admin Top 10 Tech Trends in the Middle East 2022:
Top 10 Tech Trends in the Middle East 2022
The Middle East region has become a critical driver of global economic growth. The region’s widening geopolitical and economic influences can be credited, beyond its abundance of natural resources, to its position as a frontrunner in the adoption and innovation of modern technologies. As it has for the past few decades, technology continues to shape the narrative of growth in the Middle East.
Highlighted below are the ten emerging tech trends to watch out for in the Middle East:
- AI
Research by a top consulting firm, Oliver Wyman, suggests that Middle East countries could save over $7 billion by automating tasks. These tasks range from tax filings, registrations, and licensing in the public sector to budgeting to public policy impact analysis all using AI. In light of this, Saudi Arabia has invested over $135.2 billion in AI over the last few years.
- 5G
GSMA Intelligence predicts that 5G adoption in the GCC Arab states will hit 16% by 2025. This is higher than the expected global adoption rate of 15%. Furthermore, this adoption will drive the growth of smart cities, immersive digital entertainment, and the digitization of multiple industries.
- Cloud and Edge Computing
Cloud computing is gaining prominence in the Middle East, with 77% of CIOs in the UAE investing in cloud technologies and 44% doing so on a large scale. Companies are using cloud technologies to transform their businesses and better serve consumers. Edge computing is also growing as businesses seek to lower network latency and reduce costs, and Middle Eastern governments build smart cities.
- Internet of Things (IoT)
On the back of 5G adoption, smart gadgets, and the expansion of smart cities in the Middle East, IoT is emerging as a key growth driver, ensuring connectivity, big data aggregation, predictive maintenance, energy optimization, and more. So it’s no surprise that revenues for IoT companies in the Middle East and Africa are set to more than double by 2023.
- Cybersecurity
According to the IDC, 56% of CIOs in the Middle East identified the development of security operations centers as their top priority for the next 12–28 months, given the rise in cyberattacks across the region. Cyber-attacks increased 180% in the UAE between 2020 and 2021.
- Robotic Process Automation (RPA)
The RPA market in the Middle East is expected to grow at a CAGR of 5.21% annually up until 2026. RPA is disrupting the manufacturing, oil and gas, and services industries through hyper-automation.
- Contactless Tech
Contactless technologies, particularly contactless payments, are the next frontier of growth in the Middle East, with 95% of consumers considering the use of contactless, biometric, or QR payment technologies sometime in 2022.
- Autonomous service delivery
In Dubai, retailers are innovating the future of retail through technology. In 2021, Carrefour and ADNOC Distribution launched cashier-less, contact-less stores leveraging AI technology. These stores create a shopping experience with convenient payment and zero wait times.
- Augmented and Virtual Reality
According to a 2020 PwC report, AR and VR could contribute up to $4.1 billion to the UAE economy by 2030 while also enhancing over 40,000 jobs. This is a result of the adoption of AR/VR across different sectors of the UAE economy, such as in healthcare, where the Ministry of Health is considering VR as a tool for physiotherapeutic rehabilitation and applications in the consumer/retail sector.
- Medical Tourism Powered by Health Data
The Middle East is famous for the volume of medical tourists it attracts. Israel generates $500 million annually from medical tourism, while Jordan receives over 250,000 medical tourists yearly. Hospital systems across the Middle East are now seeking to generate more economic value by performing predictive and prescriptive analytics using health data to improve diagnostic accuracy, boost efficiency and reduce the risk of evidence-based treatments.
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