Technology

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Explainer

What Iran’s threats to Hormuz internet cables mean for Gulf

Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps has threatened to cut crucial internet and communications routes in the region if US aggression escalates.

Israeli President Isaac Herzog and Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi at the the Conference on Interaction and Confidence-Building Measures in Asia, Baku, Azerbaijan, Oct. 15, 2026.

Israeli president meets FM Wang Yi as reports link China to Iran’s military buildup

Israeli President Isaac Herzog held talks with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi and discussed topics ranging from economic and cultural cooperation to regional security.

Abdulrahman Alfozan in an undated photo

Who is Abdulrahman Alfozan, Saudi national charged in bugging OpenAI meetings?

The Saudi national who was arrested for allegedly planting a covert listening device at OpenAI’s offices has extensive experience working at leading technology companies in the US and serves as a venture partner at a Saudi venture capital firm.

Visitors crowd the Amazon Web Services exhibition stand at the 2026 Hannover Messe industrial trade fair on April 20, 2026, in Hanover, Germany.

What does Amazon war damage mean for Gulf cloud expansion?

Amazon’s cloud computing unit said the damage was sustained to its facilities in Bahrain and the United Arab Emirates, casting doubt over multibillion-dollar investments in the region.

Latest News

Saudi Arabia taps China’s MiniMax for Arabic AI model

Guests stand at the booth of Saudi artificial intelligence company Humain during the Future Investment Initiative (FII) conference in Riyadh, on Oct. 29, 2025.

Starlink expands Middle East footprint with UAE launch: What to know

GIUSEPPE CACACE/AFP via Getty Images

In Bristol, reporting on regional business, climate change, AI, tech

China's Xi to visit Egypt for first time in decade as military, Huawei ties grow

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Culture

Iran war hits Saudi gaming drive as Esports Nations Cup pushed to 2027

People attend the international esports gamers Next World Forum in Riyadh, Sept. 7, 2022.

An Israeli Nature and Parks Authority employee dives in the Red Sea to remove corals that grew on columns supporting the Europe Asia Pipeline.

Israel to build land fiber-optic cable between Mediterranean, Red seas

Israel's Finance Ministry reached an agreement with an Israel state-owned energy company to construct a multi-optic-fiber between Ashkelon and Eilat, with the goal of turning the country into an international communication corridor.

Sam Altman, US entrepreneur, investor, programmer, and founder and CEO of artificial intelligence company OpenAI, speaks at Tel Aviv University in Tel Aviv on June 5, 2023. (Photo by JACK GUEZ / AFP) (Photo by JACK GUEZ/AFP via Getty Images)

Israel’s Netanyahu calls Elon Musk, Sam Altman, pledges national AI strategy

OpenAI CEO Sam Altman is currently visiting Israel where he met with President Isaac Herzog but only held a phone conversation with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

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Analysis

Gulf space sector attracts private companies, including Bezos' Blue Origin

The Middle East and North Africa is one of the world's most active regions in expressing interest in space technology and travel.

By Salim A. Essaid

An engineer from the Israeli company "Commun.it" uses his expertise in social media commercial analysis to identify networks of fake users.

Iran suspect in cyberattack targeting Israeli shipping, financial firms

Iran has increased its cyberattacks against Israel in the past year, according to several observers.

Workers install electric wires for Iraqi refugees as they set up a new part of the Khazir refugee camp near the Kurdish checkpoint of Aski Kalak, 40 kilometers (25 miles) west of Erbil, Iraqi Kurdistan, Nov. 21, 2016.

Iraqi Kurdistan's first solar plant helps with power outages, boosts agriculture

The Kurdistan Regional Government’s efforts to increase renewable energy usage come amid persistent electricity shortages throughout Iraq, as well as rising environmental concerns.

Meta-nose smell detector

Analysis

UAE gets whiff of metaverse's smell potential

The United Arab Emirates's metaverse-friendly environment is attracting ambitious projects like Meta-nose, which can identify thousands of smells and convert them into digital data.

By Salim A. Essaid

Red Bull Racing Team Principal Christian Horner talks with Elon Musk in the Paddock prior to final practice ahead of the F1 Grand Prix of Miami at Miami International Autodrome on May 06, 2023 in Miami, Florida. (Photo by Mark Thompson/Getty Images)

Antisemitism skyrockets on Twitter as Israel's requests go ignored

With the number of antisemitic posts on social media on the rise, Israel’s Foreign Ministry focuses on tracing such dangerous trends and battling them on the platforms they are published on.

People attend the International E-Sport Gamers forum "Next World" in the Saudi capital, Riyadh, on Sept. 7, 2022.

Saudi Arabia increases stake in EA gaming by 55%

The PIF held 16.01 million shares in Electronic Arts (EA) before Q4 2022, but after Q1 2023, it held 24.81 million shares.

Leader of the Republican People's Party (CHP), Kemal Kilicdaroglu, and the presidential candidate of the Main Opposition alliance, speaks to supporters at a rally while campaigning for the presidential election on April 30, 2023 in Izmir, Turkey. CHP leader Kemal Kilicdaroglu is holding campaign rallies across Turkey ahead of the countries May 14, 2023 presidential and parliamentary elections. The Kilicdaroglu-led Nation Alliance is representing six opposition parties in next month's election against Presi

Turkey’s opposition warns against deepfakes ahead of fateful elections

As the presidential race heats up in the lead-up to Turkey's consequential elections, the country’s main opposition party accuses the government of plotting a cyberwar against Erdogan’s top rival.

An illustration picture taken in London on Dec. 30, 2021, shows gold-plated souvenir cryptocurrency coins.

UAE reprimands cryptocurrency firm OPNX

The company, which is planning a transparent crypto platform, allegedly did not receive the necessary regulatory authority from the UAE.

A photo taken on March 31, 2023 in Manta, near Turin, shows a computer screen with the home page of the artificial intelligence OpenAI web site, displaying its chatGPT robot. - Italy's privacy watchdog said on March it had blocked the controversial robot ChatGPT, saying the artificial intelligence app did not respect user data and could not verify users' age. (Photo by Marco BERTORELLO / AFP) (Photo by MARCO BERTORELLO/AFP via Getty Images)

In water-starved Middle East, large ChatGPT data centers are a threat

The UAE announced its record-breaking green data center in February of this year. The Moro Hub, created by the digital arm of DEWA, became the largest solar-powered data center, according to Guinness World Records.

Saudi and foreign journalists are pictured at the Future Investment Initiative (FII) badge collection centre.

Saudi Arabia opens four special economic zones with eye on foreign investment

The special economic zones offer incentives such as competitive corporate tax rates, 100% ownership of companies and flexibility in employing foreign labor.