42 UAE leaders graduate from MBZUAI’s Executive Program to drive AI adoption

Senior executives and high-ranking officials from across the UAE have completed the sixth cohort of the Mohamed bin Zayed University of Artificial Intelligence’s (MBZUAI) Executive Program (MEP). The program is designed to strengthen participants’ understanding of AI, enabling them to lead AI-driven transformation within their organisations and contribute to the UAE’s broader AI agenda.

The 16-week program, which concluded in July, brought together 42 senior leaders from government entities and private sector organisations across critical sectors including energy, transportation, healthcare, higher education, culture, and real estate development. More than two-thirds of participants were high-level executives, including undersecretaries, executive directors, CEOs, and senior vice presidents – reflecting the UAE’s commitment to developing AI leadership at the highest levels.

Since its launch, the MEP has trained more than 200 leaders, equipping decision-makers with technical knowledge and strategic insights to adopt AI solutions effectively in their fields.

Over the course of the most recent edition, participants learned from MBZUAI faculty and AI experts from renowned institutions including MIT, UC Berkeley, Carnegie Mellon University, and NYU. Industry leaders from Palantir and e& also shared practical implementation strategies and real-world use cases.

“This program deepened my understanding of AI and revealed new applications I hadn’t considered,” said Gurjit Singh, Chief Development Officer at Aldar. “It broadened my perspective and equipped me with the knowledge to better manage and implement AI processes effectively.”

Developing AI-powered solutions

Participants worked on sector-focused projects, developing AI-powered solutions that address critical national priorities. Mohammed Al Otaiba, Advisor of The Supreme Council for National Security, reflected on the program’s design: “Hearing directly from peers in health, security, human capital, and infrastructure gave me greater appreciation for their work and showed me the tremendous potential AI offers.”

Presented at a Pitch Day at the end of the program, the eight projects covered areas including AI capital and infrastructure; community, culture and society; construction and real estate; energy and utilities; environment, water and food security; health and wellbeing; human capital and workforce enablement; and national security and defense.

The eight projects were:

• AI Across Emirates: A unified AI infrastructure that enables scalable adoption across the UAE through a sovereign cloud with Emirate-level extensions and GovGPT aligned with UAE data law and AI ethics.
• Warif: A digital platform that preserves Emirati culture and heritage through peer-to-peer community learning and an Emirati GPT fine-tuned on UAE cultural corpus and dialect.
• Construction Site Safety Analyzer: An AI-enabled solution that uses continuous monitoring through cameras, wearables, and IVMS to predict and prevent onsite incidents in the construction sector.
• HEYAD: An AI platform that collects data from existing infrastructure and delivers real-time, personalized recommendations for smarter energy and utility use.
• ZAD.ai: A multimodal AI-powered dashboard that predicts food supply disruptions and empowers decision-makers with real-time, predictive insights for proactive response.
• MADA: An innovative AI-powered solution that generates accurate health span scores to provide personalized healthcare insights for individuals while also offering population-level health analytics. All supported by an intelligent AI health agent.
• Dawame.ai: An AI-powered remote work platform that connects Al Ain talent with employers across the UAE and beyond. It features integrated candidate sourcing, role matching, assessments, job advertising, and task management—all supported by a unified AI agent.
• AA7: An agentic AI system that supports national security analysts in processing complex data volumes for early warning detection and informed decision-making.

Notable MEP alumni played a key role in helping the teams develop their projects, lending their experience and guidance to the participants. “Advising these projects has been deeply rewarding,” said H.E. Dr. Mohamed Al Kuwaiti, Head of Cybersecurity for the UAE Government and alum of the inaugural 2021 MEP cohort.

“Each one aligns closely with our national priorities – from cultural preservation to energy, health, and security – and reflects how AI can strengthen both systems and society. We are especially focused on safeguarding our digital future by ensuring robust cybersecurity and protecting the data, systems, and integrity of our AI innovations. In the Year of Community, these projects embody the UAE’s vision of innovation in service of collective progress.”

Following the conclusion of the program, each of the projects will be developed into full-scale AI deployments that deliver measurable value to the UAE’s economy and society. This exemplifies how the MEP supports the UAE’s national AI strategies by embedding AI across sectors to drive innovation, enhance competitiveness, and achieve long-term sustainable development.

“My commitment is to actively implement what I’ve learned, engaging my team and stakeholders to drive meaningful change,” pledged H.E. Abdulla Al Shimmari, Executive Director, National Talent Enablement Sector, Department of Government Enablement.

Hosted by The Academy at MBZUAI, the MEP has helped take AI beyond the classroom and into the wider world. In recent months The Academy has facilitated numerous collaborations emerging from the program, including an MoU with the UAE’s Ministry of Climate Change and Environment, an MoU with the Department of Health, an event on faith in the age of AI with the Manara Center for Coexistence and Dialogue, and an upcoming AI & Arts Fellowship.

Building on this success, The Academy will launch the Global AI Leadership Program in October 2025 – a comprehensive five-day in-person program that brings together global decision-makers to learn from world-renowned experts and explore the UAE’s pioneering approach to AI implementation. Applications for the program are now open. For more information or to apply, visit the website here.