Saudi Arabia to Host First International AI Olympiad

SDAIA will hold the first international edition of the International AI Olympiad (IAIO) between September 8-12
SDAIA will hold the first international edition of the International AI Olympiad (IAIO) between September 8-12
TT
20

Saudi Arabia to Host First International AI Olympiad

SDAIA will hold the first international edition of the International AI Olympiad (IAIO) between September 8-12
SDAIA will hold the first international edition of the International AI Olympiad (IAIO) between September 8-12

The Saudi Data and Artificial Intelligence Authority (SDAIA) will hold the first international edition of the International AI Olympiad (IAIO) between September 8-12, in which some 25 countries are expected to take part.

The event will be held in collaboration with the International Center for Artificial Intelligence Research and Ethics (ICAIRE) and the International Research Center for Artificial Intelligence (IRCAI) in Slovenia, under UNESCO auspices.

SDAIA aims to establish this international Olympiad as a premier platform for AI competitions, nurturing talent, and fostering skill development. The event will be a forum for scientists and enthusiasts from around the world to exchange ideas, enhance capabilities, and explore the latest advancements in the field.

Moreover, SDAIA envisions IAIO as a catalyst for future global expansions, serving as a powerful motivator for young men and women the world over to engage in activities pertaining to AI.

This initiative aims to cultivate a new generation equipped with a profound understanding of the transformative technologies that have become an integral part of humanity's daily lives and business systems.

In preparation for the Olympiad, SDAIA conducted a series of virtual lectures on AI, on the Olympiad website, designed to qualify international teams for the competition and empower interested students from various countries to expand their knowledge in this crucial domain.

The lectures spanned five weeks and covered diverse topics such as Introduction to AI, Social Impact of AI (ethics, fairness), Kernel Methods, Working with Data, Deployed Deep Generative Models, Supervised Learning, AI-Search, Learning Evaluation, Reinforcement Learning, and Unsupervised Learning.

Each participating country fielded a team of up to four students, who will compete individually over two days during the third edition of the Global AI Summit. The first day is slated to focus on scientific questions, while the second involve solving scientific problems using AI technologies through a specially designed platform.

IAIO aligns with SDAIA's commitment to raising the Kingdom's global standing, making it a leading force in data and AI. It also contributes to achieving the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development adopted by the UN by raising awareness about the significance of advanced technologies and equipping communities with the knowledge and skills necessary to master them.



Apple Airlifted iPhones Worth a Record $2 Billion from India in March as Trump Tariffs Loomed

A man walks past a poster of an Apple iPhone 16 at a store in Denpasar on Indonesia's resort island of Bali on April 12, 2025. (AFP)
A man walks past a poster of an Apple iPhone 16 at a store in Denpasar on Indonesia's resort island of Bali on April 12, 2025. (AFP)
TT
20

Apple Airlifted iPhones Worth a Record $2 Billion from India in March as Trump Tariffs Loomed

A man walks past a poster of an Apple iPhone 16 at a store in Denpasar on Indonesia's resort island of Bali on April 12, 2025. (AFP)
A man walks past a poster of an Apple iPhone 16 at a store in Denpasar on Indonesia's resort island of Bali on April 12, 2025. (AFP)

Apple's main India suppliers Foxconn and Tata shipped nearly $2 billion worth of iPhones to the United States in March, an all-time high, as the US company airlifted devices to bypass President Donald Trump's impending tariffs, customs data shows.

The smartphone maker stepped up production in India and chartered cargo flights to ferry 600 tons of iPhones to the United States to ensure sufficient inventory in one of its biggest markets on concern Trump's tariffs would push up costs.

In April, the US administration imposed 26% duties on imports from India, much lower than the more than 100% China was facing at the time. Trump has since paused most duties, except for China for three months.

Foxconn, Apple's main India supplier, exported smartphones worth $1.31 billion in March, its highest ever for a single month and equal to shipments for January and February combined, according to commercially available customs data reviewed by Reuters.

This included Apple iPhone 13, 14, 16 and 16e models, and took Foxconn's total shipments from India to the United States this year to $5.3 billion.

Exports from Tata Electronics, another Apple supplier, stood at $612 million in March, around 63% higher than the previous month, and included iPhone 15 and 16 models.

Apple, Foxconn and Tata did not immediately respond to requests for comment. Reuters is the first to report the shipment details.

Customs data showed all Foxconn shipments to the United States in March were by air from the Chennai Air Cargo terminal, and landed at various locations, including Los Angeles and New York, with Chicago receiving the majority.

Trump later granted exclusions from steep tariffs on smartphones and some other electronics imported largely from China, but later indicated that those exemptions will likely be short-lived.

To expedite shipments, Apple lobbied Indian airport authorities to cut the time needed to clear customs at Chennai airport in the southern state of Tamil Nadu, to six hours down from 30 hours.

At least six cargo jets were used in the operation which one source described was a way to "beat the tariffs".