UAE’s Bold Leap into Generative AI: Falcon 2 Unveiled

The United Arab Emirates (UAE) continues to assert its commitment to becoming a leader in the artificial intelligence (AI) arena with the recent launch of its second iteration of the open-source Generative AI model, Falcon 2. This ambitious endeavor, spearheaded by the UAE’s Technology Innovation Institute (TII), aims not only to showcase technological prowess but also to bolster the nation’s economy beyond oil reliance.

The evolution of AI in the UAE

Falcon 2: A New Contender in AI Technology

Launched earlier this week, Falcon 2 comes in two versions: the Falcon 11B, a large language model (LLM) endowed with 11 billion parameters and trained on an impressive 5.5 trillion tokens, and the Falcon 2 11B VLM, which is notable for its multimodal capabilities—specifically, its ability to convert visual inputs into textual outputs. Such features position Falcon 2 as a serious competitor to established models such as Meta’s Llama 3 and Google’s Gemini.

According to TII, Falcon 2 has already demonstrated superior performance metrics in certain areas, effectively positioning it amongst the top tier of generative models currently available. This includes multilingual capabilities, facilitating tasks in languages such as English, French, Spanish, German, and Portuguese.

“With other multimodal models soon coming to the market in various sizes, our aim is to ensure that developers and entities that value their privacy have access to one of the best AI models to enable their AI journey,” remarked Faisal Al Bannai, Secretary General of the Advanced Technology Research Council.

The technological landscape of generative AI

A National Strategy for AI Leadership

The UAE’s formation of a Ministry of AI is possibly unprecedented on a global scale, emphasizing its intent to embed AI within the nation’s fabric of governance and economy. The National Artificial Intelligence Strategy 2031 seeks to establish the UAE as a “global leader in artificial intelligence” over the next several years. This ambitious strategy outlines the integration of AI technologies across various vital sectors within the UAE, showcasing a clear vision of technological evolution.

While countries like China, Sweden, and the Netherlands are advancing their own LLMs, the UAE’s distinctive approach towards sovereign AI highlights its potential to utilize locally-relevant information and align values unique to its cultural context. This is especially significant in contrast to popular tools like OpenAI’s ChatGPT, which are often opaque regarding their training data.

AI71: Commercializing Falcon

The government’s initiative extends to the establishment of AI71, an AI company aiming to commercialize Falcon in various sectors, including healthcare, education, and legal services. This venture plans to leverage the UAE’s vast trove of anonymized data—integral for developing meaningful AI solutions while ensuring privacy.

“Enabling access to vast storehouses of anonymized data in these verticals represents a critical differentiator over other serious AI markets today—namely, the UAE’s highly digitized and comparatively mature e-infrastructure,” affirmed the press release.

Expanding the boundaries of AI in the UAE

Strategic Investments in AI

The UAE government is also pursuing expansive investments to strengthen its position in the technological landscape. This includes the recent announcement of a technology investment firm, MGX, aiming for substantial investments in AI and semiconductor sectors, projected to exceed $100 billion in assets.

A notable marker of the UAE’s growing stance in AI is Microsoft’s recent $1.5 billion investment in G42, a locally-based AI holding company. This investment is significant not only for G42 but also showcases Microsoft’s larger commitment to AI following its landmark $13 billion investment in OpenAI, which catapulted the AI market with tools such as ChatGPT.

Conclusion

With the unveiling of Falcon 2, the UAE is not merely participating in the AI race—it is aiming to lead it. By strategically investing in technology, fostering innovation through new companies like AI71, and developing an extensive governmental framework around AI, the country is carving out a formidable position in the global AI landscape. The next few years will be crucial as the UAE executes its strategy and continues to grow its presence in the Generative AI sector. The journey towards AI dominance is well underway, and the world will be watching closely as the UAE pushes the envelope in AI advancement.

The promising landscape of AI innovation in the UAE