{"id":27176,"date":"2026-05-14T00:01:37","date_gmt":"2026-05-13T21:01:37","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/arab-digital-economy.org\/?p=27176"},"modified":"2026-05-14T00:02:14","modified_gmt":"2026-05-13T21:02:14","slug":"%d9%82%d9%85%d8%a9-ai-everything-mea-%d9%85%d8%b5%d8%b1-%d8%aa%d8%ad%d8%aa%d8%b6%d9%86-%d8%a3%d9%83%d8%a8%d8%b1-%d8%ad%d8%af%d8%ab-%d8%aa%d9%83%d9%86%d9%88%d9%84%d9%88%d8%ac%d9%8a-%d9%81%d9%8a-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/arab-digital-economy.org\/?p=27176&lang=en","title":{"rendered":"AI Everything MEA Summit: Egypt hosts the largest technological event in the region"},"content":{"rendered":"

In February 2026, Egypt hosted the first regional edition of the \u201cAI Everything Middle East & Africa\u201d Summit under the patronage of President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi, through a strategic partnership between the Information Technology Industry Development Agency (ITIDA) and the global GITEX exhibition network.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Held at the Egypt International Exhibition Center<\/strong>, the summit brought together more than 350 AI companies and startups<\/strong> from over 30 countries<\/strong>, alongside more than 100 investors<\/strong> managing a combined investment portfolio worth $50 billion<\/strong>. Major global technology companies participated, including IBM, Microsoft, Cisco, Cerebras, and Cloudera<\/strong>, in addition to leading regional innovators.<\/p>\n

Trixie LohMirmand<\/strong>, CEO of KAOUN International<\/strong>, the organizer of GITEX exhibitions, described the summit as more than the opening of a technology exhibition, calling it:<\/p>\n

\u201cThe symbolic opening of a new economic era for the region,\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

noting that artificial intelligence is rapidly becoming the infrastructure of nations.<\/p>\n

Karnak: Egypt\u2019s First National Large Language Model Leading Regional Rankings<\/h3>\n

The most prominent announcement at the summit was Egypt\u2019s launch of its national large language model, Karnak<\/strong>, named after the Karnak Temple<\/strong> in Luxor as a symbol of Egypt\u2019s ancient civilization.<\/p>\n

Karnak ranks first among Arabic models<\/strong> in the 30\u201340 billion parameter category<\/strong>, while also holding a competitive position in the 70\u201380 billion parameter range<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

The model was trained on tens of millions of Arabic datasets and designed specifically to understand the cultural and linguistic nuances that Western-trained models often fail to capture.<\/p>\n

Engineer Ahmed El Zaher<\/strong>, CEO of ITIDA<\/strong>, explained that Karnak is not simply a standalone product, but rather:<\/p>\n

\u201cFoundational infrastructure\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

that will serve as the base upon which startups and private companies can build AI applications tailored for local and regional markets.<\/p>\n

National Applications: From Classrooms to Healthcare<\/h3>\n

Alongside Karnak, Egypt launched a package of national AI-powered applications, reflecting a shift from theoretical discussions to practical implementation affecting citizens\u2019 daily lives.<\/p>\n

Education Sector<\/p>\n

Egypt launched \u201cSia\u201d<\/strong>, an intelligent personal tutor supporting high school students and teachers in Arabic language<\/strong> and Egyptian history<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

The application is designed to bridge educational gaps and provide personalized learning experiences for each student.<\/p>\n

Legal and Administrative Services<\/p>\n

A smart legal and regulatory assistant was introduced to help citizens and SMEs better understand and navigate regulatory frameworks, reducing administrative burdens and increasing transparency.<\/p>\n

Healthcare Sector<\/p>\n

Egypt unveiled locally developed AI engines for the early detection of:<\/p>\n