The Google Cloud Summit – Doha 2026 kicked off today at the Qatar National Convention Center, with the participation of an elite group of technology specialists, business leaders, developers and cloud computing engineers, to discuss the latest developments in the fields of artificial intelligence, cloud computing, cybersecurity, application development and digital transformation.
Discussions and presentations focused on the growing role of AI in business development, exploring the potential of Gemini Enterprise technologies and intelligent agent-based platforms, with a focus on building AI solutions that can be managed and scaled within enterprises.
In a speech on the occasion, Mr. Sami Muhammad Al-Shammari, Assistant Undersecretary for Infrastructure and Operations Affairs at the Ministry of Communications and Information Technology, confirmed that the summit coincides with the three-year anniversary of the establishment of the Google data center in the State of Qatar, within the framework of a framework agreement to advance the adoption of cloud computing and artificial intelligence in the government sector in the State of Qatar.
He announced the signing of an agreement with Google Cloud for a period of five years to serve the infrastructure provided by the Ministry to support government institutions and keep pace with digital transformation programmes. He pointed out that the growth in the use of services provided by Google Cloud has increased by 85% over the past three years. About 100 governmental and semi-governmental entities also benefited from these services.
He said that the agreement represents part of an integrated system to provide reliable and secure infrastructure services, and provide training opportunities for more than fifty thousand (employees) until 2029, to give government agencies an opportunity and more options to move forward in adopting artificial intelligence solutions and cloud services, expressing his hope that these agreements will be the beginning of other projects that aim to achieve Qatar Vision 2030.
For her part, Ms. Doha Al Buhendi, Director of the Department of Digital Society and Digital Competencies at the Ministry of Communications, said that during the next three years, we will work with Google Cloud to continue development in the most important areas such as cloud computing and artificial intelligence by providing training opportunities in this field, in addition to the Qatar Digital Academy initiative as one of the initiatives launched by the Ministry of Communications and Information Technology ten years ago to act as a training arm for digital competencies for more than ninety government agencies.
She added that the Ministry has provided more than twenty-five thousand training seats within the framework of partnership and cooperation agreements with international technology companies to develop human capital, led by the international company Google since 2024, as it has provided more than 100 training programs.
The summit witnessed the announcement of major new initiatives, including the launch of the Ministry of Communications and Information Technology’s Innovation Lab (iLab) and the National Skills Development Program at Google Cloud in partnership with Qatar Digital Academy.
Google Cloud, in cooperation with Qatar Digital Academy, also launched the National Skills Development Program at Google Cloud to provide more than 50,000 new learning opportunities across Qatar by 2030, within an integrated framework targeting three main categories, such as basic training in the field of artificial intelligence for the broader workforce, strategic development for executive leaders, and advanced technical training for developers.
During the summit, a group of the most prominent Qatari institutions reviewed developments in transferring basic workloads to Google Cloud and the Gemini Enterprise application, especially the communications sector, where “Areed-Qatar” and Vodafone Qatar reviewed ways to benefit from artificial intelligence agents whose operation does not require writing codes, to automate internal network management processes.
BeIN Media Group and Aspire Zone Foundation highlighted agent AI applications to process live broadcasts and translate sports performance data.
As for the education sector, Qatar University reviewed the launch of Gemini Enterprise to automate administrative governance and operate the Spark Center for Artificial Intelligence Research. While the Ministry of Endowments and Islamic Affairs reviewed how artificial intelligence tools contribute to reducing media content production cycles, simplifying legal and human resources inquiries, and helping imams of mosques access reliable and documented religious content.
For its part, the Civil Service and Government Development Commission, in cooperation with the National Planning Council, highlighted the use of data graphing techniques to enable dynamic management of the workforce and forecast future scenarios.
In this context, Mr. Ghassan Costa, General Manager of Google Cloud in Qatar, Oman, Bahrain and Iraq, said that Google Cloud’s open and integrated platform for artificial intelligence was specifically designed to provide organizations with the foundations they need to expand the scope of smart systems.
“By integrating Gemini Enterprise and investing in talent development across our national skills development initiatives, organizations can integrate AI-powered cognitive teams directly into their core workflows, operating within an open ecosystem designed to keep pace with the accelerating pace of AI innovation.”
The topics presented at the summit reflect a growing trend towards treating artificial intelligence as part of the operational architecture of organizations, rather than just an experimental tool, with a focus on data security, governance, scalability, and linking digital solutions to business needs.
Doha’s hosting of the summit also comes at a time when the importance of artificial intelligence and cloud computing is increasing in the development of economic sectors and digital services, while the event provides a space for communication between experts, developers, business leaders and technical solution providers, and allows insight into practical applications of modern technologies and explore opportunities for cooperation and innovation.