Qatar Accelerates AI Ambitions With Focus On Infrastructure, Innovation And Skills

(MENAFN- The Peninsula) Deepak John | The Peninsula

Doha, Qatar: Qatar is accelerating efforts to build an AI-enabled economy by investing in shared digital infrastructure, attracting global technology partners and equipping its workforce with the skills needed to turn artificial intelligence into measurable economic growth, a senior government official has said.

Speaking at a session titled AI at Scale: From Ambition to Impact, held on the sidelines of MWC26 Doha yesterday, H E Reem Al Mansoori, Assistant Undersecretary for Digital Industry Affairs at the Ministry of Communications and Information Technology, said the country was taking a coordinated national approach to ensure AI adoption delivers tangible results across government and industry.

Al Mansoori described the past 12 to 18 months as one of the fastest-moving periods in technology development, requiring the government to adopt a more agile approach to implementing AI initiatives.

“It was really the fastest programme we ever executed,” she said, noting that technologies once considered difficult to implement had become increasingly accessible within a relatively short period.

She said Qatar had benefited from strong government backing, including efforts to attract international technology companies such as Scale AI to establish a presence in the country, alongside partnerships with consultants and other technology providers to develop and implement its national AI programme.

Al Mansoori stressed that governments must take a leading role in developing the AI ecosystem, arguing that the scale of investment and speed of technological development make it difficult for individual private-sector organisations to build the necessary foundations independently.

“With AI, the ecosystem cannot be replicated how the previous technology has been going and organically developed. With AI, everyone needs to work closely. The government needs to be at the heart of that,” she said.

She highlighted investment in data centres, computing capacity, graphics processing units (GPUs) and shared services as essential foundations for accelerating AI adoption.

In Qatar, these efforts include the establishment of Qai, support from telecommunications operator Ooredoo in supplying the growing demand for AI computing capacity, and the use of the Tasmu Smart Qatar platform to develop shared services that organisations can build upon.

She also pointed to the National Planning Council's contribution in preparing and enabling access to national data, describing data readiness and sharing as critical requirements for successful AI development.

According to Al Mansoori, establishing this shared infrastructure allows government entities and private organisations to concentrate on developing applications that address their specific needs, rather than bearing the full cost of building the underlying technology.

However, she cautioned that infrastructure alone would not guarantee success. Organisations must identify clear objectives for AI adoption and ensure that individual projects deliver measurable improvements in productivity, efficiency and economic performance.

She emphasised that successful implementation requires direct leadership involvement, particularly in managing organisational change and ensuring AI applications create genuine value rather than simply introducing technology for its own sake.

Looking ahead, Al Mansoori said AI could play a significant role in helping Qatar achieve its economic and workforce ambitions by increasing productivity and expanding the country's knowledge base.

She expressed confidence that Qatar's national AI programme, combined with investment in skills and infrastructure, would support the country's 2030 development ambitions.

“AI is doubling the knowledge for us and even doubling the workforce,” she said, adding that Qatar hoped to meet or even exceed its targets through the opportunities created by artificial intelligence.

The session also featured Jack Hidary, Founder and CEO of SandboxAQ, a company specializing in quantitative artificial intelligence (AI); and Lindy Kouyoumji, Partner at global consulting firm Oliver Wyman.

Participants examined how AI can move from ambition to tangible impact, alongside rapid technological advances and the evolving landscape of AI models.

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