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The session brought together Sheikh Saud bin Sultan bin Mohammed Al Qasimi, Director General of Sharjah Digital Department; Sherif Tawfik, Chief Partnerships Officer for AI and Sovereign Cloud at Microsoft; Gary Burniske, Managing Director of the Center for Global Food Security at Purdue University; and student Rayan Bouslimi, winner of the International AI Olympiad in China.
Sheikh Saud bin Sultan Al Qasimi emphasised that building smart cities depends on a solid partnership between the public and private sectors. He explained that governments provide the vision, while innovation and talent deliver the added value necessary to achieve it. He stressed that Sharjah benefits from global experiences to enhance growth and progress, adding that the success of smart cities depends on the availability of data and the integration of efforts across entities, not on isolated or delayed action.
He noted that Sharjah has launched one of the largest partnerships with technology companies, as governments alone cannot carry out this mission. He added that the rapid growth of smart cities requires meeting people’s daily needs based on precise studies that take their priorities into account.
Sherif Tawfik described the present as the era of artificial intelligence following successive industrial revolutions. He explained that AI can provide qualitative solutions to societal challenges and acknowledged that, as with every industrial revolution, technological shifts will impact jobs. He stressed the importance of focusing on the new types of employment that will emerge.
He called for the urgent study of climate change and its direct impact on food security and rising temperatures, while highlighting international experiences in reducing energy and fuel consumption in food production using AI. Tawfik pointed out Microsoft’s commitment to achieving zero waste and reducing emissions through a $10 billion investment in renewable energy projects, in addition to beginning to rely on nuclear power in its energy centres.
Gary Burniske stressed the importance of AI in supporting food security by boosting local production, developing import systems, and ensuring the stability of supply chains. He recalled the challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic and the difficulty of securing food amid supply disruptions. He proposed strengthening infrastructure resilience, expanding monitoring capabilities through smart platforms, and integrating advanced technologies into city systems to make them more adaptable to change.
Student Rayan Bouslimi, winner of the International AI Olympiad in China, called for establishing an open data platform to support sustainability plans. He emphasised the importance of simulation models in developing smart city infrastructure and argued that tackling challenges requires addressing small issues gradually through data analysis and learning from global experiences. He further highlighted that enhancing food security requires improving agricultural processes, rationalising water use, providing energy, and reducing food waste.
The panelists — government officials and experts in smart cities and artificial intelligence — underlined the importance of public–private partnerships in building sustainable cities driven by government vision and corporate innovation. They stressed the need to expand reliance on AI to deliver advanced services that meet aspirations, reduce energy consumption, and strengthen food security efforts.
In attendance alongside His Highness were Engineer Mohammed bin Abdullah bin Majid Al Qasimi, Director of the Building Permits Department in Sharjah Municipality; Salem Ali Al Muhairi, Chairman of Sharjah Municipal Council; His Excellency Tariq Saeed Allay, Director General of the Sharjah Government Media Bureau; Lamia Obaid Al Hosani, Director of Sharjah Digital Department; Ahmed Obaid Al Qaseer, Acting CEO of Sharjah Investment and Development Authority (Shurooq); Rashid Ali Al Ali, CEO of Sharjah Communication Technologies Authority; as well as a number of officials and media representatives.
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