Although new customers are not being taken on, Elon Musk’s Starlink is now providing satellite internet in the UAE – and more providers could join it in the marketplace.As reported in The National, Starlink has been given a decade-long licence by UAE regulators, providing an alternative to fibre internet services from du or e&.Customers in the emirates who signed up to Starlink have reported receiving the company’s hardware in recent days and are hoping to begin using the services shortly.Andrea Faggiano, a partner at the Arthur D Little consultancy in Dubai, said he expected satellite internet services would likely take 10 to 15 per cent of the overall internet market, although it could be higher.“I would say in 15 years, the satellite technology will be massive – 15 per cent. That may even be a conservative number,” he said. “It’s definitely a serious competitor.”Reports from earlier this month quoting Starlink indicate that the company had 12 million satellite internet customers globally in the second quarter of this year, double the number of a year earlier.Market research companies such as Grand View Research have highlighted challenges to deployment, including high initial deployment costs and delays in signal.Despite such hurdles, Grand View Research states that the global satellite internet market, currently valued at around $13.3 billion a year, is likely to grow to $3...
Read briefing US President Donald Trump warned Americans on Monday that they would end up "backwards and poor" unless they embraced the data centres being built in their communities. In a post on Truth Social, he said the growing US public backlash to data centres poses an economic threat and could give China the upper hand in the AI race.“The only reason that communities throughout the USA should not want data centres is if they want to end up being backwards and poor,” Mr Trump wrote. “If they want to be successful and rich, with far lower taxes and jobs all over the place, let data reign.”He said data centres were a "golden goose" and that China would exploit the growing anti-data centre movement. The centres, which provide the computing power for the AI revolution, have emerged as a defining issue for many Americans before the crucial November midterm elections. Concerns are growing over the noise they generate and the amount of water they consume, as well as AI's effects on jobs and rising energy costs. New York has enacted a moratorium on hyperscale data centres and Texas has an effective freeze on new development.Other US states and cities are considering limits on data centres that would add more hurdles for an industry already struggling to secure power and equipment for the sprawling, energy-intensive sites.Any construction delays would carry enormous implications for US tech compa...
Read briefing Bank of England governor Andrew Bailey has become the latest high-profile figure to warn about the risks posed by frontier artificial intelligence models.Mr Bailey, who also leads the Financial Stability Board, wrote in a two-page letter to G20 finance ministers and central bankers on Monday that these frontier models “were showing increasingly sophisticated autonomy and problem-solving abilities, as well as threat capabilities”.“This is particularly important from a financial stability perspective. The risks associated with frontier AI will not respect national borders,” he wrote before the finance ministerial in North Carolina.The Bank of England chief joined a long list of figures warning about the dangers of advanced AI. An open letter signed by more than 1,300 tech employees warned the world currently lacks the tools to deliberately pace frontier-wide progress. “Recent developments have also highlighted to me that many jurisdictions do not have the protocols in place to manage the development, release and deployment of advanced frontier AI models, heightening risks for the financial sector and beyond,” Mr Bailey wrote.The open letter and Mr Bailey's comments come after an OpenAI model went rogue during a security test and hacked the tech firm Hugging Face.In a new blog post on Monday, OpenAI said it considered the incident to be a "'warning shot' for us and for the world –...
Read briefing Turkey signed the Nasa-led Artemis Accords on Monday, becoming the seventh country from the Middle East to do so.Turkish Minister of Industry and Technology Mehmet Fatih Kacir took part in a signing ceremony at Nasa’s Washington headquarters to solidify the country's participation in the coalition dedicated to peaceful and transparent space exploration.Mr Kacir said he looks forward to Nasa officials visiting Turkey to see the country's enthusiasm for science and space."Turkey enters this era of space travel with incredible ambitions and capabilities," he said. "Our aim is to establish a sustainable presence in space and advance the peaceful use of space for the benefit of all humanity."Turkey becomes the 71st country to sign @NASA’s Artemis Accords pic.twitter.com/PatKChamvU— Cody Sigel Combs (@CodyCombsNEWS) August 31, 2026Mr Kacir said US President Donald Trump's visit to Turkey during the Nato summit in July bolstered plans for both countries to co-operate on space projects. Nasa administrator Jared Isaacman highlighted the significance of Turkey signing the accords."Today marks an important milestone. Turkey brings a bold vision to this," he said, adding that both Ankara and the US share a vision to return astronauts to the surface of the Moon. Turkey joins the UAE, Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, Oman, Jordan and Israel on the list of Artemis Accords signatory nations in the Middl...
Read briefing US tech firms AMD and Cisco, along with Saudi AI company Humain, said on Monday that new artificial intelligence computing infrastructure is up and running in Saudi Arabia.The new computing power will serve Humain customers in the kingdom and beyond, Cisco said in a news release. Humain chief executive Tareq Amin said the partnership with AMD and Cisco is a vote of confidence in Humain. “Putting this infrastructure into production demonstrates Humain's ability to build, operate and deliver advanced AI infrastructure at scale,” he said.Humain is backed by Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund (PIF). The AI network is making use of AMD's Instinct MI355X graphics processing units (GPUs) and EPYC central processing units (CPUs).The future of AI will be built by people with access to open technology, skills and opportunity. Together with Saudi Arabia’s @McitGovSa and @DCOrg, AMD is proud to be helping developers and startups turn bold ideas into solutions that can scale from Saudi Arabia to the world. pic.twitter.com/VlJwOdVwnb— AMD (@AMD) August 31, 2026AMD chief executive Lisa Su said that bringing AMD Instinct systems online in Saudi Arabia was an “important milestone”. Humain will also utilise Cisco's Silicon One-based AI networking technology and N9000 Series platform. The venture between Humain, AMD and Cisco “remains on track” to roll out up to 1GW of AI infrastructure in Sau...
Read briefing On his last day as Apple's chief executive, Tim Cook expressed his appreciation for the company and its customers. Less than 24 hours before his successor, John Ternus, takes on the role at Apple, Mr Cook wrote a brief farewell message. “Sending lots of love to the Apple community on my last day as CEO,” he posted on X, adding that he will remain at Apple as the company's executive chairman. “My title changes tomorrow, but the love I have for the Apple community never will ... thank you for being a constant source of inspiration.” He added that his “gratitude is endless”, and that he was excited for the next chapter. Mr Cook was named chief executive of Apple shortly after Steve Jobs resigned due to ill health in 2011, and many analysts saw the shoes of the company's founder as almost too big to fill. Sending lots of love to the Apple community on my last day as CEO. My title changes tomorrow, but the love I have for the Apple community never will. Thank you for being a constant source of inspiration. My gratitude is endless, and I’m excited for the next chapter!— Tim Cook (@tim_cook) August 31, 2026Despite being ousted from Apple in 1985, Mr Jobs had streamlined the company's bloated product line after returning in 1997, introducing the iMac, iPod, and iPhone and ushering in an era of cloud services. He took a firm close to implosion and made it one of the world's most recogni...
Read briefing US forces hit Iranian rocket launchers near the Strait of Hormuz on Sunday, a US official said, marking the first US military action against Iran in a month.Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps was preparing to launch rockets carrying sea mines into the strait when US forces struck, the official said.Iranian media reported explosions near Larak Island, while the IRGC said several fighters and civilians had been killed or wounded.In a statement carried by Iran's state broadcaster, it noted “the martyrdom and injury of several of our fighters and compatriots", without giving an exact toll.The statement said the attack would “result in punishment of the aggressor".The strike came days after the administration of US President Donald Trump said it would focus on increasing economic pressure on Tehran rather than military action.Mr Trump said last week that mines had been cleared from international shipping lanes in the Strait of Hormuz and warned Iran that any vessel trying to lay new mines would be destroyed.The last known US strikes on Iran took place in late July. Fighting has since largely stalled, with Washington shifting its focus towards economic pressure and threatening to impose sanctions on countries that continue to do business with Tehran.The US and Israel launched attacks on Iran on February 28, prompting Tehran to retaliate against Israel and the Gulf states hostin...
Read briefing At least eight people died and 17 were missing after a ferry carrying about 270 passengers and crew capsized off northern Cyprus on Sunday, leaving survivors clinging to its hulls.The privately owned ferry left the port of Kyrenia at 12.30pm and immediately started taking on water for an unknown reason, authorities said. It was heading for the Turkish port of Tasucu in the eastern Mediterranean.Survivors reported the ferry moving erratically, and its last hard impact with the water's surface broke the bow of the two-hulled vessel.The disaster occurred just off the coast of Kyrenia, a popular holiday resort for locals and tourists. The ferry was one of several shuttle sea services that link northern Cyprus, a breakaway unrecognised Turkish Cypriot state, with Turkey each day.Turkish Cypriot leader Tufan Erhurman told CNN Turk he was "deeply saddened" by the incident.Video footage showed people in red life jackets sitting or standing on top of the overturned vessel as authorities sent coastguard and private vessels for assistance to bring them to shore.“The vessel had been moving very badly. It was constantly lifting out of the water and slamming back down. It was shaking violently,” survivor Efe Multici told CNN Turk.“Three or four minutes later, the ferry leapt high into the air, then came crashing down. The front left side burst open and water started pouring in.”Turkish C...
Read briefing Syrian security forces on Sunday killed a senior military officer of the former Bashar Al Assad regime, who played a major role in a "mutiny" against the country's new government last year, state television reported.Firas Hammoud died after opening fire at anti-terrorism and other security personnel as they stormed his hideout in the city of Safita. That led to them "dealing with him and neutralising him", the report said. Safita, a small city in Tartus governorate in western Syria, has a population mainly of Christians and members of the Alawite sect to which Mr Al Assad belonged.A Syrian official told The National this month that the new authorities have "prepared files" on 6,000 members of the former regime to prosecute them for crimes committed mostly during the 2011 to 2024 civil war.Hammoud was a commander in the 25th Special Mission Forces Division, known as Tiger Forces, of Al Assad's military. The Tiger Forces were close to Russia and operated alongside the troops that Moscow sent in 2015 to prop up the Assad regime. In December 2016, under Russian air cover, they led the regime's capture of Aleppo. In 2020, they made up most of regime's forces in a Russian-backed offensive to regain the northern governorate of Idlib. The offensive stopped after Russia and Turkey, a backer of Syrian rebel forces, came close to war. After rebels toppled Al Assad in December 2024, Hammou...
Read briefing US President Donald Trump said on Sunday that oil secured under a newly struck deal with Venezuela will be used to refill the Strategic Petroleum Reserve, which has been sharply reduced in recent years amid global supply disruptions and high fuel prices.“One of the things I am going to do with the Venezuelan oil is fill up the Strategic National Reserves which, because of sleepy [former president] Joe Biden, has been virtually emptied,” Mr Trump wrote in a social media post, adding that the “topping out” process will begin very shortly. He described the Venezuelan oil as a “gift from Venezuela to the people of the United States". Stocks of crude oil in the US Strategic Petroleum Reserve fell by about 5.3 million barrels in August to 293.4 million barrels, the lowest level since 1982, according to data from the Energy Department.The reserve was established in 1975 to ease future supply disruptions after the 1973 oil embargo. The deal gives a US-backed venture control of 65 billion barrels, but production, transport and years of infrastructure investment must come first, and much of Venezuela's crude is extra-heavy oil that fails the reserve's minimum specifications. The US has tapped into the stockpile as the war in Iran has disrupted Arabian Gulf oil flows through the Strait of Hormuz, which normally carries about a fifth of the world's petroleum. Under the agreement announced...
Read briefing Officers at Kuwait's international airport have foiled an attempt to smuggle in a large quantity of a "narcotic substance" using A4-sized sheets of paper, the General Administration of Customs said on Sunday.The smuggling attempt was discovered when a passenger's luggage was being scanned. Closer inspection led to the discovery of 1,603 A4-sized sheets of paper, weighing a total of 13.154kg, "saturated" with the narcotic substance, the customs authority said.It described the substance as a "chemical", without specifying its nature. The passenger, a French national who arrived from London on a visitor's visa, and the seized narcotics were being handed over to the General Administration for Combating Drugs and Alcohol, it said. The seizure comes just days after Kuwait announced the largest drugs bust in its history, seizing nearly $500 million worth of a medicine that has become a popular party drug.The drug seized is commonly called Lyrica. It is the brand name for pregabalin, a prescription medicine mainly used to treat nerve pain and epilepsy, while in some countries it is used for generalised anxiety disorders.The haul included five tonnes of the drug in powder form and almost four million capsules ready for sale, said Sheikh Fahad Al Yousef, First Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Interior.
Read briefing Tadej Pogacar’s bid to complete a clean sweep of cycling’s Grand Tours came to a dramatic end on Friday when the race leader abandoned the Vuelta a Espana after a crash during stage eight.The Slovenian, 27, came off his bike with about 33km remaining, suffering an injury to his left shoulder and cuts to the left side of his face.Pogacar initially appeared to try to remount, but soon sat back down before walking unaided into an ambulance.It was the first time the six-time Grand Tour winner has abandoned one of cycling’s three-week stage races.The UAE Team Emirates-XRG rider had begun the stage with a commanding lead of 3 minutes 50 seconds over Spain’s Enric Mas and was the overwhelming favourite to claim a first Vuelta title.Victory would have completed Pogacar’s collection of Grand Tour wins; he had already claimed five Tour de France titles and the Giro d’Italia.POGAČAR OUT OF LA VUELTA 💔The race is over for the Slovenian following a crash after the intermediate sprint. Wishing Tadej a speedy recovery! 🙏 pic.twitter.com/jXhKLFNKJ7— Cycling on TNT Sports (@cyclingontnt) August 29, 2026Pogacar, who became the joint-most-successful Tour de France champion last month, was bidding to become only the ninth rider to win all three Grand Tours.His remarkable palmares also includes 13 victories in cycling’s one-day Monuments, although Paris-Roubaix remains the notable omission after...
Read briefing Dubai Police organised a series of training and awareness courses on traffic safety rules and guidelines, targeting security guards across 35 schools. The initiative comes as students and parents gear up for the new academic year beginning on Monday. Over 1,180 public and private schools across the UAE reopen their doors on August 31, welcoming more than 1.277 million students. The training familiarised participants with traffic signs and guidelines and covered traffic flow regulation during peak drop-off and pick-up hours around the school. Security guards training with the Dubai police also engaged in hands-on scenarios simulating real-life traffic accidents. In addition, they received guidance on ensuring students get on and off buses safely to prevent any risks, and on how to respond initially and professionally to traffic or security emergencies until the relevant authorities arrive. Back to school on MondaySchools have adopted phased return-to-school plans with shorter hours for younger pupils during the first week, with staggered pick-up and drop-off times for easier management. Several parents said they received emails from schools detailing the drop-off and pick-up timings and start dates for various grades. In good news for parents working in the UAE’s government sector, employees will be allowed to work flexible hours so they can take their children to and from schoo...
Read briefing Members of the UAE's vast Palestinian diaspora gathered to show their love, support and celebrate the ties that bind them to the Emirates. Families in traditional hand-embroidered thobes filled the conference centre at Expo City Dubai for Emirates Loves Palestine, the first community event of its kind.Grandchildren pushed their grandparents in wheelchairs and fathers held young children on their shoulders as they queued to hear folk songs and taste Palestine's famous breads and sweets.Many Palestinian residents were born in this country and have never lived in, or even visited, the home of their ancestors.“This event is so important to Palestinians, because it shows us how the UAE loves us, and takes care of Palestinian people,” said Sultan Mohamed, 15, who came with his siblings and parents.“I came here because we want to experience the music, the songs of the Palestinian people.”Sheikh Nahyan bin Mubarak Al Nahyan, Minister of Tolerance and Coexistence, was in attendance and said: "It gives me great pleasure to be with you at this wonderful fraternal gathering, which represents the largest gathering of the Palestinian community in the world, and which clearly embodies the sincere feelings of affection that the United Arab Emirates holds for Palestine and its brotherly people."He added: "In this gathering, which expresses the UAE's love for Palestine, we send together a messag...
Read briefing Liverpool twice trailed to Nottingham Forest before coming back to earn a point in an entertaining 2-2 draw at Anfield.On a day it was announced Liverpool had agreed a deal with Paris Saint-Germain forward Bradley Barcola that could be worth £123 million, it was notable how little Alexander Isak was involved in the game, though he did get on the scoresheet.Dan Ndoye scored his first Nottingham Forest goal since the opening weekend of last season to put the away side ahead. Isak, who had another disappointing game, levelled the score on the hour, slotting home after good wing play from Cody Gakpo.Alisson Becker fouled former Liverpool teammate Neco Williams in the penalty area, conceding a penalty. Forest captain Morgan Gibbs-White stepped up and dispatched his shot in the top left corner.Victor Munoz, a summer signing from Osasuna, then showed great feet to turn and shoot, and his effort crashed in off the underside of the bar via a slight deflection.It leaves Liverpool boss Andoni Iraola still searching for his first league win following last weekend's 2-2 draw against Newcastle United.What they saidLiverpool manager Andoni Iraola: "We were poor in the first half. We improved a lot our performance in the second half; we came from behind twice, but I think the first half didn't allow us to win the game at the end."Nottingham Forest defender Neco Williams: "Everyone knows how di...
Read briefing A security co-operation agreement between the US and Iraq’s Kurdistan Region is due to expire at the end of September, but it will not end ties between Erbil and Washington, Kurdish officials told The National, after reports US assistance to the region had been suspended.The US and the Kurdistan Regional Government signed an agreement in 2016 to support the reform and unification of the Peshmerga forces. The agreement is set to expire on September 30, coinciding with the withdrawal of troops from Iraq by the US and other members of the anti-ISIS coalition. “The expiration of the current agreement should not be interpreted as an end to the strategic partnership or co-operation between the US and the Kurdistan Region,” Noreldin Waisy, spokesman for KRG Prime Minister Masrour Barzani, told The National. “The Peshmerga have been a key and trusted partner in the fight against terrorism, and there remains a strong basis for continued security co-operation.”The agreement between the US and the KRG established a framework for US support to the Peshmerga during the campaign against ISIS. An updated agreement signed in September 2022 set out the terms of US support for a further four years, including assistance in counter-ISIS operations and efforts to professionalise and unify Kurdish forces.Mr Waisy said discussions could take place in the future on a new framework governing continued...
Read briefing The US State Department on Friday said it had revoked the visa of former Iraqi finance minister Taif Sami Mohammed after she was placed on the FBI's terrorism watchlist.In a statement, the State Department said she is no longer present in the US. No additional details were provided about when or why she was put on the watchlist.Ms Mohammed left her post as finance minister last month, having served since 2022. Her visa revocation marks a stunning turnaround in her relations with the US.During the Biden administration, the State Department called Ms Mohammed a "front-line leader against corrupt practices" who is known as the “Iron Woman.” In 2022, she was given the International Woman of Courage Award by then-secretary of state Anthony Blinken and Jill Biden."A political independent, Ms Mohammed has been integral in preventing and deterring budget corruption in Iraq," the State Department said at the time."Under President Trump and Secretary of State Marco Rubio, suspected terrorists will never be allowed to remain in the United States," the State Department said.
Read briefing Ilia Sheludiakov arrived in Dubai five years ago with a background in marketing and trading, and a conviction that the city held more opportunity than anywhere he had worked before. The Russian entrepreneur has since built a family estate agency company, developed a personal investment portfolio spanning ETFs and equities, and written his first book – Temporalism: Make Time Your Ally – a philosophical guide to treating time as a strategic force.The 30-something now splits his attention between the estate agency business, his investments and growing a media presence, guided by a belief that passive income is the surest path to financial independence.What was your first job and salary?My first job was in Moscow, as a marketing specialist. It was mostly supporting promotional events – exhibitions, organising things, working with suppliers. The salary was small. In international terms, it was around $700 a month.What do you do now?Right now I'm mostly investing in real estate. I started as a real estate agent in Dubai, but now we have a family real estate company, and we're also investing in real estate ourselves.After the marketing job, I had other positions connected to sales, but more specifically to trading – working as a trader within a company, not for myself. That's where I understood about investing, about shares; I did investment analysis and all those things. I also had a...
Read briefing This publisher did not include a summary in its feed. Open the briefing for attribution and the original report link.
Read briefing This publisher did not include a summary in its feed. Open the briefing for attribution and the original report link.
Read briefing The latest Arabic word of the week sends us in search of knowledge, opportunity and even love.Talib refers to a student, from a pupil at school to someone studying at university or learning under a particular teacher.Ana talib means “I am a student” when spoken by a man or boy. The feminine equivalent is ana taliba, while the common plurals are tullab and talaba.Meanwhile Talibat, the arabic pluraused for female students, is also sunalr looks similar in English to Talabat, the regional delivery platform whose name means “requests” or “orders”. The resemblance is no accident, as both words stem from the root letters ta, lam and ba, which carry the sense of seeking, requesting or trying to obtain something.The verb talaba means “he sought” or “he requested”, while yatlub can mean “he asks for” or “he orders”. Talab al-ilm refers to the pursuit of knowledge itself and evokes a popular phrase in Islamic scholarship: rihla fi talab al-ilm, the journey made to study with respected scholars.The search extends beyond education to more immediate needs. A person looking for work may be called a talib amal, while talab tawzif is a job application and talib luju' means an asylum seeker.Talib also appears in Arabic music, from nasheed to Algerian rai, Emirati singer Ahmed Bukhatir uses Talib Al Ilm as the title of one of his nasheeds, drawing on the educational sense of the term.In Cheb Kha...
Read briefing The aquariums rev and babble, motors circulating water despite their empty state. Their black steel frames vibrate. Their glass panes are coated with a salty residue from the receding waterline but also, perhaps, from what once lived within.Two round, vertical containers are set beside the aquariums. Filled with a murky liquid, they are tall and wide enough to hold a person. Again, they are empty, save for something on the floor that looks like moss or seaweed. The strands and tufts aren’t green though.“Inside the jars are shavings of my skin,” Nour Elbery says of her installation. “There’s a formalin inside, a preservation solution.”Elbery is one of the six fine arts graduates from NYUAD presenting works at the Rizq Art Initiative. The show, Mutable Devotions, runs until August 31. It comprises six smaller exhibitions, each of which is dedicated to an artist.Elbery’s use of skin shavings is not meant as a shock element – not completely anyway. It draws a point of trying to contain what should not be contained. “Each work is less a vessel for something than a vessel for the memory of holding something,” she writes in her artist statement.Set Dressing for an Afterimage was inspired by the Aquarium Grotto Garden in Zamalek, Cairo. The man-made cave was initially built in 1871 as a bit of a vanity project for Khedive Ismail. The Ottoman viceroy, infamous for his extravagance, inte...
Read briefing For more than a decade, the Houthis have inflicted immense suffering on Yemen and sown instability across the Middle East. Since taking control of the country’s north in 2014, the Iranian-backed rebels have deprived large segments of the population of basic services, launched projectiles into neighbouring countries and turned the Bab Al Mandeb strait into one of the world’s most dangerous shipping lanes.Now, a report from the Century Foundation, a US-based non-partisan think tank, details how the group’s nefarious ambitions have extended far beyond the region’s shores. This should concentrate minds in the western, Middle Eastern and African capitals.The report details how the Houthis have been building smuggling and training networks that stretch across the Red Sea into the Horn of Africa and Sudan, as they deepen ties with Al Shabab, a terrorist group in Somalia, and the Sudanese Armed Forces.These connections are largely transactional – at least for now. But as the report warns, they can develop into something considerably more durable. The potential consequences of this happening are serious.Al Shabab, a group with links to Al Qaeda, has sought Houthi assistance in acquiring anti-aircraft weapons and drones to counter aerial attacks. While advanced weaponry hasn’t appeared in Somali battlefields, such a possibility could be a matter of when – not if. Several Al Shabab operat...
Read briefing Write to us: Share your feedback on the news of the weekA collective responsibilityI write in reference to Nick Webster’s article Doctors in UAE call for early diabetes screening as youth cases surge (August 25): this piece is a serious wake-up call. Changing food habits, increased consumption of processed and sugary foods, sedentary lifestyles and lack of regular physical activity are among the major factors contributing to this growing menace. What was once largely considered an adult disease is now affecting younger generations, making early screening and timely intervention increasingly important. Prevention, however, cannot be left to doctors and healthcare systems alone. Regular awareness programmes and community meetings can educate people about healthy eating, exercise, early warning signs and the importance of periodic health checks. Schools and families, in particular, have an important role in nurturing healthier habits from an early age. The rising numbers should make us pause and reflect: are we giving our children a healthier future, or are our present lifestyles silently putting their health at risk? Early awareness, responsible food choices, regular exercise and timely screening can go a long way in controlling this growing public-health challenge. A healthy generation is not merely a medical responsibility – it is a collective responsibility of families, commun...
Read briefing 