Saudi Arabia isn’t just experimenting with AI. It’s industrialising it.
In May 2025, Saudi’s Public Investment Fund launched a game-changing initiative. Through its new tech arm, Humain, the Kingdom announced a partnership with NVIDIA to build high-capacity AI factories — with up to 500 megawatts of compute power planned over the next five years.
This isn’t a press release play. It’s a national move. Backed by data centres. Backed by silicon. Backed by the ambition to lead.
Phase one is already underway: the deployment of 18,000 NVIDIA Grace Blackwell GB300 AI chips. These aren’t your everyday processors. They’re among the world’s most powerful AI compute units. Saudi isn’t buying someone else’s AI. It’s building its own — for local use, in local languages, shaped by local governance.
This is about sovereignty. Speed. Scale.
Vision 2030 isn’t a slogan anymore. It’s a build order.
Saudi Arabia has the oil. It’s investing the revenue in AI infrastructure that will drive its next economic engine. Healthcare, finance, logistics, energy, smart cities — everything is on the table for transformation.
AI isn’t just a tool here. It’s a national asset.
From tech buyers to global builders
This isn’t about catching up anymore. It’s about changing the race.
For years, MENA countries have been the world’s top buyers of foreign tech. That’s shifting. They’re becoming producers. Builders. Rule-makers.
The Humain-NVIDIA alliance is more than just a headline. It’s a strategy. It fits squarely within Vision 2030; to diversify the economy, create high-skilled jobs, and put Saudi on the global AI map.
AI is now infrastructure
AI is no longer just software. It’s infrastructure. Not just code, but critical systems. As vital as oil pipelines and ports. And, Saudi Arabia is building that infrastructure at industrial scale.
These AI factories won’t sit idle. They’ll power defence systems, smart cities, hospitals, banks, logistics — the digital backbone of the Kingdom. This isn’t just about replacing human tasks. It’s about speeding up progress across sectors.
What used to be imported is now being built.
And the world is watching.
Kevin O’Leary called the UAE the world’s #3 AI hub. On X, his comment on Saudi’s Humain project hit over 850,000 views. Other influencers like Mario Nawfal chimed in, noting the regional momentum toward becoming net exporters of AI technology.
Why this matters globally
Saudi’s move affects more than just local industries.
It sets the stage for:
- Sovereign AI: Models built for local languages, culture, and regulation
- Talent Development: Thousands of Saudi engineers trained in-house
- Sustainable Compute: AI factories powered by green energy
- AI Exports: Services aimed at Africa, Asia, and the Global South
It’s not just big. It’s long-term.
Saudi is laying digital railways that will shape how industries work, how governments operate, and how citizens live.
The question isn’t if this will succeed. It’s how fast.
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