Mohamed bin Zayed University of Artificial Intelligence (MBZUAI), the UAE’s premier graduate-level AI research university, has entered a multi-year collaboration with Amazon Web Services (AWS). This strategic partnership is set to accelerate artificial intelligence research, enhance technical skills, and fuel startup growth across the UAE and the wider MENA region.
The alliance directly supports the UAE’s National Strategy for Higher Education 2030 by bridging the gap between academic research and industry application, providing students with critical exposure to real-world challenges and practical training.
Bridging Academia and Industry
At the core of the agreement is the establishment of a Strategic Research Program focused on mutually agreed priority areas within AI. The program leverages the distinct strengths of both organizations to translate innovative research ideas into high-impact solutions.
Timothy Baldwin, Provost and Professor of Natural Language Processing at MBZUAI, commented on the synergy, “This collaboration brings together academic depth and industrial scale. By combining MBZUAI’s scientific expertise with AWS’s mentorship, infrastructure, and guidance on relevant AWS programs that will support MBZUAI’s research, we are building a bridge between research and real-world impact and unlocking transformational opportunities for our faculty, researchers and students.”
A Strategic Research Program
Under the new program, AWS will provide essential cloud services, technical mentorship, and access to a registry of public datasets available on its platform. In return, MBZUAI will contribute its world-class faculty expertise, deep pool of talent, and state-of-the-art laboratory facilities. This combined effort aims to create practical and scalable AI solutions.
Chris Erasmus, General Manager for the UAE, Rest of Middle East and North Africa at AWS, stated, “Blending our cloud technologies and expertise with MBZUAI’s visionary academic and research capabilities, we’re establishing a foundation of technical excellence to support the students and researchers of today and tomorrow. Through our shared commitment, we look forward to advancing technology and creating lasting impact in the region.”
Cultivating Next-Generation Talent
A key pillar of the collaboration is the launch of the GenAI Academy, a new initiative designed to develop future innovators. The academy will host hackathons for MBZUAI undergraduate students, tasking them with solving complex challenges in government, entrepreneurship, and social impact.
To further bolster skills development, AWS will provide comprehensive training resources, including instructor-led AWS Classroom Training and self-paced digital courses on AWS Skill Builder, enabling MBZUAI students and personnel to deepen their expertise in cloud computing, AI, and machine learning.
Empowering Regional Startups
The partnership also extends to MBZUAI’s Incubation and Entrepreneurship Center, which launched in October 2023. Startups participating in the center who join the AWS Activate program may become eligible for significant support, including AWS promotional credits, dedicated technical assistance, and valuable business mentorship to help them scale.
About Mohamed bin Zayed University of Artificial Intelligence (MBZUAI)
MBZUAI is a research-focused university in Abu Dhabi and the first university dedicated entirely to the advancement of science through AI. The university empowers the next generation of AI leaders, driving innovation and impactful applications of AI through world-class education and interdisciplinary research. In 2025, MBZUAI launched its first-ever undergraduate program, a Bachelor of Science in AI, with two distinct streams: Business and Engineering.
Source: Zawya
