This year, edge Middle East Digital Future Forum will focus on the hot topic of AI under the theme ‘Building an AI Frontier’. The conference will bring together leading experts, researchers, industry professionals, and enthusiasts to explore the frontier of AI and generative AI and its implications for society, technology, and humanity.
As advancements in AI continue to accelerate, understanding AI’s potential and its ethical, social, and technical dimensions is paramount. The event’s primary objective is to foster interdisciplinary dialogue, collaboration, and knowledge exchange among stakeholders interested in AGI.
Join us as we hear from keynote speakers, technical experts, and business decision-makers about the current state of AI research, including recent breakthroughs, challenges, and prospects.
The event is happening on 12th June 2024 at the Grosnover House, Dubai, UAE
The top speakers of this year’s event are:
HE Dr Mohamed Al-Kuwaiti, Head of Cyber Security for the UAE Government
HE Dr Mohamed Al Kuwaiti has been prominent in the global cybersecurity landscape for years. With extensive experience and a deep understanding of the evolving threats in the digital world, his insights are invaluable.
As a keynote speaker, Dr. Al Kuwaiti is expected to shed light on the role of AI in cybersecurity, exploring how AI technologies create new opportunities and present unique challenges in digital security.
HE Al Kuwaiti’s journey in the field of cybersecurity has been marked by a relentless pursuit of excellence and a dedication to protecting the UAE’s digital infrastructure.
As the Head of Cybersecurity for the UAE Government, he has not only played a pivotal role in shaping the country’s digital security policies and strategies but has also significantly contributed to the global discourse on digital security.
Dr Ebrahaim Al Alkeem Al Zaabi, Cybersecurity and Artificial Intelligence Director, Abu Dhabi Government
Dr Ebrahaim Al Alkeem Al Zaabi, Cybersecurity and Artificial Intelligence Director, Abu Dhabi Government holds Ph.D degree in Engineering with specialisation in Digital transformation, Artificial Intelligence and Cyber Security.
He has some of the most prestigious and worldwide recognised security certifications. He has been an expert speaker and panel member in security events and summits.
Dr Ahmad Al Tarawneh, Senior Transformation Consultant, Dubai Police HQ
As the Senior Transformation Consultant at Dubai Police, Dr Ahmad Al Tarawneh supports strategic initiatives, programme management, and project delivery across various domains, such as digital government, IA, 7-star service, EPM, smart city solutions, social influence, Future Readiness and agile maturity capacity building.
With over 25 years of experience in civil engineering, market strategy, business analysis, global trades, global business development, transformation, and change management across 12 countries in the MENA region, Tarawneh is passionate about helping build Future-Ready productive people and organisations by leveraging Metaverse, Digital Twins, Conversational AI, and Web3.
Hala Farid Subhi, Senior GIS Technical Office Dubai Municipality
Hala Farid Subhi is a seasoned Geographic Information Systems (GIS) professional, currently serving as a Senior GIS Technical Officer at Dubai Municipality. With a major in Geoinformatics and an excellent GPA, Subhi brings over seven years of experience in the field and skills to become a specialist in AI and deep learning models applied to GIS.
She has been a project manager for several interesting projects, including the development of automated digital twins, enhancement of satellite imagery, generation of AI, asset extraction using panorama, and model extraction using AI.
Her innovative approach and dedication to leveraging cutting-edge technology have made her an asset in advancing GIS solutions.
Kelly Machado, Programme Manager, Dubai Municipality
Kelly Machado has 24 years of experience in the technology industry and is an expert in Digital Strategy, Governance and Transformation, Emerging Technologies and Innovation, Enterprise Architecture, Portfolio Management, Program Management, Project Management and Service delivery. Machado has been based in UAE since 2015.
Linoy Kidd, GBM CIO MENAT, HSBC
Linoy Kidd is an accomplished and award-winning technologist with extensive experience spanning five countries. With over 18 years at HSBC, she has made significant contributions across the globe, starting her journey in the UK before moving on to roles in Hong Kong, China, Mexico, and currently serving as the MSS CIO of MENAT in the UAE.
Renowned for her proactive leadership approach, Linoy excels in cultivating teams in diverse locations. Beyond her corporate responsibilities, Linoy is deeply committed to philanthropy, dedicating her time to building schools in underserved regions.
She has established eight schools in Africa, Haiti, and Nicaragua and a house for the homeless in Mexico, demonstrating her passion for making a tangible difference in communities worldwide. Linoy Kidd continues to inspire through her technological expertise, philanthropic endeavours, and commitment to driving positive change on both local and global scales.
Mark Nuttall, Executive Advisor
Mark Nuttall is a globally recognised expert in law enforcement, risk management, anti-money laundering (AML), and global security, with over 25 years of distinguished service in both public and private sectors.
His extensive background includes pivotal roles as a Law Enforcement OGicer and Detective at New Scotland Yard, INTERPOL Executive OGicer, and Corporate Executive at varied conglomerates, where he has demonstrated unparalleled expertise in geopolitics, risk, AML, governance, business, resilience, and security.
Nuttall has dedicated his career to enhancing global security and governance frameworks and has authored published works on ESG, Security, Supply Chains, Governance, Investigations, and Risk. His tenure at INTERPOL saw him author strategic reviews that have been instrumental in shaping international law enforcement procedures and leading international geopolitical deployments.
Abdallah Abu Sheikh, Founder of Astra Tech and CEO BOTIM
Abdallah Abu Sheikh is an Emirati serial entrepreneur and businessman. He is the Founder of Astra Tech, MENA’s leading consumer technology company and CEO of Botim. Under his leadership, Astra Tech launched the groundbreaking ‘Ultra-platform’ under the Botim app after securing a $500 million investment in 2022.
Abdallah has strategically navigated a complex market to fulfil a vision of simplifying the lives of everyday consumers. This ambitious journey has led to one objective: to create an Ultra App that addresses ‘platform fatigue’ in an oversaturated tech market.
He is also the founder of RIZEK, a digital marketplace launched in 2020 that offers home services tailored to the lifestyle needs of UAE residents.
The Ultra app combines diverse consumer technologies such as e-commerce, multilingual GPT, and fintech capabilities to serve over 150 million users in over 155 countries worldwide.
Jeevan Badigari, Co-founder and CISO, CyberforceHQ
Jeevan Badigari is a seasoned cybersecurity professional with 18 years of industry experience; renowned for his strategic approach, he draws from extensive roles at DAMAC Properties Dubai and Majid Al Futtaim Ventures, where he established and spearheaded Cybersecurity functions across large organizations with thousands of users. Jeevan enjoys sharing valuable insights gained from his hands-on experience in the field.
Currently, he leads initiatives at CyberForce to bridge the gap between talent and industry demand. As Co-founder and Chief Information Security Officer of CyberForceHQ, Jeevan is dedicated to safeguarding digital ecosystems and nurturing the cybersecurity workforce.
Vikash Sharma, Group CEO, Avisa Smart Hospitals
Vikash Sharma is the Founder of IC1101 Inc. A Global conglomerate in Investments, Research, and Business Intelligence. IC1101 is an American multinational Technology Investment and Innovation company that designs and Commercialises technology products in the Healthcare and Energy Vertical to enhance it with automation and Digitisation of Industries and optimises Businesses through Strategic Investment for Scaling up the business.
It derives most of its revenue from technology implementations and profit from intellectual property research, innovation businesses, and strategic investments in the healthcare and energy sectors. The company headquarters is located in Newark, California, United States, and has a multi-country presence.
Amnah Ajmal, Executive Vice President of Market Development, Mastercard EEMEA
As the Executive Vice President of Market Development, Mastercard EEMEA, Amnah leads the P&L across multiple business verticals including merchants, telcos, governments, fintechs, digital players across 80 markets. In addition, she also heads the strategy, pricing, analytics and M&A function for the region.
Prior to this role she led the North America product & innovation organisation, based out of the US, creating sustainable, competitive differentiation for Mastercard and its customers by delivering digitally integrated consumer experiences across consumer and commercial products.
Prior to joining Mastercard she was the CEO for Standard Chartered Consumer Bank Malaysia. She was also responsible for retail banking strategy for Indonesia, Malaysia & Taiwan in a global role based out of Singapore. Prior to Standard Chartered, Amnah worked at Citigroup in UAE, Egypt, UK and Poland. She held several leadership positions at Citigroup including Asset Business Head for Poland responsible for full range of consumer asset products, innovation and distribution including credit cards, co brands, personal loans and mortgages.
She was honored to be listed in Forbes Middle East’s 100 most powerful businesswomen 2024; Arabian Business’ 50 Inspiring Women Leaders 2024; the top 100 women in fintech for 2021 by IBM & Fintech magazine; the top 25 women leaders in financial technology by the Financial Technology Report US for 2019 & 2020 and the top 100 women in Fintech, across the globe, for 2019 by Lattice80. She also holds the honor of being in America’s top 10 women in Fintech by the Fintech Magazine for 2020.
Amnah is passionate about social empowerment for women and gender equity. She holds a master’s degree from London School of Economics & Political Science (LSE).
To know more about the event visit The Digital Future Forum
