Partnership aims to strengthen industry-academia collaboration with a focus on 6G research, and youth empowerment initiatives

e&, the global technology group, has signed a strategic Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with New York University Abu Dhabi (NYUAD) to advance research and development (R&D) of 6G technology, paving the way for the next generation of connectivity. This partnership aims to bridge the gap between academia and corporate worlds by empowering students with various youth-driven initiatives and equipping them with foundational knowledge about future technologies such as 6G, as part of their academic journey.

Ali Al Mansoori, Group Chief People Officer, e&, said: “Our partnership with NYUAD is built on our belief that the leaders of tomorrow will emerge from the intersection of cutting-edge technology and human ingenuity. At e&, investing in advanced technologies like 6G is important, but what truly matters is supporting the brilliant minds that will shape its future. By bringing academia and industry closer together, we’re helping students turn bold ideas into real solutions. This partnership is about more than preparing youth for the digital age– We’re inviting them to build it. By bringing the transformative potential of 6G into the classroom, we’re empowering today’s students to become tomorrow’s trailblazers."

Marwan Bin Shaker, Acting Chief Technology and Information Officer, e& UAE, said: “Driving 6G research and innovation is central to our efforts to shape the future of connectivity. By partnering with a leading academic institution like NYUAD, we are adding depth and academic integrity to our research efforts, exploring the full potential of 6G technology. This alliance is set to foster a dynamic exchange of knowledge and skills that empowers students to contribute to meaningful technological advancements.”

NYUAD Provost Arlie Petters, Chief Academic Officer, said: “We are delighted to partner with e& to push the boundaries of innovation in 6G technology, positioning our academic community as pioneers in next-generation connectivity. Together with NYUAD Wireless, we are creating a dynamic hub where cutting-edge research meets bold ideas, empowering our students and faculty to shape the future of communication and redefine what’s possible in the world of technology.”

e& will work closely with NYUAD Wireless – the institution’s academic research centre dedicated to wireless communications, sensing, networking and devices, to drive groundbreaking research in 6G technologies. Together, they will explore next-generation connectivity, focusing on the development and deployment of 6G, laying the groundwork for modern connectivity that promises faster speeds, lower latency and enhanced reliability.

This partnership will also enable the integration of 6G into academic curriculums, making it a critical learning platform for students to gain insights into next-generation technologies. e& will further support NYUAD on various youth-development initiatives including internship programmes, recruitment drives, providing case studies, allowing students to gain hands-on experience and relevant industry skills. With access to NYUAD’s emerging talent network, e& will also benefit from attracting top talent in their workforce.

This collaboration allows e& to advance its commitment to developing future-proof connectivity solutions. By equipping students with practical knowledge and skills, e& also aims to nurture the next generation of leaders, positioning them at the forefront of digital transformation.

• 65% of MENA CEOs say they are accelerating Gen AI adoption
• 54% view advanced GenAI as crucial for competitive advantage

A new study from e& and the IBM Institute for Business Value highlights transformative trends in AI adoption and opportunities poised to redefine digital transformation across the Middle East and North Africa (MENA).

Titled “MENA’s AI advantage: Opportunity to leap ahead and lead,” the report explores insights gathered from interviews with key regional CEOs and policymakers in the UAE, Saudi Arabia, and Egypt shedding light on the nuanced opportunities and challenges unique to the region's dynamic economic and technological landscape.

The report shows that the conditions for AI adoption in the MENA region are highly favourable, with 65 per cent of MENA CEOs pushing their organisation to embrace Generative AI (GenAI)—outpacing the global average of 61 per cent. Key factors contributing to this momentum include robust government support, focused research, investments in infrastructure, strategic upskilling, and cross-sector collaboration. Governments are particularly enthusiastic about AI due to the significant economic value it promises, further accelerating its integration across industries.

Harrison Lung, Group Chief Strategy Officer, e&, said: “As the MENA region stands on the brink of an AI-driven future, the timing of this research collaboration between e& and IBM could not be more crucial. This report serves as a roadmap for CEOs and policymakers to bridge the gap between ambition and execution, enabling the MENA region to cement its position as a global leader in AI innovation.”

While 54 per cent of MENA CEOs recognise advanced GenAI as critical to gaining a competitive edge, the report also reveals significant barriers, including challenges in tech readiness, data privacy, security, and talent development. These obstacles underscore the need for a strong focus on foundational capabilities—such as upskilling talent, and scaling infrastructure and data systems to match regional ambitions

“We are proud to partner with e&, to capture the region’s readiness to accelerate AI’s impact across sectors. Together, we are helping CEOs and boards navigate the AI frontier, with a clear focus on building infrastructure, scaling talent, and unlocking data to fuel business success,” said Saad Toma, General Manager, IBM Middle East and Africa.

Other key findings include:

• While CEOs across the region recognise the importance of digital infrastructure, confidence in its ability to support scaling and deliver new investments has sharply declined—from 82 per cent in 2023 to 64 per cent in 2024.
• 54 per cent of tech leaders in the region believe their organisations have the necessary technology risk tolerance to successfully execute AI strategies—lagging the global figure of 63 per cent.
• MENA CEOs cited organisational resistance to change from top management (41%) and employees (43%) as barriers to innovation.

Five priorities for AI transformation

The report also outlines five key priorities to drive AI transformation in the MENA region, helping CEOs accelerate their AI initiatives and scale effectively.

1. While public partnerships are helping, organisations must align their talent strategies with business needs to stay competitive in the AI-driven future.
2. Modernising data architecture is a critical focus, with 46 per cent of MENA CEOs recognising its importance for achieving AI goals in the next three years.
3. Talent acquisition and retention remain a challenge, with only 23 per cent of MENA CEOs prioritising talent strategy. While public-private partnerships are helping, organisations must align their talent strategies with business needs to stay competitive in the AI-driven future.
4. Responsible AI is increasingly important for sustainable growth. With rising concerns over data privacy and regulatory compliance—identified by 48 per cent and 43 per cent of MENA CEOs as top barriers to GenAI adoption—organisations must implement robust AI governance frameworks to ensure compliance and build trust.
5. The MENA region’s national AI strategies and public-private partnerships are pivotal for advancing AI adoption. By leveraging government support, the region can build an integrated ecosystem that aligns strategy, infrastructure, and talent while fostering an innovation-driven mindset.

“With visionary leadership, abundant resources, and a digitally empowered population, the region is uniquely positioned to chart its own transformative AI journey. However, turning this potential into measurable impact requires bold, pragmatic action—investing in tailored infrastructure, nurturing talent, and embracing collaboration to address regional nuances,” Harrison added.

To unlock AI's full potential and drive regional transformation, the report also identifies key imperatives that bridge strategy and execution. These imperatives offer a blueprint for regional CEOs to align leadership, integrate resources, optimise operations, and leverage public-private collaboration to create a dynamic and sustainable AI ecosystem.

• Leadership alignment: Successful AI integration demands cohesive C-suite leadership, aligning business goals, technology, and financial strategies with clear objectives and adaptive decision-making.
• Integrated strategy: A comprehensive AI strategy links infrastructure, data, and talent to business goals, ensuring adaptability to regulations and market demands.
• Operational excellence: Balance quick wins with long-term growth through agile decisions, scalable solutions, and clarity on internal versus external capabilities.
• Public-private partnerships: Building on public sector AI investments fosters collaboration, aligns innovation, and drives shared progress across the region.

AI adoption demands a tailored approach

The MENA region is diverse, with significant differences in economic structures, regulatory environments, and technological readiness. As a result, AI strategies must be tailored to individual markets rather than applying a one-size-fits-all approach.

What sets the region apart is its unique combination of ambitious national visions, substantial investments, and strengths like abundant capital, energy resources, and a tech-savvy, youthful population eager to embrace the future. Governments are leading AI adoption by crafting models suited to their specific needs, supported by collaborations with global tech giants, which drive the development of essential AI infrastructure.

Download the complete research report from e& and the IBM Institute for Business Value: MENA’s AI advantage: Opportunity to leap ahead and lead

Study Methodology:

The IBM Institute for Business Value (IBM IBV), in collaboration with Oxford Economics, conducted two rounds of survey-based interviews with over 3,000 CEOs and 2,500 C-suite technology leaders, including Chief Technology Officers (CTOs), Chief Information Officers (CIOs), and Chief Data Officers (CDOs). Executives represented more than 30 countries and 26 industries and included 149 CEOs and 149 C-suite technology leaders from across the UAE, Saudi Arabia, and Egypt. The primary phase of surveys for both groups, conducted between December 2023 and April 2024, focused on leadership, technology, talent, industry disruption, and emerging enterprise strategies with an emphasis on the role of AI-driven technologies.

e& and IBM IBV then analysed global and regional IBM IBV survey data to further explore insights specific to the MENA region. e& supplemented and strengthened findings by conducting deep-dive qualitative interviews with six CEOs and policymakers from the UAE, Saudi Arabia, and Egypt to capture current regional perspectives and to highlight rapidly-changing industry trends in the MENA region.

The IBM Institute for Business Value, IBM's thought leadership think tank, combines global research and performance data with expertise from industry thinkers and leading academics to deliver insights that make business leaders smarter. For more world-class thought leadership, visit: www.ibm.com/ibv.

e&, a global technology group, has collaborated with IBM (NYSE: IBM) to deploy a pioneering, end-to-end, multi-model Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Generative AI governance solution. Announced today at the World Economic Forum 2025 in Davos, this collaboration intends to enhance e&'s AI governance framework to promote compliance, oversight, and ethical practices across its growing AI ecosystem, reinforcing e&'s commitment to establishing robust governance, risk management, and regulatory oversight across its AI usage.

The solution will leverage IBM's watsonx.governance enterprise AI and data governance platform, combined with IBM Consulting’s expertise in AI implementation, build on e&’s commitment to scale AI responsibly and track ROI while addressing compliance requirements, transparency, and ethical oversight of AI models.

This collaboration will bring IBM’s globally recognised toolkit for AI governance to bear on key challenges like maintaining consistent oversight of e&’s AI systems, navigating risks such as non-compliance, ethical concerns, and the monitoring of AI performance at scale. As it continues to expand its ambitious AI strategy and capabilities, e& is proactively enhancing its AI ecosystem by establishing a robust framework for accountability, mitigating potential biases, and safeguarding data. Leveraging IBM’s technology and consulting expertise, e& is taking a significant step forward in building scalable and transparent AI operations.

The new AI governance solution introduces advanced features like automated risk management, compliance monitoring, and real-time performance analysis. This will enable e& to mitigate risks, detect biases, and address regulatory standards throughout the entire AI model lifecycle—from development to decommissioning.

“As AI continues to transform industries, responsible governance is paramount. At e&, we are committed to leading by example and setting the global benchmark when it comes to establishing robust AI governance practices,” said Dena Almansoori, Group Chief AI and Data Officer at e&. “By adopting IBM watsonx.governance, we’re taking a decisive step forward in our AI journey. This collaboration ensures transparency, explainability and efficiency across our AI operations, raising the bar for AI governance in the industry.”

The governance solution is set to empower e& to monitor current AI use cases in real-time, proactively manage any potential AI risks in production, and deliver measurable value to stakeholders.

By establishing a centralised inventory of AI models, the solution supports full traceability and oversight. IBM watsonx.governance facilitates dynamic monitoring, offering real-time insights into model performance, risk scoring, and compliance metrics. This helps enable e& to detect issues like bias and drift early, allowing for corrective action and ethical AI practices.

IBM Consulting will be working closely with e& to design and implement a comprehensive AI governance framework tailored to e&’s unique requirements. This includes defining workflows and key performance indicators and onboarding existing AI models onto the platform to deliver real-time insights into AI’s value, impact, and potential risks.

The deployment will also utilise IBM Consulting Advantage, an AI-powered delivery platform, to accelerate the development of the AI governance framework through persona and journey mapping, market research, architecture patterns for AI integration, and knowledge transfer materials.

“IBM watsonx empowers organisations like e& to navigate the complexities of AI governance. By integrating automation, real-time monitoring, and centralised oversight, we are addressing key governance challenges and reducing risks associated with AI,” said Shukri Eid, General Manager, Gulf, Levant & Pakistan at IBM. “Strengthening our long-standing partnership with e&, this milestone serves as a catalyst for responsible AI innovation.”

This collaboration builds on the successful relationship between IBM and e&, including the  recently joint report titled MENA’s AI advantage: Opportunity to leap ahead and lead (Middle East and North Africa perspective) featuring perspectives from top Middle East businesses and data from IBM’s existing CEO study. The report identified five critical themes that uncover regional nuances for CEOs to keep in mind as they navigate and prepare their organisations to seize the AI opportunity, including the importance of advocacy for trustworthy AI.

This collaboration marks a significant step in e&’s AI governance journey, setting a new standard for responsible and scalable AI operations for the group and industry at large.

• e& brand achieved a AAA rating, with a brand strength score of 84.6
• e& ranked among the top 10 Most Valuable Telecom Brands globally.
• e&’s brand portfolio and investment value surpassed US$ 20 billion in 2025
• e& Group CEO named "Telecom Guardian of the Year" for the third year in a row

e&, a global technology company, has achieved exceptional brand value growth this year and is ranked by Brand Finance as the “World’s Fastest Growing Brand” in their Global 500 Brand 2025 report released earlier today during World Economic Forum at Davos. This recognition reflects a remarkable eight-fold increase in brand value versus last year, reaching an all-time high brand value of USD15.3 billion for e& as a standalone brand.

This success is the culmination of a three-year transformation journey, during which e& consolidated its historic “Etisalat” brand under a unified identity.

The significant increase of e&’s brand portfolio and investment value in the 2025 report was driven by growth in investments and portfolio exceeding USD 20 billion, including but not limited to PTCL (Pakistan), Mobily (Saudi Arabia), and the acquisition of a controlling stake (50 per cent plus one economic share) in the service and infrastructure companies of PPF Telecom Group. Furthermore, this growth was strengthened by the integration of the historic Etisalat brand and an organic year-on-year growth for e& of 13 per cent on a consolidated basis. e& also received a Brand Strength Index (BSI) rating of AAA, with a score of 84.6 out of 100.

In addition, e&’s high-profile partnerships, including a 15-year collaboration with Manchester City Football Club and its role as a founding partner of the Formula 1® Etihad Airways Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, have brought the brand to global audiences, enhancing its visibility and strengthening its position as a leader in innovation and technology.

The brand’s call to ‘Go for More’

The e& brand, introduced as part of the group’s strategic transformation, reflects a forward-looking vision that transcends traditional telecommunications. Though relatively young, it has quickly established itself as a technology powerhouse, housing five distinct business verticals that drive its growth and innovation. Last year’s Brand Finance Global 500 report ranked both the e& and ‘etisalat by e&’ brands, with the latter now fully absorbed into e&, significantly enhancing its position and overall brand portfolio value in the rankings, which soared 700 per cent year-on-year.

Since unveiling its new brand identity in 2022, e& has quickly redefined what it means to deliver value to customers worldwide. Through its inspiring “Go for More” brand positioning, the global technology group highlights a dynamic portfolio that spans connectivity, digital services, entertainment, fintech, and enterprise solutions. Brands like e& UAE, Mobily KSA, and e& PPF Telecom provide cutting-edge connectivity, while platforms such as STARZPLAY, Charge&Go, and e& money simplify and enrich everyday life.

With a focus on empowering individuals, businesses, and communities across 38 countries, e& has built a powerful ecosystem designed to inspire growth, enable innovation, and create opportunities for a brighter, more connected future.

A brand of global significance

e& is also ranked among the Top 10 Most Valuable Telecom Brands globally according to the Global 500 Brand 2025 report. The company has consistently received recognition in its home market, including from Kantar BrandZ, which named it the most valuable brand in the UAE in November 2024.

The Global 500 2025 report again recognised Hatem Dowidar as the "Telecom Guardian of the Year" for the third consecutive year. In the 2025 rankings, he achieved an overall position of 39^th and secured the number one spot in the telecom sector.

As the world’s leading brand valuation consultancy, Brand Finance has bridged the gap between marketing and finance for more than 25 years. It evaluates the strength of brands and quantifies their financial value to help organisations of all kinds make strategic decisions. Every year, Brand Finance conducts more than 5,000 brand valuations, supported by original market research, and publishes over 100 reports that rank brands across all sectors and countries.

New 24-hour channel delivers safe, educational content designed to inspire and support early childhood development

evision, the media and entertainment arm of e& has launched ‘Bloom’ –  a dedicated proprietary preschool TV channel that delivers safe, high-quality educational content tailored for children between the ages of 2 and 5. The channel is now available to UAE audiences from e&, broadcasting 24 hours a day in both English and Arabic and soon to be rolled out across the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region.

The launch of the channel was marked by a special event, held at the iconic Museum of the Future in Dubai. The event brought together industry leaders to discuss the evolving landscape of children's media and the role of Bloom in fostering early childhood development.

Developed to meet the growing demand for preschool programming that not only entertains but also stimulates early learning in a secure environment, Bloom offers families and caregivers a trusted platform that prioritises children’s safety while supporting their cognitive, emotional and social growth. Through engaging and age-appropriate storytelling, the channel delivers inclusive and meaningful content designed to spark curiosity, creativity and confidence among young viewers.

Olivier Bramly, CEO, evision, said: "Our decision to launch a new preschool channel stems from a keen observation of the shifting media landscape. While traditional linear TV faces disruption, the demand for high-quality, age-appropriate content for preschoolers continues to grow globally, TAM UAE data mirrors this trend, highlighting a surge in kids' content consumption among preschool audiences. By introducing our new proprietary channel across the MENA region, we are not only addressing this demand but also reinforcing evision's commitment to being the premier source of family entertainment. This addition to our proprietary channel lineup solidifies our position as a leader in delivering quality content tailored to our audience's evolving needs."

Scientific research has shown that children aged two and above benefit from quality, age-appropriate screen content designed with specific educational goals. Bloom brings learning to life with a diverse range of programmes. Children can explore numbers, shapes, letters, and social skills through engaging songs, stories, and interactive play. Recognising children's natural rhythms, Bloom offers high-energy programmes for playtime and calming content for quieter moments. The channel allows for families to enjoy these programmes together, creating shared moments of learning and fun.

With the extensive range of digital content options available today, the channel has been developed to empower parents with a trusted resource they can rely on. According to YouGov research, more than three-quarters of parents in the UAE (78 per cent) are worried about their child’s exposure to inappropriate online content, with 92 per cent agreeing that such content can affect a child’s mental health.

Sunil K. Joy, Head of Content, evision, said: “Bloom represents a strategic extension of our commitment to delivering premium, purpose-driven content for young audiences. With research indicating rising concern among parents about their children being exposed to unsafe and inappropriate content, we aimed to build a platform that promotes positive behaviours such as empathy, sharing, and teamwork. By offering a safe and carefully curated programming lineup, we are not just launching a channel, we are building a community. Through collaborations with educators and engaging families via interactive campaigns, we aim to foster meaningful connections that extend far beyond the screen and support the next generation’s growth in meaningful ways.”

Character-driven narratives emphasise values like friendship, kindness and problem-solving, encouraging children to adopt positive behaviours such as empathy, sharing, and teamwork. The channel is committed to fostering inclusivity and representation by featuring a diverse cast of children and characters. This approach encourages preschoolers to recognise and appreciate differences while also seeing themselves reflected on screen, helping to promote a sense of belonging and understanding from an early age.