UNLOCKING AI OPPORTUNITIES
SAUDI ARABIA HAS FREED UP A COMPARATIVELY LARGE BUDGET TO DEVELOP ITS ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE CAPABILITIES
Artificial intelligence (AI) has shifted from the peripheries of policy attention to the centre of investment and political focus over the past decade, and Saudi Arabia is implementing several initiatives to make the country one of the most technologically advanced in the world.
“Saudi Arabia has signed several partnerships with international tech companies to advance artificial intelligence, underpinned by the newly-launched National Centre for Artificial Intelligence,” according to DeepFest’s Artificial Intelligence - Global and Saudi Arabia Focus 2024 report.
AI is seen as a key tool for helping increase the speed, accessibility, and effectiveness of public sector operations. Saudi Arabia has freed up a comparatively large budget to develop its AI capabilities. To this end, the kingdom has committed to an annual investment of 2.5 per cent of GDP in the research, development, and innovation sector by 2040.
Saudi Arabia plans to spend $500bn on education and training by the end of the decade, including developing skills related to AI. The government seeks to train 25,000 specialists in data and AI by 2030 and simultaneously provide digital training courses in AI and coding to 300,000 middle and high school students.
Similarly, Saudi Arabia’s business community is contributing to the goals outlined by Vision 2030 economic and social reform blueprint that seeks to drive modernisation, diversification, and a brighter future through technology.
Backed by the Saudi Data and Artificial Intelligence Authority (SDAIA), the country’s future-focused enterprises are setting the standard for digital excellence, delivering high-quality products, solutions, and services.
SDAIA signed an MoU with the International Telecommunication Union, a specialised agency of the United Nations, to collaborate on initiatives aimed at supporting and strengthening efforts to optimise the benefits of AI technologies and applications for sustainable development.
The authority also joined forces with China’s Alibaba Cloud, to jointly develop digital and AI solutions in areas including safety and security, mobility, urban planning, energy, education and health.
Saudi Arabia is significantly investing in futuristic smart cities such as the $500bn NEOM city, which aims to be the world’s most advanced.
Tonomus, NEOM’s cognitive technology unit, is working to integrate AI technology in the building of its flagship project ‘The Line’, a zero-carbon city with robots, holograms and mirrored facades stretching more than 240km and running on 100 per cent renewable energy.