# Fanar - فنار — Arabic Large Language Model

> AI assistant for Arabic language tasks, content generation, and cultural understanding. (iPhone/iPad app by HBKU.)

- Source: https://appshunter.io/ios/app/fanar/id6741857943 (this page in markdown: same URL + `.md`)
- Developer: [HBKU](https://appshunter.io/developer/1631816743)
- Category: Productivity
- Price: Free
- Rating: 4.00/5 from 4 App Store ratings · 2 written reviews indexed
- Age rating: 12+
- Requires: iOS 15.1 · 42 MB
- Languages: American English, Arabic
- Released: 2025-02-18
- Data updated: 2026-09-04
- Monetization: free
- User reviews in markdown: https://appshunter.io/ios/app/fanar/id6741857943/reviews.md

## What is Fanar?

The Fanar app is an AI assistant that can help you boost your creativity and productivity in various tasks, particularly those based on the Arabic language including content generation, text summarization, translation, domain specific Q &A, and beyond. Fanar is driven by a commitment to preserving the richness and diversity of the Arabic language, along with its unique dialects, cultural and religious heritage, traditions and values. It is  an indispensable resource for individuals and organizations seeking to connect with the Arabic language and its diverse communities .

As a comprehensive family of language models, Fanar is specifically designed to understand and generate both written and spoken Arabic, including various dialects. Fanar can engage in natural conversations in English and multiple Arabic dialects, generate culturally aligned  content including text, speech, and images. What sets Fanar apart is its comprehensive suite of services covering core language processing, speech recognition, image generation, and specialized knowledge retrieval.


Key Features:
Arabic-First Approach. Built from the ground up with Arabic language and culture at its core.
Comprehensive Agentic Suite. Encompassing two Fanar models (Fanar Star, fully built from scratch, and Fanar Prime built on Gemma2 9B through continual learning), Fanar Speech, Fanar Translation, and Fanar Image Generation models for comprehensive user experience.
Bilingual and Arabic dialectal support. Interact with Fanar in English, Arabic MSA, or Arabic dialects either in written textor speech.
Islamic RAG: Specialized system for accurate religious content.
Fanar Attribution: Wikipedia-backed revision and fact-checking system.
MultiModal: Speech Recognition, Text-to-Speech, Image Generation.


Fanar is developed by the Qatar Computing Research Institute (QCRI) at Hamad Bin Khalifa University (HBKU), a member of Qatar Foundation for Education, Science, and Community Development. It is sponsored by the Qatari government through the Ministry of Communications and Information Technology.

Read Fanar’s Terms of Service at https://fanar.qa/

## Key features

- Arabic language content generation
- Text summarization and translation
- Support for multiple Arabic dialects
- Speech recognition and text-to-speech
- Image generation
- Islamic religious content retrieval

## Recent user reviews (2 of 2)

All indexed reviews: https://appshunter.io/ios/app/fanar/id6741857943/reviews.md

### 5/5 — Perfect for early stages 👍

*2026-06-21*

Expecting more advance tools such as voice chatting with the system. Good luck guys 🫡

### 1/5 — Research prototype Vs. Production platform?!

*2025-12-13*

I've been following this app since the pilot phase and participated in early testing. After the first public release, I expected significant improvements based on pilot feedback. Instead, what was delivered is clearly an unfinished research project that should never have been released to the public—and disappointingly, little has changed from pilot to launch.
Fundamental Problems:
1.	The app feels like an early academic prototype rather than a market-ready product. Features are unfinished, functionality is unreliable, and the entire experience clearly shows it's a work in progress. 
2.	Missing Business Mindset: The development approach is entirely academic, with no focus on actual user needs, workflows, practical value, sustainable engagement, long-term viability, user retention, or competitive edge—it's obvious the team designed this more for research publications than for real-world users.
3.	The Reality Gap: The app claims to have advanced capabilities but offers only basic functions. Performance problems are ongoing, features don't work as promised, and the user experience is confusing and poorly designed. It's obvious the development team focused more on research objectives than on creating something users would actually want to use.

4.	Question about the organization's technical competence and concerns regarding the gap between marketing claims and actual functionality, along with missing essential ethics policies, inadequate disclaimers, and limited liability protections. Additionally, there are no published benchmarks against recognized industry standards; capability claims are unsubstantiated. This damages credibility, and there is a significant exaggeration of technological claims. …


5.	Business Fundamentals: The app lacks a clear target audience, poorly integrates with existing platforms, and was released without enough user testing. Content appears unfinished and cluttered, with no emphasis on scalability or commercial use, and it misses basic features expected in modern apps.

6.	Strategic Confusion: The positioning is contradictory claiming to innovate while providing subpar basics. There is no clear strategy linking research objectives to user benefits. 
Wish you all the best …

## Frequently asked questions about Fanar

### What can Fanar do?

Fanar is an AI assistant designed to boost creativity and productivity, particularly for Arabic language tasks. It can generate content, summarize text, translate, answer domain-specific questions, and engage in conversations in English and various Arabic dialects.

### Does Fanar support different Arabic dialects?

Yes, Fanar is built to understand and generate content in various Arabic dialects, enabling natural conversations in multiple regional variations of the language.

### What kind of content can Fanar generate?

Fanar can generate culturally aligned content including text, speech, and images. It also features a specialized system for accurate religious content and a fact-checking system backed by Wikipedia.

### What devices does Fanar support?

Fanar is currently supported on iPhone and iPod devices.

### How often is Fanar updated?

The latest version of Fanar is 1.0.26, and it was last updated on December 8, 2025. This indicates a commitment to regular updates and improvements.

### What is the age rating for Fanar?

Fanar has an age rating of 12+, making it suitable for users aged 12 and above.

### Is Fanar free to use?

Yes, Fanar is available for free. There are no in-app purchases or advertisements mentioned, suggesting a completely free user experience.

### How does Fanar ensure accuracy, especially for religious content?

Fanar incorporates an 'Islamic RAG' system for accurate religious content and a 'Fanar Attribution' system that uses Wikipedia for revision and fact-checking, ensuring reliable information.

## Version history (last 5 releases)

### 1.2.1 — 2026-08-26

- The message box no longer sits on top of the navigation buttons
- The side panel is properly opaque, so the chat behind it no longer shows through
- Source icons and your profile picture now appear
- Terms of Service and Privacy Policy open centred, fit the screen, and close with the back gesture
- Menus show the right icons in the right order

### 1.2.0 — 2026-08-26

- A fresh new look: your conversation now flows beneath a floating, frosted header and message bar
- Replies appear smoothly and naturally as Fanar writes them
- Quick menus: a single tap opens options for any chat, message, or tool
- Redesigned side panel: search your tools and conversations together in one place
- See where answers come from, with redesigned sources
- Clearer progress while Fanar is thinking, researching, or using a tool

### 1.1.3 — 2026-06-16

- Options now appear under every Fanar response
- Long-press your messages to copy or edit

### 1.1.2 — 2026-06-16

- Choose your look: Light, Dark, Midnight Blue, or match your device
- Better support for screen readers and accessibility
- Conversations remember your context, and you can now listen to replies with a new, more natural voice
- Faster, smoother, and more reliable

### 1.0.26 — 2025-12-08

Improved app stability and performance with multiple bug fixes, updated example screens, and several UI enhancements.

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All apps by HBKU: https://appshunter.io/developer/1631816743

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*Data collected daily from the US App Store and indexed by [AppsHunter](https://appshunter.io/). User reviews are verbatim App Store reviews. Ratings, prices and chart positions refresh continuously; this snapshot is from 2026-09-04.*