Director of AI Product at Scale AI, Mohamed Shaaban
Doha, Qatar: As Qatar continues to strengthen its position as a regional AI hub, officials shared insights on delivering successful Generative AI solutions at the World Summit AI Qatar 2025.
Speaking to The Peninsula on the sidelines of the AI summit, Director of AI Product at Scale AI, Mohamed Shaaban, stressed that his keynote is focused on the practical mechanics of successfully implementing Generative AI (Gen AI) solutions. The session highlighted how organisations can move beyond the challenges commonly associated with AI pilots and proofs of concept (POCs) to achieve measurable impact.
“Most people read online that most POCs or Gen AI pilots fail,” Shaaban explained. “What they mean is that most either never reach production, or if they do, fail to deliver tangible value. The core reason is not necessarily building the wrong solution more often, it’s about delivering it the wrong way.”
Shaaban emphasised the importance of what he calls the forward-deployed motion or iterative engineering motion, a methodology designed to ensure that AI solutions are grounded in value and capable of generating measurable outcomes.
“I’m speaking here to help upskill my peers in the region on how to apply the right delivery mechanics, and how to engage with vendors to make sure technology investments are economically productive,” he said.
He mentioned that the keynote addressed two primary audiences. The first comprises those building or procuring Gen AI solutions who can benefit from understanding the common failure modes in pilots and POCs.
The second group includes vendors developing AI solutions, for whom Shaaban provided guidance on how to structure projects so that the solutions delivered are effective and aligned with the end user’s objectives.
Highlighting the growing momentum in Qatar’s AI ecosystem, Shaaban noted that numerous partnerships had been announced at the Summit, including collaborations with government entities, local ecosystem members, and system integrators. “These partnerships demonstrate the region’s commitment to building a robust AI ecosystem, ensuring that both providers and adopters of AI solutions can create real economic and societal value,” he said.
Shaaban encouraged attendees to follow up with his colleague Andrew for detailed information on the new partnerships and opportunities emerging from the Summit. By sharing best practices and practical delivery methodologies, Scale AI aims to equip regional stakeholders with the tools to navigate the challenges of AI adoption successfully.
Through his keynote, Shaaban underscored a central message: while AI holds immense potential, success lies not only in building innovative solutions but in delivering them in ways that generate tangible value for businesses, governments, and society at large.
