Officials and experts convened at the Doha International Conference on Artificial Intelligence and Security (Doha-AIS 2026), held at the Doha Exhibition and Convention Center alongside the 16th Milipol Qatar 2026, to discuss the evolving role of artificial intelligence (AI) in crisis management and national security. The panel sessions focused on the integration of predictive technologies and smart systems to enhance decision-making, crisis response, and internal security frameworks.

Iman al-Kuwari, Director of the Digital Innovation Department at Qatar’s Ministry of Communications and Information Technology (MCIT), highlighted the critical role of predictive AI in improving crisis management capabilities. She explained that the main challenge during emergencies is not information scarcity but the limited time to process rapidly changing situations. To address this, Qatar has developed a national AI system featuring key elements such as a data fabric that consolidates and standardizes data across government entities, a prediction engine to anticipate future developments, and a decision-making cockpit aimed at guiding leaders toward optimal responses. These components are supported by governance structures that ensure accountability, data protection, interoperability, and expertise, facilitating coordinated public service delivery. Al-Kuwari cited the use of these predictive systems to manage crowd movements during the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 as a notable success, while also noting that AI integration has dramatically reduced the time required for legislative and research analyses.

Researchers from Hamad Bin Khalifa University (HBKU) also emphasized the need to address operational and cybersecurity concerns tied to AI systems. Dr. Mohammad Saleh Ali AlShaikh, a postdoctoral fellow at HBKU, underscored the importance of intelligent monitoring to detect anomalies and prevent cyberattacks targeting infrastructure such as stadium data. Efforts are underway to enhance routine and predictive maintenance to handle dynamic electrical loads and surges, ensuring data center stability. His team’s research involves using AI integrated with physics to boost predictive accuracy, protect data infrastructure, and improve energy efficiency of computing resources and the electrical grid within Qatar’s harsh climate.

Another panel, titled “A Global Approach to Ethics, Governance, and Responsible AI,” addressed the challenges of embedding AI technologies in internal security systems. Aisha al-Asmakh, a researcher at HBKU, proposed a model for securing Qatar’s maritime infrastructure through AI-powered systems integrated with renewable energy sources, specifically a wind-powered offshore platform that supplies energy to unmanned maritime vehicles equipped with intelligent threat detection capabilities. This approach aims to enhance maritime security, energy management, and real-time decision-making. Al-Asmakh also called for a national AI platform that supports both civilian and security objectives.

Sami Salem, a Government and Public Sector associate at PwC, outlined the strategic benefits of adopting AI-driven national security approaches, including early crisis anticipation, quicker transitions from threat detection to response, improved interagency coordination, and strengthened institutional capacity to handle future risks.

Meanwhile, Shawq al-Qahtani, Senior Information Security Assurance Engineer at BeIN Media Group, stressed the challenges of maintaining control over increasingly autonomous AI systems. She advocated for robust governance frameworks encompassing data controls, access management, decision traceability, and recoverability mechanisms to ensure technological sovereignty and reinforce AI security and reliability.

Collectively, the discussions at Doha-AIS 2026 highlighted the growing significance of AI in national security and crisis response, while emphasizing the necessity of ethical governance, operational resilience, and cross-sector collaboration to harness these technologies effectively.