ABOUT IASER

Enjoining good and preventing harm in the age of AI

Mission

Grounded in the Islamic tradition, IASER enjoins good applications of artificial intelligence and works to prevent harmful ones.

Vision

A world where the benefit of artificial intelligence to humanity is maximized and its harm is minimized.

The Islamic Alliance for Safe, Ethical, and Responsible AI (IASER) is an organization rooted in Islamic principles that enjoins beneficial applications of artificial intelligence and works to prevent harmful ones. Its work is an application of an old ethical duty, amr bil-ma’ruf wa nahy ‘an al-munkar (enjoining what is right and forbidding what is wrong), to the age of AI.

We believe AI is among the most consequential technologies humanity has ever developed, and that its impact on human dignity, justice, privacy, and life itself demands principled engagement. Islam offers a comprehensive moral framework for that engagement, expressed in five commitments: safe, ethical, responsible, active, and cooperative.

IASER works in five ways. We —

  • inform and educate, producing accessible material on Islam and AI;
  • build community, a home for the Muslims deeply involved in AI: researchers, engineers, ethicists, and policymakers;
  • guide Muslims seeking to use AI in a positive, principled way;
  • engage AI businesses, helping them understand the dimensions of Islam relevant to their products and to the Muslim communities they serve; and
  • advocate, speaking out for positive applications of AI and against harmful ones, making the Islamic ethical perspective heard where AI policy is shaped.

The organization is guided by a steering committee of Muslims with deep expertise in AI, policy, or ethics, with an Islamic Advisory Board helping ensure its actions and positions stay consistent with Islam’s teachings. Its broader community is open to all who share the mission, and IASER cooperates with everyone who seeks AI that serves humanity, while refusing to cooperate in what causes harm.

Who we are

IASER is run by a steering committee and guided by an Islamic Advisory Board.

Steering Committee

  • Dr. Waleed Kadous

    An AI engineer with 25+ years and 40+ patents. He founded Google’s Android location team (the “blue dot”), led machine learning at Uber, ran AI Engineering at Canva, and created Ansari and the “AI for Imams” course.

    LinkedIn ↗

  • Abdus-Sami Hoda

    An educator and consultant who brings together technology, leadership, and Islamic studies, having studied under 200+ teachers across four continents and earned 50+ post-graduate diplomas and ijāzāt. He is Head of Curriculum at Ummatics Institute, founder of Mubeen Institute, and an award-winning advisor to CTOs and CIOs.

    LinkedIn ↗

  • Dr. Hidayath Ansari

    A machine learning engineer at Amazon, with a PhD in Computer Sciences from the University of Wisconsin-Madison and a degree from IIT Bombay. He is the founder of Sunnah.com.

    LinkedIn ↗

  • Bara Elhag

    An account executive and go-to-market consultant for high-growth B2B SaaS companies, with a background in management consulting at IQVIA. He has also produced a Cannes-nominated film and published poetry.

    LinkedIn ↗

  • Hassan Kazi

    A consultant at Accenture, with prior roles at MNP and Deloitte. He has completed executive education at the Wharton School and Oxford’s Saïd Business School in finance, analytics, strategy, and AI.

    LinkedIn ↗

  • Dr. Agnes Chong

    A non-profit leader and researcher in philanthropy and Muslim communities. A former Vice President of the American Muslim Community Foundation, she has led programs at CAIR and holds a doctorate from Stanford Law School.

    LinkedIn ↗

Islamic Advisory Board

  • Shaykh Umer Khan

    A traditionally trained mufti and a senior technology executive. He holds an Alimiyyah (license in Islamic scholarship) from Al-Salam Institute and an Ifta (authorization to issue Islamic legal rulings) from Darulifta Birmingham, teaches the Islamic sciences at the Institute of Knowledge and Al-Salam Institute, and is an executive member of the Fiqh Council of North America (FCNA). He is also Chief Information Officer and SVP of Software Engineering at Relativity Space, and was previously a Vice President at SpaceX.

    Website ↗

  • Dr. Mohamed AbuTaleb

    Adjunct Faculty at Boston Islamic Seminary and a Senior Fellow at the Yaqeen Institute. He holds a PhD in Electrical Engineering from MIT and an Alimiyyah (license in Islamic scholarship) from Al-Salam Institute.

    Profile ↗

Share the mission?

IASER is open to everyone who shares the mission. Become a member and help build the work, or subscribe to stay informed as it unfolds.

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