Online ISSN 2286-0266
Print ISSN 1223-0685
© 2025 Œconomica by ASE & SOREC
 
Flavius CABA-MARIA
Academia de Studii Economice din Bucureşti
Alexandru GEORGESCU
Cercetător independent
Andreea DINU
Institutul Naţional de Cercetare - Dezvoltare în Informatică - ICI Bucureşti
Paul-Cristian VASILE
Institutul Naţional de Cercetare - Dezvoltare în Informatică - ICI Bucureşti
Artificial Intelligence (AI) represents a transformative technology for a great number of domains throughout the social, economic, and military spheres. As AI technology matures and becomes part of a greater number of products and services, in a greater number of fields, so too does the exposure of third party countries to AI increase. This article analyses the factors affecting the uptake of AI technology in the Middle East and North Africa region (MENA). Countries in the region are not just passive beneficiaries or victims of AI implementation, but are active players defining strategies for AI implementation and using it as an equalizer with more advanced and established economies, while also trying to address key challenges at their level through AI. The article concludes with an analysis of the likely evolution of AI absorption throughout the region, with an emphasis on the strategic choice the MENA region countries are forced to make because of the securitization of AI issues at global levels, especially in the context of the US-China trade war.

ŒCONOMICA no. 3/2023
Keywords: MENA region, Artificial Intelligence, international cooperation, digitalization, cybersecurity, governance
JEL: B27, F52, F63, N75, O32
Factors of AI Uptake in the MENA Region