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SDAIA Concludes GAIN Summit in Riyadh with Local, Int’l Agreements

The summit included panel discussions and workshops featuring experts from various sectors and global companies specialized in AI applications. SPA
The summit included panel discussions and workshops featuring experts from various sectors and global companies specialized in AI applications. SPA
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SDAIA Concludes GAIN Summit in Riyadh with Local, Int’l Agreements

The summit included panel discussions and workshops featuring experts from various sectors and global companies specialized in AI applications. SPA
The summit included panel discussions and workshops featuring experts from various sectors and global companies specialized in AI applications. SPA

The third edition of the Global AI Summit (GAIN Summit), organized by the Saudi Data and Artificial Intelligence Authority (SDAIA) from September 10 to 12 at the King Abdulaziz International Conference Center in Riyadh brought together hundreds of specialists and enthusiasts in artificial-intelligence (AI) technologies and applications worldwide under the theme "Artificial Intelligence for the Good of Humanity."

AT the summit, SDAIA President Dr. Abdullah bin Sharaf Al-Ghamdi highlighted the Saudi leadership's commitment, under the guidance of Prince Mohammed bin Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, Crown Prince and Prime Minister, and Chairman of the SDAIA Board of Directors, to position Saudi Arabia as a leader in the field of AI.

The summit included panel discussions and workshops featuring experts from various sectors and global companies specialized in AI applications. The sessions unveiled the latest developments in the field, emphasizing that innovations in AI have far-reaching impacts not just technologically but also on geopolitical, political, and legislative domains. Furthermore, it was stressed that developments in AI should align with sustainable development and equality in education.

Several AI initiatives, programs, and products were unveiled during the summit, and agreements and memoranda of understanding (MoUs) were signed to bolster its applications and development within the Kingdom.

The third edition of the GAIN Summit concluded with a speech by National Information Center Director Dr. Esam bin Abdullah Al-Wagait, who highlighted the participation of 465 speakers and participants from over 100 countries and how the summit explored the latest developments shaping the future of AI.

Moreover, he underscored the global significance of announcements made during the summit, such as the work of the United Nations (UN) High-Level Advisory Body on Artificial Intelligence, the partnership of the UN International Telecommunication Union (ITU) with the Kingdom to develop a global framework for AI readiness, and the announcement of the Riyadh Charter on Artificial Intelligence for the Islamic World issued by the Islamic World Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (ICESCO) in collaboration with the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) on the Observatory on Artificial Intelligence.

Al-Wagait also highlighted important AI projects that emerged during the summit, including the Arabic Large Language Model (ALLaM), aimed at developing the best large Arabic language model in the world, and the cooperation with NVIDIA to expand the scope of AI infrastructure using 5,000 graphics processing units. Additionally, educational integration initiatives were announced, such as cooperation with the Ministry of Education to integrate the ALLaM Model into the Kingdom's education system, providing support tools for teachers and leveraging AI technology for self-learning.

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Trump Says He Will End All Taxes on Overtime if Elected 

Republican presidential nominee former President Donald Trump motions while attending the 9/11 Memorial ceremony on the 23rd anniversary of the Sept. 11, 2001 terror attacks, Wednesday, Sept. 11, 2024, in New York. (AP)
Republican presidential nominee former President Donald Trump motions while attending the 9/11 Memorial ceremony on the 23rd anniversary of the Sept. 11, 2001 terror attacks, Wednesday, Sept. 11, 2024, in New York. (AP)
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Trump Says He Will End All Taxes on Overtime if Elected 

Republican presidential nominee former President Donald Trump motions while attending the 9/11 Memorial ceremony on the 23rd anniversary of the Sept. 11, 2001 terror attacks, Wednesday, Sept. 11, 2024, in New York. (AP)
Republican presidential nominee former President Donald Trump motions while attending the 9/11 Memorial ceremony on the 23rd anniversary of the Sept. 11, 2001 terror attacks, Wednesday, Sept. 11, 2024, in New York. (AP)

Republican US presidential candidate Donald Trump said on Thursday that he will end all taxes on overtime pay as part of a wider tax cut package, if he is elected in the Nov. 5 election.

"As part of our additional tax cuts, we will end all taxes on overtime," Trump said in remarks at a rally in Tucson, Arizona. "Your overtime hours will be tax-free."

Trump, who faces Democratic Vice President Kamala Harris in what polls show to be a tight race, has previously said he would seek legislation to end the taxation of tips to aid service workers. Harris has made a similar pledge.

"He is desperate and scrambling and saying whatever it takes to try to trick people into voting for him," a Harris campaign spokesperson said in response to Trump's proposal on Thursday.

At a campaign event this month with union workers, Harris accused Trump of "blocking" overtime from millions of workers during his 2017-2021 presidency.

In 2019, the Trump administration issued a rule increasing the eligibility of overtime pay to 1.3 million additional US workers, replacing a more generous proposal that had been introduced by President Barack Obama, Trump's Democratic predecessor.

The Trump administration raised the salary level for exemption from overtime pay to $35,568 a year, up from the long-standing $23,660 threshold. Workers’ rights groups criticized the move, saying it covered far fewer workers than the scheme introduced under Obama.

Under Obama, the Labor Department proposed raising the threshold to more than $47,000, which would have made nearly 5 million more workers eligible for overtime. That rule was later struck down in court.

Overtime pay at these income levels overwhelmingly benefits blue-collar workers, such as fast-food workers, nurses, store assistants and other low-income employees.

"The people who work overtime are among the hardest working citizens in our country and for too long no one in Washington has been looking out for them," Trump said on Thursday.

Under Labor Department rules, eligible workers must be paid at least time-and-a-half for hours worked above 40 hours in a single work week.

As of last month, American factory workers in non-supervisory roles put in an average of 3.7 hours of overtime a week, data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics shows.

Not taxing overtime would result in less government revenue, at a time when Trump's plan to permanently extend the tax cuts he passed as president would expand the US deficit by $3.5 trillion through 2033, according to the non-partisan Congressional Budget Office. The US budget deficit in the first 11 months of this fiscal year is $1.9 trillion.

It's unclear how much revenue the government receives from taxes on overtime pay.

Trump's proposal would be a first for the federal government. Alabama this year became the first state to exclude overtime wages for hourly workers from state taxes as a temporary measure that won legislative support in part to help employers fill jobs in a tight labor market. The exemption is for 18 months only.