Dr Riasat Islam is a researcher and academic passionate about using technology to improve healthcare, well-being, and education. Currently a Lecturer at the School of Electronic Engineering and Computer Science, Queen Mary University of London, his research centres around Human Computer Interaction, Artificial Intelligence and Islamic Computing. He made contributions, including high-impact journal publication and a software launch. This work has led to knowledge transfer and consultancy with a medical device startup. Additionally, he has co-founded the Greentech Apps Foundation, a software non-profit with 3M+ users worldwide. He aims to create tech solutions that empower individuals and foster positive societal change.
PhD in Computing
The Open University
MSc ICT Innovation
KTH Royal Institute of Technology & University College London
BSc Engg in Electrical and Electronic Engineering
Islamic University of Technology
Since around November 2025, the pace of AI development has been absolutely relentless. Retrieval-Augmented Generation (RAG) systems are evolving quickly. A few months ago the conversation was dominated by Model Context Protocols (MCPs).
Last weekend I built, shipped, and pushed a reasonably complex piece of software to production. Several thousand lines of code. Live. Working. Time spent: a weekend. This would have been unthinkable not long ago.
There are now several thousand Islamic apps in the market, with hundreds more launching every month. At the same time, many Muslim-majority countries are experiencing rapid demographic and technological growth, particularly among young people who are highly active on mobile devices.
A practical, evidence-based look at how AI can support marking and feedback in higher education without compromising fairness or academic standards.
Summary: This article gathers the most common questions students, particularly from South Asia, ask about pursuing a PhD in AI and NLP. It explains how to assess academic readiness, choose suitable supervisors and universities, identify meaningful research gaps, and explore impactful directions, including ethical AI and Islamic knowledge technologies.