Should we care about Philosophy of AI in the Mena region?

The artificial intelligence (AI) race between the global powers has countries everywhere hurriedly rummaging up AI applications. A quick glance at magazine headlines, popular culture, and even peer-reviewed academic literature shows the many grand predictions about AI and the eventual winner of its race. But is that race something to be celebrated or feared? And where does the Middle East and North Africa (Mena) region stand? Today, algorithms, deep learning and AI have emerged as unparalleled forces of power and have made their way into the everyday world.