Anthony Nakache, Managing Director of Google MENA, recently discussed the firm’s advancements in artificial intelligence focused on understanding the diverse Arabic dialects in the region. During an interview on the AB Majlis podcast, he revealed that Google’s Gemini AI has successfully mastered 16 out of 25 Arabic dialects, highlighting the complexity and challenge posed by the linguistic variations of the Arabic language.

Nakache emphasized the need to address local nuances and cultural differences, stating, “The challenge is, how do you account for the local nuances and the cultural differences. This is a hard challenge, but this is something that we are committed to do if you want to make it as useful as possible.” Despite the progress, Gemini currently only responds in Modern Standard Arabic, illustrating the ongoing technical challenges in creating AI that not only understands but can also replicate the regional speech patterns authentically.

To bolster its efforts in addressing the Arabic language gap, Google has launched its largest regional initiative to date, committing $15 million through google.org. This initiative aims to enhance AI skills, safety, and adoption across the Middle East and North Africa. Nakache elaborated that the company plans to introduce new AI curricula in Arabic and establish training programs, with the goal of upskilling half a million people in AI within the next two years.

This substantial training initiative coincides with infrastructure investments, including operational cloud regions in Qatar and Saudi Arabia, a new region in Kuwait, and enhanced AI capabilities in Saudi Arabia. Google’s strategy to tackle the Arabic language challenge involves multidisciplinary teams consisting of product experts, engineers, and linguists, who are visiting Saudi Arabia and the UAE to gather user feedback.

The investment is also fueled by surprising data on how users in the region are utilizing AI, distinctively different from global trends. Nakache noted, “Over the last couple of months, we’ve seen a massive increase, especially in the young generation, of prompts that are related to productivity.” He explained that these prompts include tasks like developing resumes, preparing for interviews, and writing effective emails, which contrasts with other regions where generative AI is often used for entertainment.

The potential economic impact of AI in the region is significant. Nakache referenced an analysis by The Economist, predicting that AI could generate up to $320 billion in economic value in the MENA region by 2030. This projection has spurred unprecedented government initiatives across the Gulf, with governments appointing ministers, creating AI authorities, and investing in necessary infrastructure to capitalize on this opportunity.

Looking ahead, Nakache pointed out that education and healthcare are the sectors likely to see immediate transformation from AI advancements. He noted AI’s capacity to enhance teachers’ creativity and productivity, allowing them to better engage with students. He shared a personal experience of using Gemini with his young son, which he described as “a magical experience” that illustrated the transformative impact of AI on information interaction.

For healthcare, Google’s initiatives include the Med LM, a specialized medical language model, alongside the Alpha Fold project, which has gained recognition for its revolutionary approach to predicting protein structures. Nakache explained the efficiency of Alpha Fold, which has dramatically reduced the time needed to map proteins, thus accelerating research in critical areas such as cancer treatment and climate science.

Concluding his remarks, Nakache expressed Google’s strong commitment to the MENA region, affirming that the company has “never been more committed to this region than we are today.” He stated that AI represents “the most profound way we’re actually going to fulfill our mission” of organizing the world’s information.

Listeners can tune into the full episode of the AB Majlis podcast to further explore the dynamics of doing business in the Gulf region, available on platforms like Spotify and Apple Podcasts.