Good morning!
Welcome to this week’s Middle East AI News email digest!
LEAP 2026 has delivered a flood of major Saudi technology announcements this week. So much so, that it was impossible to include them all! And no room to tell you anymore here.
Scroll down for more news!
Thanks for reading!
/Carrington
LEAP5
AMD’s largest non-US inference cluster goes live
#Saudi #LEAP5 - AMD, Cisco and HUMAIN have launched AMD’s largest inference cluster outside the US in Saudi Arabia, using Instinct MI355X GPUs and Cisco Silicon One networking. HUMAIN plans to deploy 13,000 AMD GPUs this year, with up to 250 megawatts of additional infrastructure starting in 2027. (Middle East AI News)
HUMAIN launches NVIDIA Blackwell AI cloud
#Saudi #LEAP5 - Saudi Arabia’s PIF-owned HUMAIN has launched its AI cloud on NVIDIA HGX B300 Blackwell Ultra systems, with cluster utilisation already above 90 per cent. The Ministry of Commerce is among early customers, while HUMAIN plans roughly 35 megawatts of operational capacity by mid-2027. (Middle East AI News)
Aramco Digital launches industrial edge AI stack
#Saudi #LEAP5 - Aramco Digital has launched iCONNA in Riyadh, combining Saudi Arabia’s national 450 MHz network with mission-critical communications, Industrial IoT, rugged smart devices, AI solutions and a software marketplace. Unveiled at LEAP 2026, the ecosystem aims to enable real-time and increasingly autonomous industrial decision-making. (Middle East AI News)
Qualcomm opens Riyadh office for wider Gulf push
#Saudi #LEAP5 - Qualcomm has opened a new Saudi Arabia office in Riyadh as it expands beyond mobile chips into edge computing, industrial IoT and data centre inference. The move follows its AI Engineering Centre at HUMAIN and supports deployments involving HUMAIN, Adobe and Aramco Digital. (Middle East AI News)
Nokia opens Saudi R&D centre for 6G software
#Saudi #LEAP5 - Nokia has opened its first Saudi Arabia research and development centre in Riyadh, focused on artificial intelligence-powered network automation and future 6G capabilities. The hub will develop orchestration, self-organising network, Autopilot and rApp software, train Saudi engineers, deploy locally and later export Made-in-Saudi technology. (Middle East AI News)
Together AI, HUMAIN plan 250MW Saudi data centre
#Saudi #LEAP5 - Together AI and HUMAIN have partnered to build a 250-megawatt data centre in Saudi Arabia, linking HUMAIN’s infrastructure with Together AI’s cloud platform. Announced at LEAP 2026, the project targets more than $5 billion in gross annualised revenue during its first operating year. (Middle East AI News)
AWS sets December launch for Saudi cloud region
#Saudi #LEAP5 - AWS will launch its first Saudi cloud region by December 2026 as part of a $5.3 billion investment programme. An expanded HUMAIN partnership will also deliver up to 50 megawatts of capacity in the Kingdom’s first AI Zone by 2028, using Trainium and NVIDIA infrastructure. (Middle East AI News)
Adobe moves AI workloads to HUMAIN’s Saudi hub
#Saudi #LEAP5 - Adobe has become the first global software company to migrate regional artificial intelligence workloads to HUMAIN’s Saudi infrastructure, accelerated by Qualcomm Dragonfly processors. Its data-captioning workloads are now hosted and processed entirely within the Kingdom. (Middle East AI News)
Microsoft sets November launch for Saudi cloud
#Saudi #LEAP5 - Microsoft will launch its Saudi Arabia East datacentre region in November 2026, with three Azure Availability Zones providing local data residency. The project is expected to help create around 100,000 jobs. (Middle East AI News)
HUMAIN, DataVolt break ground on NEOM AI campus
#Saudi #LEAP5 - Saudi Arabia’s HUMAIN and DataVolt have broken ground on a 100-megawatt artificial intelligence facility in Oxagon, NEOM. The project is the first phase of a planned 360-megawatt computing campus. (Middle East AI News)
HUMAIN backs Arabic.AI and partners with Tarjama&
#Saudi #LEAP5 - Saudi Arabia’s HUMAIN has invested in Arabic.AI and partnered with Tarjama&, linking computing infrastructure with Arabic-first language technology. The collaboration targets translation, archive digitisation and document intelligence for Saudi enterprises, expanding locally tailored tools for processing Arabic content and institutional knowledge. (Middle East AI News)
HP launches Garage 2.0 startup incubator in Saudi
#Saudi #LEAP5 - HP has launched Garage 2.0 in Saudi Arabia, an incubator helping startups develop artificial intelligence solutions. Announced at LEAP 2026, the programme brings together founders, educators, industry partners and HP expertise to build skills, foster collaboration and support innovation. (Middle East AI News)
MCIT, DCO and AMD launch open AI ecosystem
#Saudi #LEAP5 - MCIT, the DCO and AMD have launched an open ecosystem providing developers and startups with open-source tools, training and community support. Introduced at LEAP 2026, the initiative combines AMD’s ROCm software and developer programme with DCO resources on responsible technology governance. (Saudi Press Agency)
27 million Saudi residents to get free access to Adobe apps
#Saudi #LEAP5 - Adobe, MCIT and HUMAIN have expanded their partnership with a commitment exceeding $4 billion. More than 27 million eligible residents will receive 12 months’ free access to Adobe creative tools, alongside a new Arabic-prompt image generation model tuned to Saudi culture. (Saudi Press Agency)
NHC Innovation plans $880m Saudi data centre
#Saudi #LEAP5 - NHC Innovation has announced an $880 million investment to develop data centres in Khuzam Digital Valley. Unveiled at LEAP 2026, the project will provide scalable capacity of up to 65 megawatts by 2033. (LEAP)
HUMAIN plans Saudi autonomous trucking network
#Saudi #LEAP5 - HUMAIN and Applied Intuition have partnered to build what they describe as the world’s largest autonomous trucking network in Saudi Arabia. (International Business Magazine)
Mobily, BytePlus launch first MEA cloud region
#Saudi #LEAP5 - Mobily and BytePlus will launch BytePlus’s first public cloud region in the Middle East and Africa in Riyadh. Built on Mobily’s Saudi data centre infrastructure, the region will target media, AI and gaming. (Saudi Press Agency)
Qualcomm, HUMAIN launch Horizon Ultra AI PC
#Saudi #LEAP5 - Qualcomm and HUMAIN have launched Horizon Ultra, an enterprise PC powered by Snapdragon X2 Elite with an 18-core Oryon CPU, Adreno GPU and Hexagon NPU. Running Windows initially, the device enables on-device artificial intelligence processing, with HUMAIN OS planned for 2027. (Qualcomm)
Funding
G42 weighs multibillion-dollar fundraising
#UAE #venturecapital - UAE-headquartered G42 has held exploratory talks with potential investors about raising billions of dollars, according to Bloomberg. The Microsoft-backed company already counts Mubadala, Silver Lake and Microsoft among investors. No final decision has been made on deal structure or fundraising size, and its use of additional capital remains unclear. (Bloomberg)
AI takes half of MENA venture funding in H1 2026
#UAE #venturecapital - UAE-based MAGNiTT reports artificial intelligence companies captured half of all MENA venture funding in the first half of 2026, raising $678 million despite deal numbers falling 56 per cent year-on-year. The UAE secured 93 per cent of that capital, showing investment concentrating into fewer, larger rounds. (Middle East AI News)
Government & Policy
UAE Cabinet deploys 32-agent AI adviser system
#UAE #AgenticAI - The UAE Cabinet has put an AI Advisor System into operation in federal decision-making, using 32 specialised agents to analyse policies, legislation and strategies. The platform assesses societal impacts, benchmarks international practices and tracks implementation continuously, giving ministers round-the-clock support for faster, more accurate executive decisions. (Middle East AI News)
UAE launches advanced sciences programme
#UAE #science - The UAE has established a National Programme for Advanced Sciences and Technologies linking education, research, talent and innovation with strategic industries. Its first phase spans six tracks, aiming to strengthen domestic industrial capabilities and develop technologies for export. (Middle East AI News)
Agentic AI
AIREV launches blind benchmark for AI agents
#UAE #leaderboards - UAE-headquartered AIREV has launched Harness Arena, an open-source platform benchmarking autonomous agent frameworks through blind human evaluation. Using identical models and real-world tasks, it compares competing agent harnesses, scores anonymised outputs from 1 to 10 and updates rankings dynamically through pairwise Elo scoring. (Middle East AI News)
Data Centres
UAE investor backs MTN’s Africa data centre push
#UAE #datacentres - UAE investor Tarek Al Ashram, founder of Gulf Data Hub, has joined MTN Digital Infrastructure in Africa Data Hub Holding. The venture targets South Africa and Nigeria, combining MTN’s network reach with development expertise as it builds towards 150 megawatts of AI-ready capacity. (Africa AI News)
Vision Invest, AFC invest $300m in WIOCC
#Africa #Saudi #datacentres - Vision Invest and Africa Finance Corporation will invest a combined $300 million in WIOCC Group to accelerate digital infrastructure expansion across Africa. The funding will support data centre deployment, terrestrial fibre expansion and new subsea assets, strengthening connectivity as demand for cloud and artificial intelligence services grows. (Africa Finance Corporation)
Smart Cities
Riyadh launches digital innovation district
#Saudi #hubs - Saudi Arabia’s Royal Commission for Riyadh City has launched the Riyadh Digital Innovation District targeting AI, big data, cybersecurity, cloud, IoT, blockchain, robotics and drones. Specialised incentives and advanced infrastructure are intended to attract companies and talent. (Middle East AI News)
Telecom
UAE, Saudi telcos bet on AI-driven network revenue
#UAE #telecom - A Ciena survey found 96 per cent of UAE telecom providers and 90 per cent in Saudi Arabia expect high-capacity artificial intelligence services to generate net-new revenue within five years. UAE operators also report greater urgency around optical network upgrades, indicating different investment speeds across the two Gulf markets. (Middle East AI News)
e& launches laptop with on-device models
#UAE #Computing - UAE telecoms group e& has launched an enterprise laptop powered by Qualcomm Snapdragon X Series processors. The device runs large language models locally, enabling secure, offline artificial intelligence while reducing dependence on cloud processing. (Zawya)
Education
Qatar adds data science and AI to school curriculum
#Qatar #education - Qatar’s Ministry of Education is adding artificial intelligence, data science, entrepreneurship and vocational skills across the 2026–2027 school curriculum. The reforms aim to strengthen digital literacy and workforce readiness while preserving independent thinking, broadening technology exposure alongside practical and entrepreneurial learning for pupils. (Middle East AI News)
AI Ethics
Saudi to host UNESCO forum on AI ethics
#Saudi #covernance - SDAIA will host the fourth UNESCO Global Forum on the Ethics of Artificial Intelligence in Riyadh from 14–17 September. With participation expected from 194 countries, sessions will cover governance, capacity building, responsible innovation and international policy. (Saudi Press Agency)
[ This newsletter was both AI edited & human edited ]