News

Visit Iconic Mosques Worldwide With MetaMosque VR

For those with disabilities or economic challenges, visiting the Great Mosque of Mecca is now a real possibility.

Published

2 years ago

April 5, 2024

visit iconic mosques worldwide with metamosque vr

For Muslims worldwide, visiting mosques is of crucial religious and cultural importance. Unfortunately, not everyone shares easy access to a local place of worship, and many Muslims certainly can’t afford a pilgrimage to Al Haram, the Great Mosque of Mecca — even just once in their lifetime. Now, a new virtual reality project is attempting to break down those barriers.

MetaMosque is a virtual app that enables users to experience mosques around the world. Through the platform, Muslims can take part in a spiritual journey to experience the wonder of some of the world’s most significant mosques, fostering a sense of belonging and connection to these vital religious spaces, regardless of circumstances.

Samera Abed, CEO and founder of MetaMosque, devised the project for her 90-year-old mother, who now struggles to attend a mosque by herself.

“So just like how I taught her to use an iPhone, I am teaching her to be part of a community,” Abed explained. “She can go to her childhood mosque whenever she wants”.

Also Read: Yango App Now Alerts Muslim Drivers To Prayer Times

Available on Meta Quest, the MetaMosques immersive experience offers an engaging virtual exploration of prayer halls and a close look at the fine architectural details of some of the world’s most iconic Islamic buildings. After a virtual visit, users are encouraged to share their experiences in online discussions that aim to grow the accompanying MetaMosque community.

“I also know that this will be a great gift for many Muslims in the world who have disabilities or are facing economic challenges,” Abed adds.

MetaMosque currently offers access to ten mosques and a Majlis. The app is available on multiple platforms, including iOS, Android, PC, and Meta Quest, with inbuilt AI that can answer questions on Islamic knowledge and the history of these mosques, along with personalized reminders for upcoming religious events.

News

Microsoft Plans $10 Billion-Plus Gulf Expansion Despite Iran Conflict

Security is shaping Microsoft’s approach, from resilience work with governments to what it will say about how the money splits by country.

Published

4 days ago

September 24, 2026

Nour Nasir

Microsoft

Microsoft is planning more than $10 billion of investment across the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Kuwait through 2030, Vice Chair and President Brad Smith told Reuters, calling the spending schedule aggressive. The Iranian conflict that began on February 28 has not persuaded the company to scale back.

“We’re sustaining all the investments we planned to make before this conflict started, and we are in fact adding to them,” Smith said. The $10 billion-plus total does not, however, show how large those additions are.

The investment, which Smith described as part of Microsoft’s continued infrastructure expansion, is aimed at cloud and AI infrastructure and at the company’s growing regional operations. Microsoft also intends to put more than $400 million into subsea and terrestrial connectivity across the Middle East by 2030.

The spending fits the region’s own ambitions too. Gulf governments have been investing heavily in AI infrastructure as part of a push to diversify their economies beyond oil and gas and turn themselves into global technology hubs. Major cloud and AI providers have been drawn in part by the land and relatively low-cost energy on offer.

Microsoft is widening its partnerships with regional AI companies, though not on identical terms. In 2024, it invested $1.5 billion in Abu Dhabi-based G42 for a minority stake, and Smith currently sits on G42’s board. Saudi Arabia’s Humain and Qatar’s Qai are working with Microsoft on selected priority areas, but Smith said the company does not plan to make capital investments in either.

Also Read: Egypt’s Mobile Wallets Are Booming, But Cash Still Has Power

The conflict has added another strand to Microsoft’s work in the region. Since it began, Smith said, the company has supported regional partners with digital resilience assessments, and it is now working with Gulf countries through a digital resilience initiative focused on preparedness and the protection of critical data.

So far, the company has given no country-by-country breakdown of the investment, citing security among other factors. So while the headline figure is public, how Microsoft divides the spending among the four countries is not.