AI in PR: From Buzzword to Business Advantage in the Middle East
- Marwa Kaabour
- 5 days ago
- 3 min read
There was a time when Artificial Intelligence in PR meant a simple dashboard that tracked mentions or scheduled press releases. Fast-forward to 2025, and AI is no longer on the sidelines—it’s running point.
Across the Middle East, AI is rapidly transforming public relations from a reactive discipline into a predictive powerhouse. We’re now seeing AI not just support communications functions, but reshape how brands monitor, protect, and project their reputation.
The Arabian Gulf Takes the Lead
In the Gulf region—where ambition meets acceleration—AI-powered PR is finding fertile ground. Let’s look at how some of the region’s most progressive entities are embedding intelligence into communications:
🏙️ NEOM: Preemptive PR at Scale
The Saudi giga-project NEOM is deploying predictive sentiment analytics across global markets to gauge how audiences react—not just to press coverage, but to policy shifts, leadership changes, and global news cycles. Their system doesn’t just listen—it models potential reputational risks before they occur. In a city built on the future, this level of proactive communication isn’t just ideal—it’s essential.
🌍 Dubai Tourism: Adaptive Messaging in a Post-Pandemic World
Tourism recovery has become a masterclass in agility. In partnership with an AI media intelligence platform, Dubai’s tourism authority now generates daily insights into how narratives about the city evolve—across languages, markets, and traveler segments. This lets them tweak messaging on the fly, whether it’s addressing safety concerns, spotlighting new attractions, or amplifying events aligned with traveler sentiment.
📡 Ooredoo Qatar: Understanding Dialects, Not Just Data
Traditional sentiment analysis tools often struggle with the nuances of Arabic dialects. Ooredoo’s communications team, however, is piloting AI engines trained specifically on regional linguistic data, allowing them to decode the true tone behind consumer conversations. It’s not just about what’s being said—it’s how it’s being said, and in which dialect.
What’s Driving the Shift?
Three key AI applications are fast becoming PR essentials:
1. Predictive Analytics
No more waiting for a crisis to unfold. AI now allows brands to spot early warning signs—like unusual engagement spikes, keyword anomalies, or shifts in influencer behavior—and act fast.
🔍 Example: Global airlines like Emirates and Etihad are using real-time AI dashboards to detect emerging complaints (e.g., baggage delays or weather disruptions) and deploy pre-crafted comms before issues escalate.
2. Hyper-Personalized Content
AI tools can segment audiences based on live behavioral cues—what they're reading, watching, or reacting to—and tailor content accordingly.
🧠 Example: Spotify’s AI-driven comms strategy adjusts campaign narratives by market, even using local music taste data to influence messaging tones.
3. AI-Powered Media Monitoring
Gone are the days of vanity metrics. Today’s systems don’t just count headlines—they interpret context: Is the tone sarcastic or genuine? Is this an opinion piece or a newswire? And which sentiment carries more weight?
📰 Example: International hotel chains in the UAE are using these systems to detect early friction points (e.g., influencer complaints on TikTok) and respond with humanised, empathetic messaging.
But Here's the Big Question: Can AI Sound Human?
And more importantly—should it?
In our pursuit of automation, there’s a growing risk: disconnection.
Because while AI can help us anticipate a reputational fire, it can’t decide whether to fan the flames or douse them with empathy. That takes human wisdom, cultural fluency, and strategic restraint.
At its best, PR is rooted in three timeless values:
Trust
Transparency
Truth
These are earned values, not automated ones.
So What Does the Future of PR Look Like?
It's not human vs. machine. It's human + machine.
✅ AI brings speed, scale, and foresight.✅ Humans bring intuition, empathy, and ethical judgment.
When combined, they create communications strategies that are not only smarter—but more resonant, more real-time, and more human than ever before.
Final Thoughts
For CMOs, communications directors, and brand leaders across the Middle East, the message is clear: AI in PR is not optional. But nor is it absolute.
The future belongs to those who can build a partnership between intelligence and intuition—between algorithm and authenticity.
In this new era, those who master both will shape not just brand perception, but brand legacy.
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