‘This agreement is part of our efforts to promote advanced technologies in the health field, support expertise exchange, and develop national capabilities,’ says Dr. Abdullah bin Sharaf Al-Ghamdi, president of SDAIA JEDDAH: The Saudi Data and Artificial Intelligence Authority (SDAIA) on Monday announced it has partnered with Dutch technology company Royal Philips to support the use of artificial intelligence (AI) in the Kingdom’s healthcare sector. The Philips-SDAIA agreement is in line with the Kingdom’s Vision 2030 blueprint to diversify the economy and improve public service sectors, including healthcare, through the use of modern technology. Dr. Abdullah bin Sharaf Al-Ghamdi, president of SDAIA, said: “We, at SDAIA, through the National Strategy for Data and AI, seek to fully utilize the potential of data and AI and support their applications in all relevant sectors. Today, this agreement is part of our efforts to promote advanced technologies in the health field, support expertise exchange, and develop national capabilities, which will enhance the quality of health services, create new job opportunities, and elevate our national economy to become a data and AI-driven economy.” AI-based health technology solutions have great potential to improve patient outcomes and the efficiency of care delivery, according to Frans van Houten, CEO of Royal Philips. “Such solutions can, for example, free up valuable time for healthcare professionals to focus more on the patients. Getting every aspect of an AI-enabled solution right requires extensive collaboration between clinicians, data scientists and other experts. That is why we are pleased to partner with the Saudi Data and Artificial Intelligence Authority to enable AI across all healthcare facilities in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia as part of Vision 2030.”