Gamechangers: AI | Shaffra's Alfred Manasseh On Closing The Gap Between AI Strategy And Execution
Manasseh was one of the innovators celebrated in the 2026 edition of Gamechangers: AI, an annual Inc. Arabia showcase of the business leaders driving the AI revolution in the MENA.
Alfred Manasseh is the co-founder and COO of Shaffra, a UAE-based company that has operationalized artificial intelligence (AI) as a workforce through autonomous AI teams. In doing so, Shaffra is tackling what Manasseh sees as one of the primary obstacles facing AI deployment in the region today.
“While governments and enterprises are investing heavily in AI under initiatives such as the UAE National AI Strategy 2031, Qatar’s GovAI Program, and Saudi Arabia’s Vision 2030, many deployments remain fragmented and rarely make it beyond the pilot phase,” Manasseh says. “Additionally, AI is often introduced without redesigning workflows or governance structures, resulting in limited measurable impact. Shaffra addresses this strategy-to-execution gap by deploying autonomous AI teams embedded directly into enterprise and government systems. These teams automate repetitive task clusters, introduce accountability frameworks, and deliver measurable outcomes. This approach reduces manual workloads and accelerates process turnaround times significantly. As a result, organizations move from being AI-assisted to truly AI-operational.”
Autonomous digital teams like these were once thought to be only theoretical, but Shaffra has already put them into practice across the GCC. From Manasseh’s point of view, this, then, marks a broader shift from basic digitization to true automation in the region, with AI moving beyond supporting processes to actively executing them. “Shaffra’s deployment of fully autonomous AI teams across five GCC countries demonstrates that AI-native institutions are already emerging in the region,” Manasseh adds. “As AI becomes an operational layer of the economy, this evolution will drive productivity gains, faster service delivery, reduced operational waste, and stronger global competitiveness.”
Pictured in the lead image is Alfred Manasseh, co-founder and COO of Shaffra. Image courtesy Shaffra.
Manasseh was one of the innovators celebrated in the 2026 edition of Gamechangers: AI, an annual Inc. Arabia showcase of the business leaders driving the AI revolution in the MENA. Check out the full list by clicking here.
