Riyadh:The International Center for AI Research and Ethics (ICAIRE) has been established in Riyadh, marking a continuation of the 80-year partnership between Saudi Arabia and the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). Saudi Arabia was among the 20 founding countries of UNESCO in 1946, and ICAIRE now operates as a UNESCO category 2 center under the organization’s auspices.
According to Saudi Press Agency, the establishment of ICAIRE was approved by the Saudi Cabinet on July 25, 2023, granting it legal personality and financial and administrative independence. The center was officially launched during the Global AI Summit on September 10, 2024, following a tripartite agreement between UNESCO, the Saudi Data & AI Authority (SDAIA), and ICAIRE.
ICAIRE focuses on four main pillars AI research and development support, AI ethics awareness and outreach, AI capability building, and AI policy recommendation development. Its programs are guided by UNESCO’s Recommendation on the Ethics of Artificial Intelligence, which was adopted by 193 countries in 2021 to establish principles of human rights, justice, transparency, and accountability.
The center aims to support the UN Sustainable Development Goals 2030 and UNESCO’s program priorities, while fostering international and regional cooperation on AI policies, ethics, and research. ICAIRE emphasizes expanding access to AI learning resources in developing countries, particularly in the Arab region, and increasing participation in technology-related policymaking.
ICAIRE’s initiatives include the Elevate program, which aims to train 25,000 women in AI by 2027 across over 100 countries, and the 10K Leaders Training Program targeting 10,000 public-sector leaders in collaboration with ICESCO and the Apolitical platform. The center also launched the third edition of the Data and Artificial Intelligence Glossary and operates an AI observatory.
Operating within a network of partnerships with UNESCO, ICESCO, the League of Arab States, and global technology companies such as Google, Microsoft, and IBM, ICAIRE supports the exchange of expertise and best practices. It is also a founding member of the Global AI Capacity Development Network, which aims to bridge the digital divide and strengthen governance of emerging technologies.
Riyadh recently hosted the fourth UNESCO Global Forum on the Ethics of Artificial Intelligence, the first time the event was held in the Arab world, co-hosted by UNESCO and Saudi Arabia, represented by SDAIA and ICAIRE. During the forum, ICAIRE urged academic institutions to adopt an international framework for developing AI ethics master’s programs.