Enhancing Hajj and Umrah Rituals and Crowd Management Through AI Technologies: A Comprehensive Survey of Applications and Future Directions

A vast number of Muslims come to Makkah, Saudi Arabia every year to perform Hajj and Umrah, and the kingdom plans to reach 30 million annually by Vision 2030 through the incorporation of artificial intelligence (AI) technologies. Enhancing Hajj and Umrah rituals presents several challenges, including incidents such as suicides in the holy mosque, stampedes in the holy places, terrorist threats, sunstrokes, pandemics like COVID-19 and the spread of contagious diseases, particularly respiratory tract infections. Some of these challenges have prompted strict instructions, including wearing face masks and adhering to regular cleaning and sanitization. A number of studies have surveyed the application of AI in Hajj and Umrah research, yet none have been comprehensive. In this paper, I categorize research papers that utilize AI technologies to enhance Hajj and Umrah rituals into nine categories. Also, I identify eleven AI technologies employed by researchers to improve these rituals and organize the research papers based on these technologies for easier access. Furthermore, I discuss open challenges and propose new AI technologies that could address these challenges. This paper demonstrates that the use of AI in Hajj and Umrah has significantly enhanced the pilgrims’ experience, and simplified the process for them to perform various rituals. Despite challenges occurring from the ethical and societal implications of using AI technologies, particularly in terms of impacting pilgrims’ spiritual experiences and cultural sensitivities, AI has greatly improved crowd management and transportation. Additionally, the services provided during Hajj rituals, including waste management, accommodation (especially during Mina days), supplies such as water, food, and medications, and reducing emergency response time, have benefited from AI integration. Furthermore, the use of AI technologies has played a major role in improving the infrastructure of the holy cities, including energy and electricity supplies.