AL-Monitor FutureVerse: AI superpowers clash
An exclusive sneak peek of an interview with a top Saudi tech diplomat who is helping shape the future of AI collaboration among emerging economies.
Welcome to the first edition of the Al-Monitor FutureVerse.
I’m Sam Wendel, Al-Monitor’s senior market research analyst covering all things artificial intelligence, tech and innovation in the Middle East and North Africa. Every Tuesday, I’ll bring you new analysis, data and key stories that explore cutting-edge developments in the region at a time when emerging technology is fueling transformative change.
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TOP STORY
Meet the Saudi tech diplomat pushing AI collaboration amid geopolitical tensions
In an exclusive interview with Al-Monitor, Deemah Al-Yahya, secretary-general of the Riyadh-based Digital Cooperation Organization (DCO), shared a glimpse of how Saudi Arabia is forging collaboration among emerging economies as they navigate the rise of disruptive technologies.
At the helm of DCO — an intergovernmental group launched in 2020 — Yahya sees an opportunity to chart an independent path rather than take sides in an increasingly polarized global landscape marked by US-China tech competition. “I think DCO is positioned to be the neutral haven,” said Yahya.
DCO counts 16 member states across the Middle East, Africa, Europe and Asia. Yahya singles out Saudi Arabia’s potential to serve as a regional hub. “Saudi Arabia is positioned to become a digital powerhouse for the region,” she said, pointing to its geographic location between Asia, Europe and Africa alongside the kingdom’s energy resources, connectivity, capital and youthful population.
Al-Monitor’s full interview with Yahya sheds light on how she is navigating the complex intersection of AI, geopolitics and economic growth. Read it in full here.
CLICKABLE
Saudi Aramco lauds DeepSeek despite geopolitical risks
As Aramco announced its full year financial results for 2024 last week, CEO Amin Nasser revealed that technology from Chinese AI startup DeepSeek is making a “big difference” in its operations. He shed few details on how the world’s largest oil company is deploying DeepSeek’s AI, but Aramco’s embrace is a high-profile example of how the Chinese AI sensation is changing the game for Gulf players that have also bet big on American AI, as Al-Monitor has recently covered.
Gulf AI ambitions to deliver data center boom
Real estate services firm JLL told Bloomberg this week that Saudi Arabia’s capital is set to increase its data center footprint, as measured in megawatts, by a “staggering” 37% compound annual growth rate through 2027. That’s almost double JLL’s forecasts for Dubai and Abu Dhabi’s data center market and significantly above the 15% growth rate predicted globally in coming years.
A report this week from The Wall Street Journal has provided key details on the challenges facing Saudi Arabia’s futuristic mega-project Neom. A new leadership team is attempting to turn the project around after Saudi Arabia replaced Neom’s longtime CEO Nadhmi al-Nasr in late 2024. Notably, the report revealed the contents of an internal audit that found “evidence of deliberate manipulation” of finances by “certain members of management.”
Could TikTok’s sale rekindle Middle East ties?
News surfaced on March 10 that the Trump administration is in talks about a potential TikTok sale with four different groups. Notably, one potential buyer is Microsoft, a strategic partner of G42, the Abu Dhabi-based AI conglomerate that previously owned a $100 million stake in TikTok’s parent company Bytedance before being pressured by the United States to divest from the Chinese company.
Volvo’s Middle East AI ad fuels confusion
Volvo has sparked some intrigue after recently launching its first advertisement created solely by AI, which the car brand debuted in Saudi Arabia. Produced by Dubai-based Lion Creative, the AI-generated spot gained attention for the bold choice of not featuring a single car in an advertisement devoted to selling cars.
DEALFLOW
- Emirati AI company AIQ announces a $340 million contract to deploy AI across the operations of Abu Dhabi state oil firm ADNOC. AIQ is a joint venture between ADNOC and Presight AI and could soon go public.
- Abu Dhabi wealth fund Mubadala completes the sale of an indirect stake in Calisen, a UK-based provider of smart meters and other energy infrastructure like EV chargers.
- Oman’s sovereign wealth fund invests in a $140 million funding round raised by Tidal Vision, a US biotech firm specializing in biopolymers.
- UAE-based health-care payments startup Klaim secures $26 million in new funding. Founded in 2019, the company says it leverages AI to predict insurance payment behaviors to enable faster claims processing.
- Aramco’s corporate venture capital arm leads a $30 million investment into US-based climate tech startup Spiritus.
- Dubai-based on-demand food delivery app Talabat finalizes the $32 million acquisition of regional grocery delivery marketplace InstaShop.
- Riyadh-based Arab Energy Fund and Hartree Partners commits $120 million to establish a climate technology investment platform focused on decarbonization opportunities across the United States and Europe.
DATA DISCOVERY
Amid trade war tremors, vaunted US tech stocks are getting crushed. For example, as of March 11, chipmaker Nvidia’s stock had fallen about 22% on the year and Microsoft was down roughly 8%. In the Middle East, where there are few listed tech companies, it’s harder to gauge how this turbulence is hitting the sector — but signs point to the fallout being less severe in the Gulf.
In Saudi Arabia, shares in the online brokerage Derayah Financial soared upon debuting on the kingdom’s stock market on March 10. In the UAE, shares in both food delivery app Talabat and AI firm Presight AI were down about 3% in 2025 through March 11.
Current tech market turmoil comes as CEOs in the Middle East — particularly in the Gulf — were very bullish on AI’s potential in 2025. According to Price Waterhouse Coopers’ annual CEO survey, published in January, 70% of CEOs polled in Gulf Cooperation Council countries believed that generative AI would increase their profitability within 12 months, compared with 49% globally.
ACTIONABLE INTELLIGENCE
- Israeli defense company Elbit Systems will report full year 2024 financial results on March 18. That should provide a revealing glimpse of how the country’s defense industry has performed after more than a year of war.
- Shares in UAE-based technology services firm Alpha Data are set to begin trading on Abu Dhabi’s stock exchange this week after the firm’s initial public offering raised $163 million last month. Alpha Data’s debut could prove an interesting test of investor confidence in local tech offerings.
- New numbers on the region’s data center market point to significant growth: Led by the UAE and Saudi Arabia, the Middle East’s data center construction market was valued at $1.93 billion in 2024 and is projected to reach $6.99 billion by 2030, according to a new research report published March 10.
