Scale AI working with Qatar to develop AI agents for education, health care and transportation

Scale AI working with Qatar to develop AI agents for education, health care and transportation


Alexandr Wang, CEO of Scale AI, arrives for a meeting with international investors in IA at the Elysee Palace as part of the Artificial Intelligence (AI) Action Summit in Paris, France, Feb. 10, 2025. 

Gonzalo Fuentes | Reuters

Scale AI is working with Qatar to develop artificial intelligence tools for education, civil service, contact centers, tourism, health care and transportation in the Middle Eastern nation, according to a list viewed by CNBC.

The five-year deal will include creating an AI personalized learning platform and AI teacher assistant for some schools within the country. But the details could change.

Scale AI, which provides training data to key AI players like OpenAI, Google, Microsoft and Meta, expects revenue to more than double in 2025 to about $2 billion, up from about $870 million in 2024, according to a person familiar with the matter, who asked not to be named because the financials are confidential.

The company told CNBC that its work with governments in countries in Asia and Europe could account for a significant piece of sales over the next two quarters.

Scale AI is also planning a tender offer for employees and early investors at a valuation of $25 billion, the person said. Business Insider reported on the potential tender offer late last month.

The deal with Qatar, signed in February, will include developing AI voice, chat and email agents for contact centers. In the civil service space, the company is planning to work on automated construction permits, an AI agent for drafting and reviewing contracts, an agent for legal and regulatory guidance and automated licensing portals.

In health care, Scale AI will work on developing AI-powered appointment scheduling and an “AI-powered medical scribe,” according to the list. And in transportation and logistics, the company plans to automate the customs process, as well as AI-powered monitoring for road service and incident detection, such as car accidents. It will also work on AI for tourism, creating a personalized “visitor experience app” and interactive experiences, per the list.

Trevor Thompson, Scale AI’s global head of growth, said a key consideration is, “Are we actually building something that will integrate into and make your life easier?” He said there are solutions that can work but are “never going to get adopted.”

“Really meeting enterprises and governments where they are is sort of an ongoing challenge,” Thompson said, in an interview at Scale’s office in London.

Scale AI has been ramping up its work with governments, including in the U.S.

Last month, the company announced a deal with the Department of Defense for a flagship AI agent program, a significant move in the controversial military use of AI. Scale AI was awarded a prototype contract from the Defense Department for “Thunderforge,” the DOD’s “flagship program” to use AI agents for U.S. military planning and operations, according to the release.

It’s a multimillion-dollar deal, according to the source familiar with the matter.

Other fast-growing AI startups are targeting government work as well.

In January, OpenAI announced ChatGPT Gov, built specifically for U.S. government use. The product allows government agencies to feed “non-public, sensitive information” into OpenAI’s models while operating within their own secure hosting environments, OpenAI product chief Kevin Weil told reporters during a briefing at the time.

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