ThePlace: Al-Okhdood, telling the story of human settlements in Najran
Updated 02 May 2022
Arab News
Al-Okhdood, the historical landmarks of Al-Okhdood in the city of Najran tell the story of human settlements in the region from the first millennium B.C. to the end of the fourth century A.D.
The period led to a flourishing civilization in Southern Arabia in the most important stop along the ancient incense trade route.
Al-Okhdood’s 5-kilometer archeological area falls in the middle of residential neighborhoods located in Najran. The square castle has two main gates connected by a corridor, on both sides of which are rooms and sub-corridors. Many symbols, writings and rock drawings are engraved throughout the castle. In the northeastern part of the site is a large granite millstone that was used for grinding food grains within the market and mosque area. It was discovered in 1996.
Excavations began at Al-Okhdood at the end of the 20th century. Archeologists discovered many artifacts and graves, some of which date back to B.C. Some artifacts found in the site’s southern side date back to early Islamic periods.
The main fortress, Al-Hosn, contained inscriptions, animal and human drawings, and names of people engraved on the walls. Excavators also discovered a mosque dating back to the first Hijri century on the northern side of the site, in addition to stone tools that were used by humans since the Stone Age. Pottery, glass, and jewelry made from silver, copper and gold were also discovered.
How AI is expanding access for Saudi Arabia’s deaf community
Real-time transcription, language tools and AI assistants are reshaping communication
Updated 24 min 24 sec ago
Jasmine Bager
DHAHRAN: On a recent evening in Dhahran, about 20 members of the local deaf community gathered, their hands moving swiftly through the air like conductors guiding intricate symphonies.
The event was organized by Riyadh-based awareness advocate Mohammad Alfayez, known on social media as “Prince Mohami.”
Alfayez is a Cued Speech user — a communication method that pairs mouth movements with hand signals to clarify spoken language for people who are deaf. He uses a cochlear implant, a surgically implanted device that bypasses the inner ear and sends sound signals directly to the auditory nerve. Multilingual, he is fluent in American Sign Language, Arabic Sign Language, and spoken and written English and Arabic.
After spending more than a decade in the US, Alfayez moved back to his hometown of Riyadh last Ramadan. Since then, artificial intelligence has become what he describes as a lifeline.
“ChatGPT helped me be more independent. I used to have to ask my little nieces: ‘Can you call for me,’ but I want to be independent. I’m over 18,” Alfayez said.
Image of Riyadh-based deaf-awareness advocate Mohammad Alfayez, known on social media as ‘Prince Mohami.’ (Supplied)
He believes Saudi Arabia’s rapid embrace of AI could significantly expand access to essential services for the deaf community, building on systems already common in the US.
“We need help with services — in hospitals, police stations, embassies — it is much more common in the US to go to a coffee shop and they would be able to sign with you because they learned it in school. You know, ASL is offered in high school and college in the US. Here in Saudi, we have French, English and other languages, why not include sign language? There are places that teach it but they are a few and limited.”
The demand is considerable.
According to the Kingdom’s 2022 disability census, approximately 84,000 people in Saudi Arabia have hearing impairments, accounting for 5.1 percent of people with disabilities.
Among those working to support the community is educator Abdulrahman Khalid, who also attended the gathering.
“I use AI daily because I teach deaf students here in Dammam,” Khalid told Arab News.
DID YOU KNOW?
• Saudi Arabia’s SAMAI initiative has trained over 1 million people in AI skills since its launch in 2024.
• At Saudi Aramco, a pilot program is exploring how AI can better support deaf employees in the workplace.
• Most teachers of deaf students in Saudi Arabia are not deaf themselves — and deaf educators remain rare.
“Sometimes, students cannot understand context because of the way the traditional news is written. In that case, they use programs like ChatGPT and say, ‘Explain this news to me.’ This helps them understand it better.”
Written language presents another hurdle, as many students with hearing impairment struggle with sentence structure and grammar.
“Using these programs helps them form sentences ‘properly’ in daily conversations. For example, a deaf student might write: ‘Today I go place…restaurant…coffee…’ You’ll notice the sentence has missing words. But with ChatGPT, they can write, ‘Correct this sentence so it becomes complete.’ Then they can use it in conversations, such as on WhatsApp,” he said.
Part of this linguistic gap stems from the fact that most teachers of students with hearing impairment are not deaf themselves — something that distinguishes Khalid.
“I am only one of a few deaf teachers who teaches the deaf in Saudi Arabia,” he said.
The shortage is partly due to strict qualification requirements for teaching roles, including licensing exams with written components that can be significantly more challenging for deaf candidates.
Deaf-awareness advocate Mohammad Alfayez, known on social media as ‘Prince Mohami’, has a big following on social media. (Supplied)
Another attendee, Khalid Al-Zahrani, brings both corporate and academic experience to the conversation. Fluent in ASL, he has worked at Saudi Aramco for three years within a division focused on AI-driven product innovation. He is currently involved in a pilot program exploring how artificial intelligence can better support deaf employees within the company.
Al-Zahrani earned a degree in ASL from Gallaudet University, a private institution founded in 1864 in Washington, DC, that specializes in education for deaf and hard-of-hearing students.
As AI has advanced rapidly in recent years, he has observed shifting attitudes toward the technology — though adoption within the deaf community remains inconsistent.
“Some people in the deaf community are scared of AI, to be honest, they are not fully aware of how to use AI, but we are dragging them to get involved with AI. Instead of hiring an interpreter, we can ‘hire a technology’ that can translate or give us a better understanding,” Al-Zahrani told Arab News.
While Saudi Aramco is developing internal AI tools, he hopes Arabic Sign Language will eventually be integrated into future systems as more qualified specialists enter the field. Such developments could lower costs while making communication faster and more accessible.
Another Gallaudet alumna, AlHanouf AlHenaki, who divides her time between Riyadh and Washington, DC, joined the discussion remotely.
Opinion
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“As a deaf woman, I see AI as an empowering tool that enables me to participate, understand and make decisions confidently in predominantly hearing work environments,” she wrote to Arab News.
She also advocates for stronger deaf representation in the design and development of emerging technologies.
“I use AI-powered tools like real-time transcription apps, speech-to-text services, and translation assistants. These tools help me communicate both within the deaf community and with hearing colleagues,” she said.
She expressed particular enthusiasm for one widely used platform.
“ChatGPT is perfect the way it is!” she said.
According to the Ministry of Education, the SAMAI initiative, launched in 2024, has trained more than 1 million Saudis in AI-related skills.
As AI adoption accelerates across the Kingdom, advocates say expanding accessible technologies — including Arabic Sign Language recognition and real-time translation tools — will be critical to ensuring that the deaf community remains fully included in Saudi Arabia’s digital transformation.
