MIDDLE EAST AND AFRICA

The MEA region is beneficial in terms of voice assistant solutions, with the presence of better adoption trends in developing countries, such as South Africa, Israel, United Arab Emirates (UAE), and Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA). The adoption of tablets and smartphones, mobile-first approach, consumerization of IT, and BYOD trends are continuing to increase in workplaces across the MEA region. Enterprises across the MEA region has started leveraging AI-based technologies in the business environment. Currently, the voice assistant application market is in a very nascent phase. The energy and utilities, oil and gas, finance, and retail sectors are contributing significantly in the voice-based virtual assistant ecosystem. The growth of the voice assistant application market is dependent on the growth of digital communication and technological advancements across the region.In MEA, the oil and gas sector has enormous growth opportunities in the voice assistant application market. As MEA is the largest producer and exporter of oil globally, obtaining critical energy and product data is an important parameter to take necessary decisions within a definite time frame. This can be done by using voice assistant application and virtual assistant agents, which assist in resolving complex problems related to the customers. Additionally, MEA has strong government as well as religious regulations with respect to the adoption of the internet, media, monitoring, and publications. This shows that this region is extremely cautious about the adoption of AI-based services. The UAE, Saudi Arabia, and Qatar, in particular, have demonstrated a strong commitment toward the development and implementation of voice assistant technologies. Businesses in these parts of the region have been investing heavily in new technology, supported by governments as early consumers of the technology.