Good morning.
This week’s Leadership Next podcast features an interview with the UAE’s Minister of State for Artificial Intelligence Omar Al Olama, whom I spoke with while in Abu Dhabi two weeks ago. He’s the world’s first to hold that title and took the job when he was only 27 years old. I met him on an earlier trip and found his enthusiasm for the technology and its possibilities infectious. My first question: why does the UAE need a Minister of AI?
“Historically, many technological advancements have created government positions. When energy production became very important for economic activity and prosperity, ministers of energy were put in place to ensure electricity was being produced in the right manner…the same thing happened with aviation and with telecommunications. Every time you have technology that touches every facet of life and has a huge impact on government, there’s a ministerial position created for it.”
