UAE widens AI use across government services
A WAM overview dated October 11 described UAE AI programmes and training goals; its 70.1% usage figure refers to the first quarter of 2026.
Event / data period: 2026-10-11
Published: · Updated:
An October 11 overview by Emirates News Agency said artificial intelligence was being used more widely in public services, education, healthcare and transport in the United Arab Emirates. It reported that the federal Agentic AI Project aims to convert 50% of federal sectors, services and operations into autonomous AI-driven models within two years.
Abu Dhabi's AINative programme aims to equip 20,000 government employees with AI skills by the end of 2026. The same report said more than 24,000 teachers, school leaders and specialists took part in a specialised training week for the 2026–2027 academic year. A separate Microsoft Q1 2026 report estimated that 70.1% of the UAE's working-age population used generative AI; that is a first-quarter measure, not an October reading.
Data
Usage measure
Microsoft's reported share of working-age people for Q1 2026, cited by WAM in its October 11 overview.
- Generative AI use among the working-age population
- 70.1 percent
- 2026-01 — 2026-03 · Estimate
Methodology
Microsoft defines working age as 15–64 and estimates the share using a generative AI product during the period from anonymised telemetry adjusted for access differences. Recorded as the source's Q1 2026 estimate, not an October reading.
Updated:
Subjects and places
Subject proposals
- Artificial intelligenceSuggested
- Subject suggested from the title or summary: AIwww.wam.ae ↗www.microsoft.com ↗
Geographic references
Only source-provided geographic references are shown. Opening an external map is optional. Optional story maps use OpenStreetMap. Opening a map sends your IP address and this site’s address to the map provider; location data remains readable as text without loading the map.
- United Arab Emirates · Place role: Coverage · Place type: Country or area · Location precision: RegionalEvidence
- Explicit preserved editorial country/region; no city or national centroid inferredwww.wam.ae ↗www.microsoft.com ↗
- Abu Dhabi · Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates · Place role: Place mentioned by source · Place type: City · Location precision: Approximate
54.3860893525, 24.4396362329 (longitude, latitude)
EvidenceOpen this point in OpenStreetMap ↗- Explicit article mention: Abu Dhabi. Country agrees with the preserved article scope. Gazetteer reference only; event location is unconfirmed.www.wam.ae ↗www.microsoft.com ↗ungegn.un.org ↗ungegn-api.azurewebsites.net ↗