Potential in AI-based solutions

Kuwait

Abdulraouf Alwazzan, general manager at CCI Kuwait, talks to The Energy Year about the company’s role in Kuwait’s digital transformation and the potential for cloud infrastructure and AI-based solutions in the country. CCI Kuwait provides a full portfolio of IT infrastructure-related services - including assessment, design, integration, deployment, and support across the entire IT infrastructure domain.

What role does CCI Kuwait play in the country’s digital transformation journey?
Since we started our operation in Kuwait in January 2021, our focus has been mainly on the cloud solution and services sector – not only from an infrastructure standpoint but also from all SaaS paths and other components and services of the hybrid cloud. We are partnered with Microsoft mainly, as well as VMware. Those are the vendors related to our niche market operations in Kuwait. We came to Kuwait through the invitation of the vendors to work locally because of the gap in the advanced competencies and niche services required by the IT industry in Kuwait. Our key role is to implement cloud solutions and to provide high-quality service.
When Microsoft invited CCI to Kuwait, they believed that CCI Kuwait could enrich the local market with a partner focused on the cloud. They looked in the region and they found one of the best cloud service providers: CCI. That’s why they invited us because we have this specialty. We could get access to all sectors in a short amount of time. We had good exposure to the governmental sector, oil sector, banking sector, finance sector, telecom sector, retail and industry. This happened much faster than we could have done in other countries.

Which are the efficiencies that can be gained from a good implementation framework?
Imagine a KWD-40 million [USD-130 million] deal or agreement signed between Microsoft and the government. How many users in the government can really fully understand and apply these tools while maximising their utility? We are actually enabling Microsoft tools for five different government entities. Microsoft has the technology as part of what they call the E3, E4 and E5 packages, which are already acquired by the government, oil sector, banks and all enterprises. Imagine they have that security platform, they paid for it as part of the package, and they go and buy another solution because they were not aware that it was included in the first solutions package they acquired. There are many other valuable tools that are not enabled just sitting there. Better understanding these solutions and being able to use these tools in their entirety is absolutely key to gaining efficiencies.
Another area where efficiencies can be achieved is the migration process to the cloud or optimising the cost efficiency of the cloud consumptions.

What is the potential for AI-based solutions in Kuwait?
AI solutions is a market with enormous potential. Everybody is demanding data solutions and AI – machine learning, chatbots and more.
They want to reduce process times. This includes the creation of videos within chatbot solutions. In the oil sector, we have one of the K-companies as a good example. They have a lot of videos on how to do simple troubleshooting and how to utilise the network, no matter what device, service or application is being used. Chatbots shouldn’t only send text answers, but also videos when needed. Chatbots need to be able to learn, so they are now using machine learning and artificial intelligence for that purpose.
People speak about digital transformation as if it only consists of acquiring more technology. That is not the case in reality, however. Many people in Kuwait know this and demand it. I met ministers, GMs, and CEOs who understand this and are pushing for it, which gives me a lot of optimism. We introduced our solutions and ideas to oil sector companies and have done 20 proofs of concept. Three of the oil companies are our chatbot customers. We have many similar success stories.

How strategic is the energy sector for CCI Kuwait?
In the oil sector, there is a gap to fill when it comes to data and AI. That is what we are focusing on. We don’t compete with anybody because nobody is focusing on that. We are developing solutions to help companies better use artificial intelligence to capture data from different sources from all their equipment and all fields in Kuwait, bring it into one data lake, re-engineer it, apply the artificial intelligence solution to it and provide answers, forecast, analysis and future warnings. This is what we are trying to do.

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