German car manufacturing colossus BMW has accelerated its efforts to develop autonomous driving technologies by announcing that it plans to construct a test track for self-driving cars in the Czech Republic. The estimated cost of the track is rumored to be around €100m.

British luxury carmakerAston Martin has officially announced that its second major UK manufacturing facility will become the brand's centre for electrification - and the production home of the Lagonda brand, the world's first zero-emission luxury marque.

Canada is set to introduce driverless trucks to its transportation fleet despite the imminent threat it poses to many jobs in the country. 2017 was a year in which the self-driving electric truck industry made huge advancement in autonomous technologies and has paved the way for the driverless trucks to be deployed on Canadian roads by 2019.

According to a recent research report from PwC Artificial Intelligence (AI) is expected to account for approximately 13.6% of the United Arab Emirates' GDP in 2030. However, AI is seen by many as being either a hero or a villain. On one hand, AI is currently driving nearly every CIO's agendabecause it intelligently automates work processes, making it possible to do things that have never been done before. But on the other, many workers are scared of the rise of AI as they believe it is rising from humble beginnings to become a villain that will steal their jobs.

New research compiled has projected that AI will replace between 40-50 million full-time jobs in the country over the next fifteen years. The report stated that it was imperative the China's labor market be prepared to adapt to the challenges brought on by the rapid development of AI and automation.

The UAE’s Minister for AI Omar Sultan Al Olama has openly expressed his belief that EXPO 2020 will be the greatest exhibition in its decorated and storied history. EXPO 2020 is expected to have a $30bn ripple effect if it is as successful as being projected.

The US government has announced that it is set to refocus its efforts on examining ways in which it can help speed up the process of taking new technologies to the marketplace. The Trump administration has announced its intentions to bring together a group of drone makers, wireless companies and venture capitalists to explore practices that will enable the commercialization of these technologies in a much more streamlined fashion.

US technology leader Apple has announced that it is cutting back on its dedicated self-driving team. However, it declared that it was remaining in the race to deploy autonomous vehicles.

Political leaders and dignitaries from all across the globe have gathered in Dubai for the sixth annual edition of the World Government Summit. The three-day event aims to examine and explore how digitalization of traditional industries will transform and completely revolutionize societies as we know them.