CEN Alumni Hall of Fame series host alumnus and metaverse visionary at AUS

American University of Sharjah (AUS) hosted alumnus and CEO of Bedu Amin Al Zarouni, who took faculty and students on a tour of Metaverse Project 2117, chronicling the UAE’s future milestones in space exploration. Al Zarouni was speaking at the College of Engineering (CEN) Alumni Hall of Fame Series that highlights the national and international work of CEN alumni towards shaping policies, advancing industries and making a difference in the world. The series is being held in celebration of the AUS Silver Jubilee.

A visionary at the forefront of the UAE’s tech scene, Al Zarouni has a proven track record of success in empowering the UAE’s public and private entities with innovative, personalized data-driven and people-centric digital solutions. A holder of a bachelor's degree in computer engineering from AUS, Al Zarouni has recently joined the founding team at Bedu with a vision to make the company a web3.0 that is valued at one million dollars. He aims to revolutionize the utilization of web3.0 and actively contribute to the metaverse global future.   

“We focused on three aspects when working on Metaverse Project 2117: the storyline of colonizing Mars' ecosystem; the aesthetics of what you hear, see and potentially feel; and the immortal technology with AI avatars. I can join the world as an avatar in 2117, which will continue to learn from how I behave in the metaverse. I can also connect this avatar to my social feeds, and it will easily start analyzing what I am interested in and what I read and research. Eventually and in the future that avatar can act like me, so, one day my descendants can go to the metaverse and actually meet me and learn about who I am,” said Al Zarouni.

He also noted that with new technology comes a new set of skills. “The future will require new skills from us. Twenty years ago, we did not know that we would need data scientists or social media specialists. New jobs will be created for and in the metaverse, so, this is something to keep an eye on,” he said.

Al Zarouni spoke about how universities can address these changes. “Universities will need to be more engaged in the new metaverse world, be part of seminars and conferences in the field and offer more defined courses that focus on engagement with the metaverse world. It is important for universities to start early to keep up with the rapid advancements that take place in that world,” he said.

Reflecting on his professional experience and education, Al Zarouni said that the road to success is never easy and can be filled with setbacks. “But you should not give up or settle. You have to explore every opportunity that comes your way, know the skills you have and the skills you will need in the coming five years. Feed your confidence and motivate yourself. Your education is the basis that you have to always build on. There are two types of skills you gain during your education: those that are transferable and those that are not. Focus on growing your transferable skills, on your communication and leadership skills and expand your network,” he said.   

Speaking on the occasion, Dr. Fadi Aloul, Dean of CEN, highlighted the importance of this lecture series for current students “As we celebrate the 25th anniversary of AUS, we wanted to look at how far we have come as an institution and college as well as inspire future generations who will have the opportunity to listen to renowned alumni who were once in the same position. CEN continues to graduate life-long learners who keep up throughout their careers with the changing trends of this rapidly evolving world. Our alumni continue to leave their mark across all industries as they strive to make this world a better place.”

This year, AUS celebrates 25 years of academic excellence, innovative research and community impact. The celebrations will run over a 12-month period and include a series of festive, reflective and scholarly activities that celebrate faculty, staff, students, alumni, and AUS business and community partners. For more information, visit www.aus.edu/jubilee.