A focal development is Humain, the AI company backed by Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund. Humain is constructing its first data centres in Riyadh and Dammam, each with an initial capacity of 100 megawatts, aiming for operational launch in early 2026. These facilities will be powered by advanced U. S. AI chips, including an initial shipment of 18,000 Nvidia “Blackwell” units as part of a broader technological collaboration. Humain is also leveraging a USD 10 billion partnership with AMD, reinforcing the kingdom’s push to establish sovereign AI infrastructure.
Beyond infrastructure, generative AI is emerging as a fast-rising domain: the KSA generative AI market is projected to jump from USD 292 million in 2024 to about USD 4,798 million by 2034, a CAGR of 32.1 per cent. Meanwhile, the AI agents market is expected to grow from USD 79.9 million in 2024 to USD 800.6 million by 2030, at a blistering CAGR of 47.4 per cent.
On the investment front, Salesforce has committed USD 500 million to AI initiatives in the kingdom, introducing its Hyperforce platform locally in partnership with AWS and pledging to upskill 30,000 Saudi citizens by 2030. At LEAP 2025, Saudi Arabia pulled in USD 14.9 billion in AI deals, signalling growing interest from global technology players.
Saudi Arabia’s National Strategy for Data and AI, launched in 2020, aims for USD 20 billion in AI investments by 2030 and aspires to position the kingdom among the top AI nations globally. Under this strategy, data governance and transparency are emphasised: the Open Data Platform now hosts over 11,439 datasets from 289 government entities, facilitating greater data access and algorithmic development.
Despite this momentum, governance and oversight remain under scrutiny. A comparative analysis of GCC AI strategies finds that Saudi Arabia follows a “soft regulation” model, prioritising national strategies and ethical guidelines over binding rules. This approach encourages innovation but raises risks of regulatory gaps, ethics-washing and misalignment with global AI frameworks. Meanwhile, civil society observers warn that the rapid deployment of AI by entities such as G42 and Aramco raises concerns over expanding surveillance capabilities and data control.
Saudi AI startups are also capturing attention. Lucidya, a Riyadh-based customer experience and social listening firm, utilises AI to deliver sentiment insights across 15 Arabic dialects with 92 per cent accuracy. Its growth validates local innovation in Arabic-centric AI, which is crucial given the region’s linguistic uniqueness.
International figures are also taking notice. At the Saudi-US Investment Forum, Palantir CEO Alex Karp lauded Saudi engineers for their technical ambition and contrasted the kingdom’s AI receptivity with what he described as stagnation in Europe.
The kingdom intends its AI acceleration to support Vision 2030 diversification goals. According to a Middle East region analysis, AI’s contribution to Saudi Arabia’s economy could exceed USD 135.2 billion by 2030, equating to around 12.4 per cent of GDP.
Saudi Arabia’s AI trajectory now hinges on execution: aligning infrastructure projects such as Humain with industry uptake, securing ethical oversight, and nurturing local talent to fill advanced roles. The kingdom is making bold strides, and whether it can sustain them while staying aligned with global norms and domestic accountability will define its long-term leadership in the AI arena.
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