important step that allows joint cooperation between WAM and MBZUAI with the goal of building capabilities in the fields of data, AI and media.

He expressed his delight at the selection of MBZUAI as a key sponsor of the Global Media Congress, as well as their collaboration in developing an AI-based system to forecast a developed and sustainable future for the region and the world’s media sectors.

He affirmed that the university seeks to empower a new generation of AI leaders through exceptional education and a unique model of academic cadres and that the university offers students a variety of graduate programs with a focus on the core disciplines of AI, primarily computer vision, machine learning and natural language processing.