Robot Vacuums Used to Clean, Sanitize Roof of Holy Kaaba

The Kaaba at the Grand Mosque. (Reuters)
The Kaaba at the Grand Mosque. (Reuters)
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Robot Vacuums Used to Clean, Sanitize Roof of Holy Kaaba

The Kaaba at the Grand Mosque. (Reuters)
The Kaaba at the Grand Mosque. (Reuters)

The General Presidency of the Affairs of the Two Holy Mosques has allocated five robot vacuums to clean and sanitize the roof of the Holy Kaaba, allowing the cleaning operation to be complete in 20 minutes, reported the Saudi Press Agency.

Saudi Undersecretary of the Presidency for Services, Field Affairs and Ensuring Environmental Prevention Mohammed bin Musleh Al-Jabiri said that the robot vacuum works through a smart application and manually.

The robot's dimensions are 40x40x10, with a charging time of four hours. It can work for three hours. The robot vacuum covers an area of 180 square meters in the three hours with a suction power of 2000 pascal with a dust reservoir of 400 milliliters, and a 250-millileter water reservoir, with three speeds and a hybrid broom and mop that work through artificial intelligence maps.

These modern devices and technologies seek to preserve the quality and safety of marble, remove dust residues, and clean the Holy Kaaba and the entire Grand Mosque.

Al-Jabiri said that the presidency is keen on providing the latest technologies to sanitize the Grand Mosque and speed up tasks at a lower cost.

The cleaning of the Holy Kaaba roof is done by a specialized technical Saudi team according to a fixed timetable. The latest cleaning technologies are used through several stages, where one cleaning process is usually complete within 20 minutes.



Google to Discount Cloud Computing Services for US Government, FT Reports

FILED - 09 January 2024, US, Las Vegas: The Google logo is pictured on the Internet company's pavilion at the CES technology trade fair in Las Vegas. Photo: Andrej Sokolow/dpa
FILED - 09 January 2024, US, Las Vegas: The Google logo is pictured on the Internet company's pavilion at the CES technology trade fair in Las Vegas. Photo: Andrej Sokolow/dpa
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Google to Discount Cloud Computing Services for US Government, FT Reports

FILED - 09 January 2024, US, Las Vegas: The Google logo is pictured on the Internet company's pavilion at the CES technology trade fair in Las Vegas. Photo: Andrej Sokolow/dpa
FILED - 09 January 2024, US, Las Vegas: The Google logo is pictured on the Internet company's pavilion at the CES technology trade fair in Las Vegas. Photo: Andrej Sokolow/dpa

Google will heavily discount cloud computing services for the United States government, in a deal that could be finalized within weeks, the Financial Times reported on Friday, amid President Donald Trump's efforts to implement sweeping measures to minimize federal spending.

The Wall Street Journal reported last week that Oracle will offer federal agencies a 75% discount on its license-based software and a "substantial" discount on its cloud service through the end of November.

Google's cloud contract is likely "to land in a similar spot", the Financial Times said, citing a senior official at the General Services Administration, adding that equivalent discounts from Microsoft's Azure and Amazon Web Services are expected to follow soon.

"Every single of those companies is totally bought in, they understand the mission," the senior official told the newspaper. "We will get there with all four players."

Reuters could not immediately verify the report.

Google and the General Services Administration did not immediately respond to Reuters' requests for comment outside regular business hours.

In April, Google agreed to offer a 71% discount till September 30 to US federal agencies for its business apps package that could generate up to $2 billion in cost savings if there is government-wide adoption.