UAE Expands Newborns' Inclusion in Genomic Research Initiative
In a strategic push to become a leading genomic data hub, the UAE's M42, a unit of the state-backed AI firm G42, is actively courting other countries and partnering with major pharmaceutical companies.
Currently, M42's genomic project involves mapping the genomes of Emirati citizens, with 68% coverage so far. This effort is bolstered by newborn at-birth sequencing offered voluntarily across several hospitals to detect over 800 treatable childhood conditions. The UAE is addressing the scarcity in global genomic data of Arab descent, which is only around 1%, by expanding this effort and inviting external collaboration to enhance personalized healthcare.
However, specific other countries M42 is courting have not been explicitly named in the sources, nor have the exact pharmaceutical companies it partners with been listed publicly. It is clear, though, that M42 seeks partnerships with major pharma companies to utilize its growing genetic dataset for research and drug development purposes.
Meanwhile, Abu Dhabi is also mapping the genomes of Emirati citizens as part of a national genomic sequencing project. This initiative, which offers at-birth sequencing, aims to improve healthcare and personalized medicine in the UAE.
Elsewhere, significant news is unfolding across the globe. Lenovo is establishing its regional headquarters in Riyadh, deepening a partnership with the kingdom's ALAT. In China, electric-vehicle companies are looking abroad for growth due to brutal competition, while the solar industry is readying a cartel to combat mammoth overcapacity. Intel is still seeking the heavyweight customers it needs to grow.
In geopolitics, a call between the leaders of Russia and India affirmed the countries' close ties despite Washington's demands for New Delhi to wean itself off Russian oil. Wildfires are enveloping much of Europe and North America, forcing people from their homes and worsening air quality across borders. The US and its European allies are trying to hash out what security guarantees for Ukraine will look like, following President Donald Trump's meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.
In the Middle East, 67 people were arrested in Kuwait for producing and distributing bootleg alcohol, after 23 people died and more than 160 were hospitalized from methanol poisoning. Israel's defense minister approved a plan for an offensive on Gaza City, further undermining hopes for a truce there. Hamas reportedly accepted a ceasefire proposal similar to one previously agreed to by Israel, which includes the release of Israeli hostages and Palestinian prisoners, and would require Israel to allow aid into the besieged territory.
In the business world, SoftBank will invest $2 billion in Intel. The aim is to detect over 800 treatable childhood genetic conditions. Brazil rejected a US probe into trade between the countries, signaling that Brasília won't back down in its widening dispute with Washington. Only around 1% of the world's mapped genomes are of Arab descent, and the UAE is working to address this scarcity.
In other news, the US President Donald Trump ruled out sending US troops to defend Ukraine from future Russian attacks. European defense stocks fell Tuesday after the US pushed for talks between Ukraine and Russia, but analysts insist any deal would drive the continent to increase defense spending regardless. The Kairos plant could power 50,000 homes. The UAE capital is offering at-birth sequencing to parents on a voluntary basis across several hospitals.
In entertainment, Soho House is going private in a $2.7 billion deal. Gordon Ramsay is opening his first Gordon Ramsay Academy in Saudi Arabia by the end of the year. Sam Altman described artificial intelligence as a "bubble," but also said the technology was "the most important thing to happen in a very long time." Ozempic is getting cheaper in the US. Severe droughts are hitting countries extending from the Middle East through Europe. Almost 400 people have died in Pakistan after flash floods brought destruction throughout the country's north.
[1] Source: Various news outlets, including Bloomberg, Reuters, and the UAE's official news agency WAM.
