Doha, Qatar: The Qatar Research, Development, and Innovation Council has launched a call for its new flagship program, Qatar Open Innovation (QOI), in its first-ever collaboration with AJ+, a pioneering digital news and storytelling platform operating under the Al Jazeera Media Network. AJ+ is seeking proposals to revolutionise the translation and adaptation of video content across multiple languages using Artificial Intelligence. The objective is to streamline and automate the translation process using responsible AI to ensure that news stories are timely, relevant and accessible to a global audience. The deadline for proposal submissions is 30 October 2024.

Dr Abdelhak Belaidi, Program Manager at QRDI Council, said: “In line with our commitment to the Qatar National Vision 2030, this opportunity comes aligned with the QRDI 2030 Strategy, that focuses on digital technology as one of its five priority areas of national importance. AJ+ aims to leverage ethical AI to provide smart tools, that use machine learning. This initiative is crucial in the fast-paced world of digital news to ensure that stories have a significant impact, further solidifying Qatar’s positioning as a global hub for RDI.”

“In the fast-paced world of news, timeliness is crucial. Delays in adapting our content mean that our stories lose their relevance and impact, which not only affects our audience reach and engagement but also hinders our competitive edge in the news industry. In this collaboration with QRDI, we seek to create the next generation of content adaptations, where we’ll custom build multiple tools that naturally fit into our workflow and go beyond simple translation. It’s a fantastic step towards meeting our strategic goals: being the most widely available network in the media landscape, investing in AI, and nurturing a culture of innovation,” says Alba Mora, Executive Producer at AJ+.

AJ+ is seeking a new innovative smart translation tool that leverages ethical AI, which learns and aligns with its political narrative, to automate and streamline the translation and adaptation processes. Currently the processes are manual, labour-intensive, and inefficient, resulting in a high risk of errors. By integrating the proposed solutions directly within Adobe Premiere Pro, the aim is to reduce this creation time to under an hour, and ensure user data privacy, transparency, security and ethical standards in all processes.

Known for its short form video news content, AJ+ has accumulated millions of followers across various social media platforms, and has since expanded to include Arabic, Spanish, and French-language operations, enabling AJ+ to reach a huge global audience, therefore becoming a key player in the digital news landscape. A key objective for AJ+ is to create a seamless and efficient workflow that dissolves language barriers and improves timely delivery and relevant content to AJ+’s diverse international audience.

Selected proposals will work directly with QRDI Council and AJ+ to implement and ensure that this solution is compliant with Al Jazeera’s data privacy protocols and regulations to safeguard user information.

The Qatar Open Innovation program has been the primary platform for startups and innovators to engage with potential government and corporate buyers to co-create market-ready solutions that address the nation’s most pressing challenges in the five national priority areas. These include energy, health, resource sustainability, society, and digital technology, as outlined in the QRDI Strategy 2030, by identifying opportunities for innovation collaborations to drive economic prosperity.

With more than 50 Open Innovation Calls, launched in partnership with 21 Local Partners across key sectors, including: Aspetar, Matar, GWC, Aspire, Baladna, Sidra, Ooredoo, Es'hailSat, Hassad Food, Kahramaa, Milaha, Qatar Insurance Company,  the Ministry of Labor, the National Museum of Qatar, Ministry of Environment and Climate Change, the Ministry of Municipality, Qatar Airways, MADA, the Communications Regulatory Authority, Qatar National Library, and AJ+, the QOI program has garnered the interest and participation of innovators from Qatar and other countries around the world.

To learn more about Qatar Open Innovation and to submit your proposals, visit the QRDI Portal.

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About QRDI Council

Qatar Research, Development, and Innovation (QRDI) Council was established in 2018 to drive research, development, and innovation (RDI) efforts on a national level in line with the Qatar National Vision 2030 and the Second National Development Strategy (2018-2022). QRDI Council has developed a ten-year strategy, QRDI 2030, which seeks to create a locally empowered, globally connected RDI ecosystem, mobilizing leadership across government, academia, and industry, to transform Qatar’s social and economic future. QRDI Council members include prominent national and international figures from various government and academic entities and industry experts. 

For media-related inquiries, don’t hesitate to get in touch with QRDI at: qrdi@qrdi.org.qa
Follow QRDI on: Facebook - Instagram - LinkedIn - Website

About AJ+

AJ+ is a pioneering digital news and storytelling platform that operates under the Al Jazeera Media Network, renowned for its commitment to the global public good and its distinctive vision: To be fearless in the pursuit of truth and to be the voice for the voiceless. AJ+’s mission is dedicated to the global public good, promoting human rights and justice, holding power to account, and giving voice to the powerless. AJ+ crafts its content carefully to inform, educate, engage, inspire, empower, and connect with the steadily growing community of young, digital-native users who seek the information and understanding they need to make a positive difference in their world. 

Launched in 2014, AJ+ quickly became a trailblazer in delivering short-form video news optimized for consumption on smart phones via social platforms. This innovative approach amassed millions of followers across Facebook, YouTube, Instagram, and X, and they have since expanded to include Arabic, Spanish, and French-language operations. This enables AJ+ to reach a combined audience of hundreds of millions, making them a key player in the digital news landscape.

Follow AJ+ on: Instagram - Youtube - TikTok - Facebook - X - Website