Episode 26 - How do we create AI in Arabic?

Wamda

Jordan-based Mawdoo3, the largest Arabic online portal, realised the need for an Arabic digital voice assistant and so, it went about creating one. Given the complexities of the Arabic language and the many dialects spoken across the region, building an Arabic artificial intelligence (AI) tool is no easy feat. But now, after several years of research and engineering, the region has its own assistant: Salma.

We spoke to Hussein Al-Natsheh, chief AI officer at Mawdoo3, about the company’s experience in building Salma, the need for more research and development and attracting talent back to the region.