JEDDAH: The first tablet in the Kingdom with the Saudi hardware “KTAB” is soon to appear after seven years of research. It is made in blue and produced by King Abdul Aziz City for Science and Technology (KACST).
KTAB was produced in partnership between KACST and Mesbah Saudi Technology Company, a large team of engineers and developers. The team who helped to make this innovation a success is headed by Yasser Al-Usaifir, CEO of Mesbah Tech.
The specifications and details of the first Saudi tablet “KTAB” (Kitab is Arabic for “book”) were revealed to Arab News in a special interview with Al-Usaifir.
The idea behind KTAB arose from the passion of creating a platform for smart devices in the Kingdom to be a research and development base for future technology projects.
First, many analyses and surveys were carried out regarding students’ problems and needs regarding carrying heavy devices that did not support all educational aids.
The product also aims to reduce the consumption of paper used in printing. “KTAB is an educational channel, not a substitute for the teacher or the books, but a complementary and supportive educational tool, especially for young students as it aims to encourage them to use technology in a useful way,” said Al-Usaifir.
KTAB includes all the tools that the student needs before, during and after class, at home and at school, including assignments, tests, e-books, daily lessons, visual and audio libraries. It includes applications for parents to follow up their children’s activities both inside and outside the school.
It includes an educational encyclopedia, educational browser and contains dozens of educational sites and application videos with tutorials and explanations. “Note that these applications and their content can be customized according to the needs of the user,” Al-Usaifir said.
“It is a Saudi tablet, but there are partnerships with foreign international companies to build the tablets in a suitable way until the technology is properly settled and localized.”
KTAB supports 4G and quad-core processor, 2G RAM, 16 GB internal storage capacity, 128 GB capacity, 6000mAh battery, 10x 1920x1080 high-resolution display, 8MP front camera and 2GB front end.
“Currently, it is sold to government and private agencies and is not available to the public,” Al-Usaifir said.
The technology is wide and can be re-used as needed. The device can be re-allocated for use in many areas, including civil defense, traffic, passports and many government departments. “We are ready to work and develop any hardware or software specialized in a particular area with high security and quality,” said Al-Usaifir.
First Saudi tablet with 100% local OS to be launched soon
First Saudi tablet with 100% local OS to be launched soon
‘Cake not hate’ campaign becomes ‘Dates not hate’ in Madinah
- Dan said he was very impressed by Saudi hospitality and that his family was warmly welcomed
- He said being in Madinah exposed him to the true diversity of Islam
LONDON: A British autistic and non-verbal boy who has been visiting UK mosques and distributing cakes to promote solidarity amid an increase in far-right support in the country has taken his message of love to Madinah.
Joshua Harris, or “The Joshie-Man” as the 12-year-old is known to his social media fans, has handed out hundreds of his baked goods to worshipers at mosques in major British cities over the last few months.
The “Cake not hate” campaign came about after an Islamophobic attack on a mosque in his home city of Peterborough in October 2025.
Harris and his father visited Masjid Darassalaam, the mosque that was targeted, with cakes that the boy had baked and distributed them to the congregation soon after the attack. Since then, Harris has visited dozens of mosques in the UK.
On a recent trip to the Middle East, he and his father visited Madinah. In a local twist that pays tribute to the holy city’s famous date varieties including ajwa and ambar, Harris handed out dates to people in the courtyard of the Prophet’s Mosque. The “Cake not hate” campaign became “Dates not hate” for Saudi Arabia.
“He was greeted really, really warmly. There were some really touching moments where people were kissing his hands and his head. It was really lovely,” his father, Dan Harris, said.
Dan, the founder of global charity Neurodiversity in Business, said being in Madinah exposed him to the true diversity of Islam.
“We met people from all around the world. It was amazing. It’s like the United Nations there, you get people from different countries and it just goes to show you that the Muslim community, or the Ummah more generally, is not a homogeneous group,” he said.
“We saw people from Tajikistan and Uzbekistan and it was really interesting for us.”
Dan said his visit to Madinah, considered the second holiest city in Islam after Makkah for Muslims, was “profound and life-changing.”
He added: “I would say it’s my favourite city in the world due to the peace and tranquillity I felt there.”
Dan added that he was very impressed by Saudi hospitality: “Everywhere we went, people were taking down my number and insisting that we come for dinner, insisting they pick us up from the location. They were extremely attentive to Joshie as well, making sure his needs were met. We felt a great sense of welcome, something Saudi Arabia is known for.”
