G42, Microsoft to launch two AI centres in Abu Dhabi

Microsoft Corp. and G42 have announced that they will be establishing two new centres in Abu Dhabi to advance their collective Responsible AI goals. The centres are part of their partnership announced earlier this year.

Co-founded and co-funded by G42 and Microsoft, with the endorsement of the UAE’s Artificial Intelligence and Advanced Technology Council (AIATC), the first centre will identify, develop, and advance best practices and industry standards for the responsible use of AI in the Middle East and the Global South. The second is an expansion of Microsoft’s AI for Good Research Lab into Abu Dhabi, which will support AI projects that address key societal goals.

The first centre will convene academic researchers and AI practitioners from across the private sector to develop, document, and share emerging Responsible AI best practices. G42 and Microsoft are committed to working closely with the centre to bring together individuals and organisations from across the Middle East, the Global South, and beyond to learn from each other and drive ongoing advances in this emerging field.

Simultaneously, Microsoft’s AI for Good Lab will open its first centre in the Middle East in Abu Dhabi. This new lab will harness the power of AI to collaborate with nonprofit organisations and partners, addressing key economic and societal challenges across the Middle East and Africa. In close collaboration with the Lab’s existing team in Nairobi, this initiative will prioritise the development of large language models for underrepresented languages, helping bridge the global language divide. It will also focus on advancing food security and strengthening climate resilience by applying AI to high-resolution geospatial data, enhancing disaster preparedness and response capabilities.

The partnership will work alongside the AIATC, which was created in January to develop plans and research programmes in collaboration with local and global partners to enhance Abu Dhabi’s status in the fields of artificial intelligence and advanced technology.

The two centres build on the work that Microsoft and G42 are undertaking to implement Responsible AI standards and practices. This includes ensuring that the two companies’ generative AI models and applications are developed, deployed, and used safely — a commitment central to the Responsible AI policies that Microsoft has developed and implemented, and that G42 is now adopting in connection with their partnership and commitments to the US and UAE governments.

Among other things, these policies govern the design and use of AI applications, incorporate digital safety and cybersecurity plans for model training and deployment, and establish “red teaming” processes to strengthen AI systems against probing, testing, and attacks. G42’s adoption of these policies will solidify the UAE’s position as a trusted global AI hub and ensure that Microsoft and G42 AI technologies running on Azure are responsibly shared with their growing joint customer base globally.

“Today’s steps will add to the important progress Microsoft and G42 are making to broaden access to the responsible, safe, and secure use of artificial intelligence,” said Brad Smith, Vice Chair and President of Microsoft. “We are committed to additional steps with G42 that advance responsible AI use for customers and strengthen the relationship not only between our two companies but between our two countries.”

Peng Xiao, Group CEO of G42, said, “By advancing Responsible AI together with Microsoft, we are creating a framework for AI to serve all of humanity. These new centres reflect our shared vision for leveraging technology to solve real-world challenges, positioning Abu Dhabi as a global hub for AI innovation that prioritises safety, trust, and collaboration, especially across the Global South.”

WAM