Saudi Arabia attracts $14.9 billion investments in AI as LEAP25 kicks off in Riyadh
RIYADH — Investments and projects worth over $14.9 billion were announced in the artificial intelligence sector, solidifying Saudi Arabia's role as a key global player in shaping the digital future. The announcements were made on the first day of the LEAP 2025 Tech Conference at the Riyadh Exhibition and Convention Center on Sunday.
Inaugurating the conference, Minister of Communications and Information Technology Abdullah Alswaha announced the huge investments. The conference, which runs until Wednesday, is being held under the theme "Into New Worlds." The fourth edition of the conference brought together global technology and innovation leaders to reinforce Saudi Arabia's position as a primary hub for digital transformation and an attractive destination for tech investments. LEAP 2025 underscores Saudi Arabia's commitment to leading the global AI sector, attracting top-tier technology investments, and cementing its position as a hub for digital transformation and technological innovation.
In his keynote speech, Alswaha emphasized that these significant investments and initiatives were made possible through the support and empowerment of Crown Prince and Prime Minister Mohammed bin Salman. These initiatives aimed to enable the technology sector and accelerate Saudi Arabia's transition toward an innovative and sustainable AI-driven economy, in line with Vision 2030 objectives.
Al-Swaha said that the region is witnessing rapid transformations in the digital economy sector, as it has grown by 73 percent to reach $260 billion, with Saudi Arabia accounting for 50 percent of this growth, making it one of the leading countries in this field. The number of technical specialists has increased from 150,000 to 381,000, reflecting Saudi Arabia's rapid growth in the fields of technology and innovation.
Al-Swaha highlighted the importance of bridging the digital gap between nations during what has become known as the 'smart era,' and explained the role the Kingdom plays in empowering women in the field of technology. 'In the smart era, the gap between the Global North and South will grow and worsen, as only one to two billion people are expected to join this exclusive club, while 6.5 billion people will be left behind by 2030.'
At the conference, Minister of Human Resources and Social Development Ahmed Al-Rajhi launched a range of digital products and services to accelerate digital transformation within the ministry and improve service quality for beneficiaries. The minister stressed that these products and services align with the ministry's digital transformation strategy, which seeks to achieve the objectives of the Saudi Vision 2030 by enhancing digital services, ensuring secure and innovative access for beneficiaries, and fostering technology and innovation in the Kingdom.
The newly introduced digital products include the "Virtual Branch," the "Digital Platform for Childcare," and the "Social Development Platform," all designed to promote sustainable development. These initiatives aim to eliminate the need for in-person branch visits, encourage community participation, and expand the range of services available to individuals and government entities in the sector.
Among the $14.9 billion investments announced in the AI sector at the conference, are qualitative investments of more than $10.9 billion allocated to infrastructure, artificial intelligence, and initiatives supporting emerging companies. These investments are designed to empower digital skills development, foster the growth of tech startups, and enhance innovation in Saudi Arabia. They further establish the Kingdom as a hub for technology and innovation, positioning it as an attractive environment for leading global technology companies and reinforcing its status as the largest digital economy in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region.
LEAP 2025 is organized by the Ministry of Communications and Information Technology, the Saudi Federation for Cybersecurity, Programming, and Drones (SAFCSP), and Tahaluf Company, supported by the Events Investment Fund.
The first day of the event witnessed the announcement of several major investments and projects in artificial intelligence, cloud computing, and digital transformation, including; Groq & Aramco Digital announced a $1.5 billion investment to expand AI-powered cloud computing, positioning Saudi Arabia as a global leader in artificial intelligence.
Alat & Lenovo confirmed a $2 billion investment to establish an advanced AI and robotics-based manufacturing and technology center in Saudi Arabia and to open Lenovo's regional headquarters in Riyadh. Google unveiled plans for an AI infrastructure investment, launching a global AI hub in Saudi Arabia to meet regional and international demand.
Qualcomm introduced the ALLaM language model on the Qualcomm AI Cloud, alongside the launch of the ALLaM AI PC, enabling cloud-based AI solutions for developers and accelerating technological innovation. Alibaba Cloud launched an AI empowerment program in Saudi Arabia, in collaboration with Tuwaiq Academy and STC, to train local talent in advanced technologies and contribute to building a sustainable digital future.
Databricks committed $300 million in Platform-as-a-Service (PaaS) solutions, supporting app developers and fostering data engineering and AI expertise to boost Saudi Arabia's digital economy. SambaNova pledged $140 million to develop advanced AI infrastructure in Saudi Arabia, reinforcing the Kingdom's role as a regional innovation hub.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Saudi Gazette
10 hours ago
- Saudi Gazette
Saudi Arabia blocks foreign online store for selling counterfeit gold bullion
Saudi Gazette report RIYADH — The Ministry of Commerce blocked a non-compliant, untrusted online store based outside Saudi Arabia after it was found advertising counterfeit gold bullion made of copper and coated with gold to deceive and mislead shoppers. The ministry detected the violation after the store, which targeted the Saudi market, promoted gold bullion of various weights at half the market value. The store was immediately blocked in cooperation with the relevant authorities to protect consumers and enforce the provisions of the E-Commerce Law and its executive regulations. The ministry stressed the importance for all consumers to verify the reliability of online stores before purchasing through the 'Enquiry on E-Commerce Documentation' service on the Saudi Business Center platform, and to avoid dealing with unknown websites, stores, or accounts to protect themselves from fraud and scams.
Arab News
13 hours ago
- Arab News
The man, the vision, the Kingdom
For nearly a decade, Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman has led a remarkable socioeconomic transformation of Saudi Arabia. Vision 2030 has enabled the Kingdom to emerge as a pivotal regional and global actor, drawing on its exceptional national traits as the richest Arab nation, the largest Gulf state, the citadel of Islam, and the global energy leader. Yet Western understanding of this profound shift has lagged. It remains filtered through outdated frames and Orientalist assumptions, often colored by neo-colonial liberal agendas in both policy and perception. Karen Elliott House's 'The Man Who Would Be King: Mohammed bin Salman and the Transformation of Saudi Arabia' comes as a welcome corrective. This book, by one of America's most seasoned observers of the Kingdom, offers a vivid, up-close exploration of the crown prince: his personality, his ambitions, and the sweeping changes reshaping Saudi society. At its heart, House's account charts the breathtaking pace of reform since 2015. She highlights the rise of a leader whose ascent was at once unforeseen and, in hindsight, inevitable. The crown prince emerges in her telling as a figure capable of breaking through entrenched interests and barriers that long stifled Saudi development. What gives the narrative authenticity is House's use of firsthand encounters. She draws on meetings with the crown prince himself and conversations with a wide spectrum of Saudis — ministers, business innovators, and young men and women. This textured reporting gives the reforms a human face, illustrating changes that once seemed unimaginable. In many respects, House has written a book less about policy papers and more about lived transformation. She describes the rollback of religious police, the rise of entertainment and culture, and, most of all, the expanded role of women. Where once Saudi women were absent from public life, they are now company leaders, astronauts, athletes, and diplomats. As House notes: 'A woman's ambition is no longer deplorable but laudable ... A woman's aspiration to public office, once a source of family shame, is now cause for pride.' The impact on Saudi youth is equally striking. Long deprived of normal outlets for expression and social interaction, young Saudis now embrace the opportunities opening before them. House portrays their excitement vividly: the joy at concerts and festivals, the ease of public mingling, the confidence of a generation that sees itself as global competitors. Karen Elliott House's 'The Man Who Would Be King: Mohammed bin Salman and the Transformation of Saudi Arabia' comes as a welcome corrective. Dr. Ali Awadh Asseri Vision 2030 is the thread that runs through the book. House shows that it is not only an economic diversification plan but also a recalibration of the social contract. It seeks to unleash Saudi creativity, talent, and ambition — male and female — on a scale unseen in the Kingdom's modern history. She captures how giga-projects such as NEOM and the Line are more than futuristic visions. They symbolize Saudi Arabia reclaiming its place as a global crossroads of people, ideas, and commerce. For House, these initiatives embody a historic reorientation: from rentier state to entrepreneurial society. This dimension of the book is especially relevant today. The crown prince's assertive diplomacy — whether reconciliation with Iran, mediation in Ukraine, advocacy for Palestine, rapport with Washington, or outreach to China and Russia — confirms House's portrayal of a leader intent on securing Saudi interests in a turbulent world. She notes how Saudis themselves increasingly view old partners as unreliable, making self-reliance and proactive diplomacy an imperative. House situates the crown prince in a wider geopolitical context. The Middle East of the past decade has been marked by extremism, terrorism, and war — with devastating consequences. Against this backdrop, Saudi Arabia has diversified its partnerships and acted more independently in pursuit of national interests. 'The world has a stake in MBS. If over the next generation he can truly transform Saudi into a beacon of moderate Islam, not extremism, that will impact the whole Islamic world given the Kingdom's influence as custodian of Islam's holiest sites.' Recent events validate this analysis: Saudi Arabia has hosted peace talks on Ukraine, worked to dampen Iran-Israel escalation, and spearheaded Arab-Islamic unity on Gaza. These initiatives underscore the point: National prosperity is inseparable from regional stability. The crown prince has translated this insight into a more confident, pragmatic foreign policy — Saudi Arabia as bridge-builder, not merely a player — while declaring 'Saudi Arabia First' as his guiding principle. House considers Western criticism of the Kingdom unjust, arguing: 'Saudi Arabia doesn't actually top any analytical list of most abusive governments (and) ranks in abuses well behind Iran, China, Russia, and North Korea.' Yet, 'US officials — and to some extent American people — hold Saudi Arabia, a longtime ally, more accountable than they do adversaries like China, Russia, and Iran.' This is where House departs from many Western commentators. She shows that the reforms underway are neither cosmetic nor superficial. They are part of an overarching national project. For Saudis, the pace is not reckless, but necessary — an answer to decades of inertia and to the demands of a young, ambitious population. The crown prince's assertive diplomacy confirms Karen Elliott House's portrayal of a leader intent on securing Saudi interests in a turbulent world. Dr. Ali Awadh Asseri Still, the author acknowledges lingering skepticism in Western circles. Can giga-projects succeed? Can rapid liberalization be sustained? She treats these questions seriously, but ultimately suggests they underestimate Saudi resilience and adaptability. While American columnist Thomas Friedman has at times highlighted the crown prince's boldness, Western media has often been critical, focusing on shortcomings, while overlooking successes. Academic literature has often echoed this criticism. David Rundell's 'Vision or Mirage: Saudi Arabia at the Crossroads' (2021) questioned how much of Vision 2030 is genuine transformation and how much remains illusion. House herself was cautious in her earlier work 'On Saudi Arabia: Its People, Past, Religion, Fault Lines — and Future' (2015), but her latest book marks a striking shift — from realism to recognition that the Kingdom has entered a new era. If the book has a flaw, it is that it sometimes underplays how much Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman's vision is rooted in Saudi traditions. While comparisons to Augustus, Peter the Great, or Lee Kuan Yew are illuminating, they risk obscuring the distinctively Saudi framework: one shaped by our religion, history, tribes, and youthful energy. The crown prince's ambition is not imported; it is authentically Saudi. As House portrays him, he sees himself as 'a historic figure, a leader not only transforming Saudi Arabia but impacting the world with his big dreams and bold intentions.' That said, House succeeds in showing how the Kingdom has redefined itself — not imitating others, but setting its own course. The national mood she captures — confidence, pride, ambition — is unmistakably Saudi. Her narrative is brisk — more political chronicle than biography, enlivened with anecdotes that make the book both authoritative and accessible. In the end, 'The Man Who Would Be King' is more than a portrait of one leader. It is a chronicle of a nation in renewal. For outsiders, it explains reforms too often misunderstood; for Saudis, it captures the transformation we are living. House's access and analysis are formidable, but the deeper story is the Kingdom itself: a people writing a new chapter with ambition and confidence under determined leadership. Saudi Arabia's journey is still unfolding. However, as this book reminds us, the Kingdom is no longer defined by what it was, but by what it is becoming.
Saudi Gazette
13 hours ago
- Saudi Gazette
Saudi Arabia invests in next-generation culinary talent with six national studies
Saudi Gazette report RIYADH — Saudi Arabia's Ministry of Culture, through its Culinary Arts Commission, has released six national studies detailing the rapid growth and transformation of the Kingdom's culinary economy. Published on Monday in Riyadh, the research highlights the role of culinary arts in economic diversification, directly aligning with Vision 2030 goals. The findings link workforce development, sustainability, technological innovation, and tourism to emerging investment opportunities and long-term sector growth. The reports underscore the strength of Saudi Arabia's youthful culinary workforce, with more than 72 percent of professional chefs under the age of 35. This demographic shift is contributing to a new era in the Kingdom's food and hospitality industries. 'These reports are a blueprint for turning culture into opportunity,' said Mayada Badr, CEO of the Culinary Arts Commission. 'They show how Saudi Arabia's culinary heritage fuels job creation, attracts investment, and embraces innovation. From food security and sustainability to AI-powered kitchens, the data provides decision-makers with a clear path for turning culinary assets into national strengths.' The six studies examine both challenges and emerging opportunities in the culinary sector, including: Reducing food waste as a climate and economic priority. Increasing demand for skilled culinary professionals, supported by academic and vocational training pipelines. Adopting advanced technologies such as AI, digital platforms, and 3D printing for menu design, quality control, and waste reduction. Expanding Saudi cuisine globally through cultural exchange, tourism integration, and cross-border franchising. The Culinary Arts Commission plans to integrate the findings into nationwide youth training programs, SME accelerators, and international collaboration initiatives. The research will also serve as a policy framework for attracting investment and measuring the economic impact of Saudi culinary assets. Stakeholders, investors, and policymakers are invited to explore the studies and participate in future projects aimed at shaping the Kingdom's culinary future. Copies of the full reports are available upon request.
