Jeddah, November 9, 2024 – The Saudi Data and Artificial Intelligence Authority (SDAIA) showcased its efforts to strengthen international cooperation in applying AI ethics during a panel session at the International Conference and Exhibition on Smart Cities in Barcelona, Spain. The conference, which runs through Thursday, brings together over 600 speakers from more than 850 cities across 130 countries. Dr. Abdulrahman Habib, Deputy Chief Officer of Strategy at SDAIA, participated in a session titled "AI Ethics in Urban Planning," where he discussed the importance of ethics in adopting AI for urban development. Dr. Habib highlighted Saudi Arabia’s role in advancing AI ethics, particularly through SDAIA’s collaboration with UNESCO to establish the International Center for AI Ethics and Research (ICAIRE) in Riyadh. Approved by the Saudi Cabinet, ICAIRE will be a Category 2 Center under UNESCO’s sponsorship, setting international standards for AI research and ethics.
SDAIA also drew significant interest at its booth, where it displayed various digital services and smart city innovations. One of the standout initiatives was the Saudi Private Network for Government Integration (SPINE), which aims to connect over 300 government agencies to facilitate secure data exchange. SPINE is designed to streamline integration processes, reduce operational costs, and enable faster, more secure data sharing, while supporting the growth of smart cities, AI applications, and IoT services.