Doha, Qatar: Northwestern University in Qatar (NU-Q) will host the next edition of its signature Rawabet Conference Series, “Shaping the AI-Empowered Future of Knowledge, Scholarship, and Creativity”, on September 1 and 2, 2025.
The conference will convene global thought-leaders from academia, industry, and the arts to explore the transformative impact of artificial intelligence (AI) on knowledge systems, education, creative industries, and society.
Building on the Series’ mission to bridge global debates with perspectives from the Global South, this edition will provide a platform for cutting-edge research, critical reflection, and dialogue on how AI is reshaping knowledge production, scholarship, creativity, and communication.
A series of speaker presentations will highlight AI’s opportunities in advancing science, education, and media, while also addressing urgent challenges around ethics, bias, inequality, and digital justice.
“Artificial intelligence is no longer a distant future; it is a reality that is profoundly altering how we learn, create, and engage with one another,” said dean and CEO of Northwestern Qatar, Marwan M Kraidy.
“Here at Northwestern Qatar, we are deeply committed to exploring these changes with both rigour and imagination. Through this Rawabet conference, we hope to bring voices from the Global South into the conversation and create a space for dialogue that is as inclusive as it is forward-looking.”
The two-day conference will commence with remarks by Dean Kraidy and will be followed by presentations and thematic sessions featuring leading scholars and practitioners. S Venus Jin, Associate Dean for Education and Founding Director of the Artificial Intelligence and Media Lab (AIM Lab), will provide positioning remarks on building a humane AI ecosystem by synthesising the six focal themes of the conference: “The AI-Empowered Future,” “AI for a Better World,” “AI and Creativity,” “AI and Journalism,” “AI Ethics,” and “AI and the Global South.”
The Conference will also feature a series of special exhibits running alongside the sessions, highlighting the intersection of AI, creativity, and local contexts. These include “AI and (In)Justice: AI-Generated Art Display in Pakistan” by Shakeeb Asrar, Assistant Professor in the Journalism and Strategic Communication Programme, which showcases AI-generated artworks reflecting social and political realities. An interactive poster presentation, “Localising Microsoft Cloud,” led by Professor Ibahrine, Maureen Wu, Lama Turki Al Khater, and Maryam Rubaih Al Kubaisi, will engage participants with practical applications of AI in regional contexts.
“Focusing on AI in the conference, we want to not only explore its possibilities, but also address its ethical and social challenges,” said Jin.
“AI is already reshaping the way we create, communicate, work, and learn, and it’s easy to get caught up in the excitement of new tools. In organizing this conference, we aim to step back and ask deeper questions: How can AI be designed and used responsibly? How can it serve various communities, rather than reinforce existing inequalities?
“By bringing together scholars, creators, and practitioners from around the world, we hope these conversations will guide us in using AI thoughtfully, so that innovation goes hand in hand with positive influence and meaningful impact.”
