The participation reflects its leadership in employing smart technology to advance higher education

October 10, 2022- Hamdan Bin Mohamed Smart University (HBMSU) is participating in the 42nd edition of GITEX Technology Week, the most prominent regional and international event in the field of technology, highlighting some of its most recent technological innovations in the field of smart education. This participation comes in line with the university’s unwavering efforts to advance and digitally transform the higher education sector, with the assistance of various innovations, cutting-edge technologies, and scientific research.

The GITEX Technology Week 2022, which is being held between October 10 and 14, 2022, at the Dubai International Convention Centre, brings together various prominent regional and international entities, institutions, and technological pioneers, to draw attention to several recent technological advancements and developments.

During the event, the HBMSU aims at drawing the interest of several participating companies and organisations, as well as event attendees, towards learning more about its most recent technological advancements in smart education. These developments include the recent launch of HBMSU’s Metaverse-based campus, by His Excellency Lieutenant-General Dhahi Khalfan Tamim, Deputy Chairman of Police and General Security in Dubai, Chairman of the Board of Governors of HBMSU. This was launched during the University’s participation at the Dubai Metaverse Assembly, a global event that was held recently in Dubai to explore the applications, benefits, and prospects offered by the Metaverse. Supported by virtual reality, augmented reality and AI technologies, the new platform empowers learners, facilitating their educational journey and ensures ample access to smart learning. Additionally, the new Metaverse-based campus also offers comprehensive information and allows for the completion of registration and admission procedures through a single portal. It is also considered the first bilingual metaverse-based platform. This Metaverse-based platform offers a single portal for accessing comprehensive classes and meeting rooms, completion of registration and admission procedures, communicating with the respective departments, receiving comprehensive information on various academic programs offered by the University, as well as enabling services. It also provides an uninterrupted round-the-clock communication channel, by leveraging an AI-enhanced robot.

His Excellency Dr. Mansoor Al Awar, Chancellor of HBMSU, highlights the significance of HBMSU’s participation in the GITEX Technology Week 2022, a platform that accentuates on innovative technologies of all fields and sectors - including smart learning. Furthermore, this participation reflects on various innovative endeavours undertaken by the University for improving the quality of the higher education sector as well as creating innovative solutions and technologies which will accelerate the digital transformation of the industry in the UAE and the Arab region.

Al Awar said: “To reshape the future of education, we continue to propagate the values of excellence, quality, and scientific research, through innovations in smart education, which is in accordance with the wise directives of His Highness Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Crown Prince of Dubai and President of the University. In line with our mission to be a leader in educational innovation, our participation in the GITEX Technology Week 2022 reflects our commitment to promoting smart transitioning in the education sector through our various impressive technological initiatives and a wide range of smart learning solutions. We also aim to impart our extensive knowledge in order to develop a technologically savvy generation that can help build a sustainable future.”

Meanwhile, Dr. Fahad Al Saadi, Vice Chancellor for University Advancement at HBMSU, said: “Hamdan Bin Mohammed Smart University's participation in the 42nd edition of 'GITEX Technology Week' reiterates our belief that technological advancement and academic excellence are closely related. We aim to highlight the multiple opportunities provided by digital innovations and smart solutions to foster the effectiveness of the educational system, enhance the caliber of academic performance, and guarantee the continuity of learning without interruption. Participating in this global technological event allows us to present the benefits of intelligent learning platforms and systems at the university to a wider audience of learners and interested parties, and to share our experience in using technological applications to improve learners' experiences and qualify them academically, cognitively and professionally, giving them the tools to succeed.'

Maitha Al Teneiji, Vice Chancellor, AI & Technology Division, at HBMSU said: “We are proud of the University's participation in the 'GITEX Technology Week' as we successfully showcase several innovative platforms, including the Metaverse-based campus platform, the H-preneurs platform for empowering entrepreneurs, the Smart Campus 2.0, and other ecosystems based on cloud computing, artificial intelligence (AI), machine learning (ML), and Internet of Things (IoT) during the event. The university's commitment to incorporating the most recent technological advancements into the field of smart learning is reflected in the diversity and scope of the smart solutions it has reviewed. Given how quickly technology is developing, this is a crucial issue to address for the future of education.”

Other key initiatives are being showcased by the HBMSU in the event including the initial beta launch of its new virtual platform, ‘H-preneurs’, a platform to enable and support learners in their entrepreneurial ventures. H-Preneurs guides learners through their journey and provides them with the necessary means to implement their business ideas and transform them into real ventures and facilitate the establishment of start-ups. By leveraging smart technologies, as well as the academic content and expertise of HBMSU, the platform provides seamless online services with a primary focus on developing the entrepreneurial skills of learners. Furthermore, it relies on the expertise of an elite group of mentors, experts, financial and legal advisors. H-Preneurs additionally offers the learners the opportunity to receive technical assistance and leverage the mutual workspaces to encourage learners in their entrepreneurial ventures.

HBMSU is further showcasing its cloud-based innovations dedicated to promoting the quality of its services, including the Certfolium platform. This platform guarantees the issuing of 100 per cent verifiable, forge-proof certificates using the block-chain technology, as part of its ambitious mission of leveraging Cloud technologies to promote its services. Additionally, HBMSU is the first university in the MENA region to shift its on-premises legacy systems to a full cloud-computing model on Amazon Web Services (AWS).

Furthermore, during the event, the visitors are also given the opportunity to delve into the HBMSU’s Smart Campus 2.0 platform, an integrated virtual platform that caters to the needs of students as well as administrative and academic cadres, via recent digital innovations, technologies, AI applications, and data analysis. In addition, the University also emphasises that the Smart Building application powered with AI, was developed with the modern technologies to enhance the learning experience as well as the administrative procedures. This application, which includes four smart systems namely power and efficiency control, signify smart lighting system, smart cooling system, and smart building management system, is the first of its kind in the higher education sector.

The participants and visitors of the event further explore diverse initiatives and ventures by the HBMSU, as well as its strategic approach towards integrating the latest technological advancements. Through the event, the University highlights several of its significant learning initiatives and projects it has undertaken, to advance the culture of innovation in learning. Among these projects is the ‘Cloud Campus’, a bilingual online learning platform with multi-level interactive learning programs on a range of subjects, that enables learning at any time and location. This initiative seeks to enhance the educational experience by providing all the required qualifications as well as equipping learners with the requisite future skills, to increase their chances of success in their professional careers.

The GITEX Technology Week 2022, the largest event of its kind in the region and one of the major global events, was first organised 42 years ago. Leading and up-and-coming businesses, as well as other significant participants in the technology industry, gather for this exhibition of digital developments and innovations. This global event is centered on cutting-edge technologies, such as artificial intelligence, 6G communications, cloud computing, big data, digital security, blockchain technologies, quantum computing, immersive marketing technologies, financial technology, and the extensive ecological systems of virtual operation in the metaverse. The exhibition is being held alongside various other major events such as the North Star Dubai, Future of Blockchain Summit, Artificial Intelligence for Everything Summit, GITEX Marketing Minia, Fintech Surge, as well as the Global DevSlam, and X-VERSE.

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