In an office overlooking the bustling streets of Dubai, Naorus Abdulghani is quietly orchestrating a technological revolution. As the Chief Technology Officer of Beyond ONE, a company aiming to redefine personalised technology in the Middle East, Abdulghani is a man on a mission.
His journey from a mathematics-obsessed child to a leader in the tech industry is as complex and compelling as the algorithms he designs.
Abdulghani’s affinity for mathematics began early, and his parents nurtured him. “Maths was always a part of my life,” he recalls. “My father, an electrical and aerospace engineer, significantly influenced me. From the fourth grade, it was one of my favourite subjects.” This early passion set the stage for a career spanning continents and industries.
Abdulghani was a university student in the United States in the late 1990s and early 2000s, during the height of the dot-com bubble. The era was marked by both excitement and uncertainty in the tech world. “The problem-solving aspect of technology got my attention,” he says. “Taking a basic problem from beginning to end and putting an algorithm around it—that’s how it started for me.”
His first professional foray was with Qualcomm, where he worked on designing chips for early mobile phones like Nokia and Motorola. “We were enabling people to make phone calls, designing capabilities that allowed for communication,” he explains. “That was interesting because you get to see the work you’ve done in people’s hands.”
Not content with just one facet of technology, Abdulghani delved into cybersecurity infrastructure at Qualcomm. He recognised a gap in how IT components were monitored. “Back then, you needed a laptop with a CD or floppy disk to install software to monitor system health,” he notes.
He seized the opportunity and developed a web-based monitoring system accessible from early BlackBerrys and mobile phones. “It was the early internet age, and there was no solution. I jumped on solving it.”
His career then took a biomedical turn at The Scripps Research Institute, where he programmed visualisations to detect cancerous cells in the bloodstream. “One fun fact,” he says with pride, “is that the microscope I coded was featured in the Jurassic Park movie during the lab scenes.” He also built an early-stage cloud system for researchers, a precursor to today’s ubiquitous cloud services.
A nine-year stint contracting with NASA followed, during which he was responsible for programming ground control stations for autonomous aeroplanes. “We created graphical interfaces for pilots to fly from the ground,” he explains. One of our customers was DARPA, part of the Advanced Technology and Development Centre at Kennedy.”
Google soon came calling, enlisting Abdulghani to revamp over 25 product lines related to ads and fraud detection. Working on an AI project called AI Next Gen, he helped transform Google’s review models from human-driven to machine-driven systems. “It was about taking massive amounts of data and making sense of it through AI,” he says.
After contributing to Waymo’s self-driving car technology, Abdulghani felt a pull towards his roots.
In July 2019, he decided to move to the Middle East. “My parents are from the region, and I wanted to simplify and improve people’s lives here,” he reflects. “I also wanted to engage with junior engineers and help drive regional technology. I wanted to give back.”
Joining Careem, the Middle East’s leading ride-hailing app, he was crucial in scaling the company’s infrastructure from one service to eleven businesses across four product lines. “When I joined Careem, it was primarily a ride-hailing business,” he says. “I was responsible for ensuring the scalability of the infrastructure, making it what it is today.”
Now at Beyond ONE, Abdulghani is captivated by the company’s ambitious vision. “The concept of creating a hyper-human-centric, personalised model that engages consumers intrigued me,” he explains. “Access to products is still fragmented and not inclusive. No company has fully achieved this yet.”
He believes the next five to ten years will be critical for companies genuinely embracing artificial intelligence. “We live in an era of AI, and it will become clear who is truly leveraging it,” he asserts. “Beyond ONE is not only making the shift but driving technological advancements in telecommunications, fintech, and other areas.”
Abdulghani is also passionate about nurturing the next generation of tech talent. “For those who’ve been in tech for a long time, think about how you can excite the younger generation into STEM,” he advises. “Make an impact and leave a legacy by mentoring younger kids.”
His message to junior engineers is clear: “Continue learning, advancing, and spending time on new topics and technologies. Be adaptive to change; think about moving from one language or topic to another.”
He encourages recent graduates to enter a rapidly evolving field. “You’re graduating in a confusing time with the world shifting towards AI,” he acknowledges. Spend time learning about AI topics. Invest your efforts in artificial intelligence areas—don’t be afraid of learning new things.”
As for what’s next, Abdulghani is both optimistic and discreet. “In the next year, we want to get Beyond ONE to be on everyone’s mind as the technology company in this region,” he hints. “We’re moving the needle on offerings in telco and fintech. You’ll see a shift in the products we’re providing.”
Reflecting on his journey, Abdulghani remains committed to the principles that guided him. “Technology, vision, and people drive changes in the industry,” he says. Interactions, collaborations, and the team are what stay.”
Naorus Abdulghani is a testament to the enduring passion and purposeful progress in an industry of rapid change and fleeting innovations. His story is not just about one man’s career but about the transformative power of technology when guided by vision and humanity.
