Cairo
Source: Al-Wafd Newspaper
Prof. Dr. Ali Mohammed Al-Khouri
Modern medicine has entered a new phase, reshaping its very essence through artificial intelligence. The future of human health is being shaped in a new landscape where algorithms and big data are becoming the cornerstones of medical knowledge, and the human body is becoming the subject of digital analysis. This shift not only means improved diagnosis or faster treatment, but also represents a transition from medicine based on individual experience to medicine driven by knowledge systems that transcend borders.
These are global transformations.
Studies indicate that the global AI healthcare market was worth approximately $26.5 billion in 2024, and is expected to jump to more than $187 billion by 2030. These figures confirm the fact that medicine is entering a new phase in which knowledge is managed with big data and algorithms.
This transformation transcends the economic dimension, revealing its profound political nature. Medical knowledge is no longer solely the product of national health institutions or professional expertise; it has become subject to the dominance of large technology companies that monopolize algorithms and control databases. Consequently, medical decisions are no longer local, made within hospital walls, but rather extensions of transnational systems that control the flow of information and redraw the balance of power between the center and the periphery. These realities suggest that artificial intelligence in the medical sector has become a tool for re-engineering the balance of power, either towards entrenching a new dependency through external control of knowledge and data, or by transforming it into a sovereign project that establishes health knowledge as a cornerstone of national security and the future of the state.
The Arab world and the opportunity to overcome the deficit
In the Arab world, where international reports describe healthcare systems as burdened by staff shortages and limited resources, artificial intelligence emerges as an exceptional opportunity to overcome a long legacy of structural bottlenecks. In rural and remote areas, remote diagnosis can compensate for the absence of doctors, and medical image analysis algorithms enable the detection of tumors and chronic diseases in their early stages, whereas previously, late detection doubled costs and reduced survival rates.
In the field of precision medicine, genome analysis is enabling, for the first time, the design of treatments tailored to each individual’s unique genetic makeup. This translates to improved treatment effectiveness and reduced costs in the long run. This path, in which global research centers are racing, represents a transformation in the very structure of medical practice, shifting medicine from mass treatment models to highly individualized approaches. However, if these capabilities remain imported and disconnected from national strategies capable of localizing and producing knowledge, they will perpetuate the same cycle of dependency that has plagued the region for decades. What is needed is for these technologies to become a sovereign project, making medical knowledge an integral part of the nation’s scientific capital, not merely a tool borrowed from abroad.
Regional figures: between ambition and dependency
The figures released regarding the region’s health AI market – projected to rise from $435 million in 2024 to over $8.4 billion by 2033 – represent more than just investment growth; they reveal an accelerating pace at which the region is engaging in a global race that exceeds its own productive capacity. Moreover, this seemingly promising growth masks a fundamental weakness in the local knowledge base, as most of the algorithms and medical tools used are still imported.
The problem does not lie in importation itself, as it is a natural part of the global economy, but rather in the lack of capacity to adapt and develop these technologies within local research environments. When healthcare systems become dependent on external tools over whose design and development they have no control, healthcare sovereignty becomes a bargaining chip in the hands of multinational corporations, and dependency takes on a new, deeper, and more subtle form.
Structural challenges
The Arab region faces three structural obstacles that hinder its effective integration into the digital medical revolution. The first is the fragility of the digital infrastructure, where high-speed internet networks are still not equally available, and hospitals in many countries lack information systems capable of efficiently managing big data.
Secondly, there is a legislative vacuum that lacks clear laws regulating the use of artificial intelligence in medicine and balancing patient protection with the encouragement of innovation. This vacuum opens the door for transnational corporations to impose their agendas without any local accountability.
The third obstacle is the lack of local expertise capable of absorbing and developing these transformations, thus keeping the region in the position of a technology recipient and a market for others’ technologies, rather than a hub for innovation and production.
Recommendations
Dealing with structural transformations in the medical sector should not be reduced to improving the management of the health sector, but requires a vision that goes beyond the limits of medical services to a national project that reconnects the state with technology as a driving force for development and consolidating national security, and with the production of a knowledge-based digital economy.
First, Arab states must develop national digital health strategies that go beyond simply introducing smart devices into hospitals. These strategies should extend to building integrated systems linking health, education, scientific research, and industry. They must be long-term, transcending immediate financial considerations to establish digital health as an integral part of national infrastructure.
Second, advanced legislation is needed to regulate artificial intelligence in medicine. This legislation is not so much a legal procedure as it is a framework that defines the limits of sovereignty. Laws must be drafted to protect health data as a national asset, clearly define the legal responsibilities of physicians, institutions, and developers, and require global companies to be transparent when using algorithms in the diagnosis and treatment of citizens.
Third, investing in human capital is an urgent necessity. Universities must become platforms for producing knowledge in medical artificial intelligence, this field must be integrated into medical and engineering curricula, and continuous training programs must be established to enable physicians to interact confidently with new technologies. Human knowledge is the only barrier preventing us from slipping into complete dependence.
Fourth, establishing joint Arab platforms for health data is not merely an electronic link or file exchange, but rather a sovereign project in its essence, placing medical knowledge within a framework of collective Arab action. These platforms have the potential to overcome the current fragmentation of research efforts and establish a shared scientific space that allows for knowledge exchange and the development of algorithms rooted in the demographic and environmental realities of the region.
Fifth, private sector engagement should be facilitated through strategic incentives that encourage investment in digital healthcare industries, not just imports. Building a local industry for smart medical devices and healthcare software can reduce dependency and unlock new opportunities for the knowledge economy in the region.
Horinon of the new health sovereignty
Viewing artificial intelligence in medicine as merely a technological tool is a dangerous oversimplification, as it obscures its profound dimensions as a new arena for knowledge production and power distribution. If it continues to be approached from a narrow, consumerist perspective, the region will find itself, within a few years, facing a dependency far more severe than in the past—a dependency not measured by goods or resources, but by control over the algorithms and data that will shape medical decisions. Conversely, recognizing artificial intelligence as a means to rebuild our position in the global knowledge economy transforms it from a potential threat into a civilizational opportunity to redefine nations’ relationship with their future.
Artificial intelligence in the medical sector is not a matter confined to ministries of health; it is a strategic national issue. Countries that treat these technologies merely as a means to reduce costs or improve healthcare services will remain dependent, regardless of any apparent financial savings or speed in service delivery. Conversely, countries that view it as an opportunity to rebuild their healthcare systems through serious investment in research and development, the establishment of national databases, and regional cooperation in building shared platforms will achieve true healthcare sovereignty.
