Saudi Arabia Unveils $14.9 Billion AI Investment Initiative

According to Cointelegraph, Saudi Arabia has unveiled a significant investment initiative in the artificial intelligence sector, amounting to $14.9 billion. This announcement was made during a technology conference held in Riyadh, the capital city. Saudi Minister Abdullah bin Amer Alswaha highlighted that the kingdom, in collaboration with leading global technology companies, plans to invest in AI, emerging technologies, and cloud computing. The tech partners involved in this initiative include prominent names such as Google Cloud, Lenovo, Alibaba Cloud, Qualcomm, Groq, and Salesforce. Ahmad Al-Khowaiter, Aramco's executive vice president of technology and innovation, emphasized the importance of partnerships in realizing the potential of AI. He stated that Aramco's business model relies on scale, necessitating collaborations with multiple companies to implement the required technologies. Aramco, recognized as the seventh largest company globally by market capitalization, is aligning with tech giants like Apple, Amazon, Nvidia, Microsoft, and Google to enhance its AI capabilities. In a notable partnership, Aramco has teamed up with Groq in a $1.5 billion agreement to develop AI-powered cloud computing infrastructure. This collaboration is part of a broader strategy to engage with various AI companies to bolster Saudi Arabia's position as a hub for AI innovation. Further commitments to the Middle East's AI landscape include a $2 billion investment by Saudi manufacturing giant Alat and Lenovo to establish an advanced AI and robotics-based manufacturing facility in Riyadh. Lenovo will also set up a regional headquarters in the city as part of this deal. Additionally, Google, Qualcomm, and Alibaba Cloud have announced initiatives focused on localized AI innovation. Other significant investments include commitments from Salesforce, Databricks, Tencent Cloud, and SambaNova, with investments of $500 million, $300 million, $150 million, and $140 million, respectively. These investments underscore the growing interest and potential for AI development in the region. In a separate development, stablecoin issuer Tether has partnered with a United Arab Emirates-based real estate platform, Reelly Tech, to streamline property transactions using Tether's USDT stablecoin. This partnership, announced on February 6, aims to simplify real estate dealings through blockchain technology.