Technology - AL-MONITOR: The Middle Eastʼs leading independent news source since 2012

technology

Technology

People sit in a cafe outside the Apple Store in Dubai on May 8, 2025.

Iran names US tech, finance firms in new Middle East threat list

Firms listed as potential targets included Oracle, Microsoft, Apple, Google, Meta, IBM, Palantir and Nvidia, while banking giant JPMorgan and UAE-based AI firm G42 were also listed.

Traffic rolls along a main throughfare under a banner with images of past and present leaders that reads in Farsi, "Domino fall", as daily life returns to the streets following nationwide protests, in the Iranian capital Tehran on January 19, 2026. Demonstrations sparked in late December by anger over economic hardship exploded into protests widely seen as the biggest challenge to the Iranian leadership in years. Limited internet access briefly returned in Iran before dropping again, a monitor said January

Analysis

Iran’s longest-ever internet blackout leaves 99% offline: What to know

Facing a historic internet blackout, Iranians are locked in a struggle with authorities to find loopholes to get around this communications crackdown, leading to "shutdowns within a shutdown."

Samuel Wendel

By Samuel Wendel

In Washington, DC, reporting on regional business and tech

Latest News

What we know about UAE blocking X accounts accused of misinformation

Attendees take a picture of French Prime Minister Edouard Philippe as he delivers a speech during a visit to the Louvre Abu Dhabi Museum on February 10, 2018, on Saadiyat island in the Emirati capital, to launch the French-Emirati "Year of Cultural Dialogue". (Photo by KARIM SAHIB / AFP) (Photo by KARIM SAHIB/AFP via Getty Images)

United Arab Emirates

Interview

AI, cybersecurity high on Mideast priorities amid global tech rivalry: Tech Mahindra

A man and woman walk along a promenade overlooking the Burj al-Arab and Dubai skyline on January 4, 2025. (Photo by Giuseppe CACACE / AFP) (Photo by GIUSEPPE CACACE/AFP via Getty Images)

Mideast’s AI startups capture record $858M in funding during 2025, doubling share

Detailed image of Middle Eastern developer in front of desktop pc monitoring a complex network, ensuring data security and efficient computing using cloud, AI and machine learning.

United Arab Emirates

Samuel Wendel

Senior Market Research Analyst

In Washington, DC, reporting on regional business and tech

Adam Lucente

News and Business Correspondent

In New York City, reporting on regional news, militancy, climate change

David Rosenberg

In Tel Aviv, reporting on business and tech

MUNICH, GERMANY - JANUARY 24: Pavel Durov of Vkontakte speaks during the Digital Life Design conference (DLD) at HVB Forum on January 24, 2012 in Munich, Germany. ence and culture which connects business, creative and social leaders, opinion-formers and investors for crossover conversation and inspiration. (Photo by Nadine Rupp/Getty Images)

Analysis

Telegram CEO's arrest spotlights UAE’s investment-based citizenship laws

The United Arab Emirates is showing that it takes its citizenship laws seriously and has vowed to fight for Telegram founder Pavel Durov.

Jennifer Gnana

By Jennifer Gnana

In Dubai, reporting on Gulf energy policy and politics

Pavel Durov, CEO and co-founder of Telegram, speaks during day one of TechCrunch Disrupt SF 2015 at Pier 70, San Francisco, Sept. 21, 2015.

UAE asks France for 'urgent' consular services to arrested citizen Telegram’s Durov

Russian-born Pavel Durov has been a resident of the UAE since 2017 and a citizen of the Gulf state since 2021.

United Arab Emirates

Sheikh Hamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan (C), who was recently named to head the Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, looks at a model of the Capital City District project.

Abu Dhabi’s Mubadala invests in UK cloud data center developer Yondr

It marks Mubadala’s third major investment in cloud data centers in three years, as the wealth fund looks to cash in on the ballooning demand for data center infrastructure.

United Arab Emirates

In this picture taken on May 10, 2023, people attend the UAE Climate Tech Forum in Abu Dhabi. Faced with mounting pressure over planet-heating pollution, the Arab Gulf's energy giants are turning to humble tech start-ups as they search for ways to remove emissions while keeping oil flowing. (Photo by Karim SAHIB / AFP) (Photo by KARIM SAHIB/AFP via Getty Images)

Tech investment slump reaching critical stage for cash strapped Middle East startups

Samuel Wendel

In Washington, DC, reporting on regional business and tech

I-HWA CHENG/AFP via Getty Images

Intel delays work on $25B Israel plant as tech sector feels impact of Gaza war

Israel’s tech sector has been impacted by the Gaza war as well as the government’s judicial reform plans and the global tech downturn.

In this picture taken on October 26, 2011 workers assemble one of the many car models at Chinese carmaker's Chery Automobile plant in Wuhu, east China's Anhui province. The growth of China's car market will be driven primarily by exports this year because domestic sales have slowed dramatically, as the world's largest car market -- sold 614,000 cars abroad in the first nine months of 2011, a 60 percent rise on the same period in 2010. CHINA OUT AFP PHOTO (Photo credit should read STR/AFP via Getty Images)

China’s EV giants target Turkey as trade wars intensify

Samuel Wendel

In Washington, DC, reporting on regional business and tech

Digital generated image of futuristic cubes connecting computer microchip. Cloud technology, big data or fintech technology. Concept of the new digital currency CBDC.

Saudi Arabia joins China, UAE in digital currency project

The kingdom is joining the Switzerland-based Bank for International Settlements' central bank digital currency platform.

People look at a BYD Seal car by Chinese electric vehicle (EV) manufacturer BYD Auto at the Bangkok International Motor Show in Nonthaburi, March 27, 2024.

Turkey-China in 'advanced' talks on EV manufacturing as Beijing footprint grows

Turkey and the Gulf states are aggressively pursuing electric vehicles with entities eyeing cooperation with China.

What Binance's new Dubai license means for UAE cryptocurrency sector

Binance, one of the largest crypto exchanges in the world, has experienced some legal setbacks recently and is the latest firm to receive Dubai’s coveted VASP license.

United Arab Emirates

A Kurdish man wearing a mask flashes the "V" sign.

PKK claims to down 15 Turkish drones in Nowruz announcement

The announcement comes one day ahead of the Kurdish New Year, or Nowruz, which is celebrated by millions of Kurds worldwide, and less than two weeks before Turkey's local elections that are due to be held nationwide on March 31.

BILS Facebook announcement.

Israeli cryptocurrency exchange to launch shekel-backed stablecoin

Stablecoins, which are digital currencies that are pegged to stable assets such as fiat currencies, have a degree of appeal in the Middle East.

Women walks through the Museum of the Future in Dubai during the Artificial Intelligence Forum held on October 11, 2023. (Photo by Karim SAHIB / AFP) (Photo by KARIM SAHIB/AFP via Getty Images)

What to know about MGX, UAE’s latest AI investment firm

The launch of the AI-focused firm follows the UAE’s largest company appointing an AI bot to its board, as Abu Dhabi seeks to become a world player in artificial intelligence.

United Arab Emirates