GITEX is the largest technology exhibition in the MENA and South Asia region and its importance to the UAEU was confirmed by Zaki Anwar Nusseibeh, Chancellor of the UAEU and Cultural Adviser to His Highness The President of the UAE. He said, “It is essential that the UAEU participate in this important event. It is a unique opportunity to display the digital infrastructure, information technology, and smart services that the university community makes use of. It is important that we also learn about developments in these fields around the world and consider how to make use of them. Our participation in GITEX is crucial to advance our leading position in the field of digital transformation”.
Nusseibeh explained how the UAEU’s investments in future technology and digital solutions are aligned with the UAE’s digital transformation strategy. “We are the ‘University of the Future’, recognized for our pioneering work in developing creative talent,” Nusseibeh said.
This year such pioneering work includes the “Smart Healthcare Appointment System”, which is a mobile application designed to manage the patient experience of booking a medical treatment. The use of the app will save patient time, avoid congestion at healthcare facilities, avoid inconvenience, and improve the efficiency of services.
Students from the College of Information Technology will present their own mobile application to help people observe physical distancing and ensure community safety. It is a network-based system that uses low-resolution infrared sensors to facilitate daily routines such as travel to school or the workplace. This serves to monitor and guide a person’s indoor activity within guidelines set in place in for emergencies such as the COVID-19 pandemic. Crucially, it also maintains their privacy.
At GITEXT the university’s IT specialists will present the outcomes of three projects that use digital technology to facilitate services used by the entire university community. The ‘Future Chapter’ is the first smart lecture theatre designed in cooperation with Cisco International to facilitate education and research in artificial intelligence and the requirements of the Fourth Industrial Revolution. The ‘Virtual Assistant’ is an application that uses artificial intelligence to enable anyone with an interest in the university to find accurate information to address their questions. The ‘UAEU’ application connects the university community, its partners, and the public to the university’s systems and services.