Latest / DEWA Podcasts / AI and digital transformation: DEWA’s two pillars underpinning the future of smart and sustainable cities By HE Saeed Mohammed Al Tayer, MD & CEO of Dubai Electricity and Water Authority (DEWA)
Transcript
- 0:00So artificial intelligence, AI, it's no longer
- 0:06just this optional technology that organizations
- 0:09randomly add to their operations, right? It has
- 0:13actually become a fundamental pillar of smart
- 0:16and sustainable cities. You know, AI enables
- 0:19the development of these more efficient, resilient,
- 0:24and proactive service ecosystems. In an era of
- 0:28rapid change, Leadership today really belongs
- 0:32to those organizations that can turn data into
- 0:35insight. Exactly. They turn technology into added
- 0:39value and services into meaningful experiences.
- 0:43Wow. It's all about enriching people's lives
- 0:47while supporting resource sustainability. Okay,
- 0:50so look at the UAE. Years ago in the UAE, the
- 0:54leadership laid the foundations for a forward
- 0:57-thinking approach. This established innovation,
- 1:00digital transformation, and AI as the key drivers
- 1:04of the nation's development journey. So true.
- 1:07Today, things like the Dubai Economic Agenda,
- 1:10D33, and the UAE Strategy for AI 2031, they all
- 1:16converge around one clear message. Think about
- 1:19it. The economy of the future will be built on
- 1:23smart infrastructure and advanced digital services.
- 1:26Makes sense. Driven by this exact vision, Diwa
- 1:31is pioneering a totally new model for AI power
- 1:34utilities. Right. We've launched this ambitious
- 1:37roadmap aiming to make Diwa the world's first
- 1:40AI power utility. We're integrating this technology
- 1:44across the whole value chain, from power and
- 1:47water production to customer service and decision
- 1:50making. It lets us shift from being reactive
- 1:53to proactive. And speaking of customer experience,
- 1:58since we launched Ramas, our virtual smart employee,
- 2:01back in 2017, it's handled over 13 million inquiries.
- 2:0613 million! Just by integrating things like GPT
- 2:10-4. But it's not just front -end stuff. A prime
- 2:13example, we reduced the time for a security deposit
- 2:16refund from four days to just eight minutes.
- 2:20Eight minutes! That alone shows what data analysis
- 2:24can do for customer happiness. Yeah, but of course,
- 2:27none of this works without clear governance,
- 2:29secure infrastructure, and, well, human skills.
- 2:34So, to wrap up, the future of smart cities isn't
- 2:37just shaped by tech, but by the vision directing
- 2:40it, and the people at the center of the transformation.
- 2:43Now, here's a question I'd like you to think
- 2:46about. If a vital service like a utility company
- 2:49can seamlessly integrate AI to reduce processing
- 2:52times from four days to just... eight minutes?
- 2:56What processes in your own industry or even your
- 2:59daily life are just waiting to be completely
- 3:01transformed by intelligent, proactive technology?