Abu Dhabi, UAE – The “Artificial Intelligence Skills Development” program for private school students was launched during the World Government Summit 2026 in Dubai, as part of a multi-year collaborative project between the DP World Foundation, the Knowledge and Human Development Authority in Dubai, and the MIT Rise initiative of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, which is concerned with responsible artificial intelligence for social empowerment and education.
The program will continue until 2030 and aims to build a basic and responsible understanding of artificial intelligence among students in grades six to eight, or their equivalent in the various approved educational curricula in Dubai, in addition to empowering teachers through practical professional development programs, educational tools and assessments that help integrate artificial intelligence concepts into core subjects.
The program is expected to benefit around 80,500 students in stages, with the participation of approximately 3,600 teachers. The first stage will begin with cooperation with teachers from selected schools to design implementation mechanisms based on their field experience, and to launch educational experiments within classrooms and training programs, in preparation for generalizing the initiative on a wider scale.
His Excellency Sultan Ahmed bin Sulayem, Chairman and CEO of DP World Group, affirmed that artificial intelligence will bring about a comprehensive transformation across various sectors and jobs.
He stressed that investing in talent starts in the classroom, by providing students with the practical skills to understand and use artificial intelligence responsibly.
For her part, Her Excellency Aisha Abdullah Miran, Director General of the Knowledge and Human Development Authority in Dubai, explained that the program is in line with the Dubai Education Strategy 2033 and the Dubai Economic Agenda D33, which places the development of future skills and innovation at the heart of sustainable development.
The program offers short, practical learning models in six main subjects, including mathematics, science, computing, arts, Arabic language, and English language, with an online portal and educational tools designed for safe and teacher-supervised use, promoting critical thinking and responsible use of modern technologies within the educational environment.
