KPMG Lower Gulf has announced the launch of the Generative AI Centre of Excellence (CoE) in the UAE in collaboration with Microsoft to develop, manage and deploy AI strategy and governance, best practices, training, and solutions that will enable digital transformation for government organizations and businesses. 
The initiative is aimed to strengthen AI usage, and comes on the heels of the launch of a comprehensive guide by the UAE Government on generative AI applications, like Azure OpenAI Service and OpenAI’s ChatGPT.
Fady Kassatly, Partner and Head of Digital and Innovation at KPMG Lower Gulf, said: “To complement the UAE government’s efforts in promoting the adoption of AI technologies across various fields, KPMG will bring its global functional and industry expertise and innovation capabilities to assist organizations in navigating the ever-evolving landscape of AI through our pioneering Centre of Excellence. This hub will provide a solid foundation of governance and framework for ethical implementations of AI, including AI-readiness assessment, pilots, strategy, deployment, and training. Organizations will also be exposed to a team of skilled and well-versed experts in Generative AI who will enable them to stay ahead of the curve and ensure maximum return on investment.”
KPMG becomes one of the first organizations in the UAE collaborating with Microsoft to establish a Generative AI Centre of Excellence, delivering enterprise grade AI solutions and services.
Naim Yazbeck, General Manager at Microsoft UAE added: “The continual developments in Generative AI are opening up new possibilities for various industries. We are pleased to work with KPMG on this initiative and contribute knowledge and technology including Azure OpenAI Service. The CoE in the UAE will empower regional governments and businesses to build new pathways and adopt AI in a secure and ethical manner. Equally, it will help organizations make informed decisions, and enhance their business competitiveness.”
The CoE will be at the forefront of helping set up AI policies and standards and will accelerate the adoption of Generative AI using ethical practices and reference architecture in the UAE and the wider region.
It will assess and evaluate the potential applications for Generative AI in an organization. It will also enhance collaboration between different business units to identify and experiment with real business use-cases to create standardized Generative AI adoption and drive implementation.
Generative AI has a tremendous range of business use cases applicable within an organization from HR, finance, supply chain, procurement, to sales and marketing.
KPMG is also implementing multiple Generative AI use cases internally, in order to immerse and upskill its people in understanding the power of the technology and leverage it to increase productivity and gain efficiency.
The CoE will support the UAE’s digital ambitions and empower organizations to effectively harness AI solutions and drive desired business outcomes.
Organizations can test and validate their business use-cases by building prototypes and minimum viable products (MVPs) before going into production, and will benefit enormously from a culture of innovation, continuous learning, and collaboration at the CoE hub.
