Saudi $50 million AI fund to bridge Silicon Valley & GCC
Wyld VC secures $50M for cross-continental AI investments
#SaudiArabia #venturecapital - Venture capitalist Tala Al Jabri has launched Wyld VC, one of the first AI-focused funds to emerge from the Middle East and North Africa region, with $50 million to invest in early-stage artificial intelligence companies across the GCC and Silicon Valley. The Saudi-headquartered fund, backed by the family office of Lawrence E. Golub, CEO of New York-based Golub Capital, aims to bridge the innovation gap between the Bay Area's technical expertise and the Gulf's growing AI infrastructure investments.
SO WHAT? - Venture capital funding for Middle East AI ventures has remained limited until quite recently, so Wyld VC’s new fund could be another step forward for the region’s AI ecosystem development. The firm aims to help address the critical talent shortage in the Gulf region, while strengthening US-Gulf technology partnerships. The announcement is also well-timed. With President Trump beginning his Gulf tour tomorrow, cross-continental technology collaboration is expected to be the flavour of the week!
Venture capitalist Tala Al Jabri has announced the launch of Wyld VC, one of the first AI-focused funds to emerge from the MENA region, with $50 million to invest in early-stage AI startups across the GCC and Silicon Valley.
Wyld VC will focus specifically on AI middleware and applications, areas identified as primed for disruption, with investments targeting early-stage companies across both the Gulf region and San Francisco Bay Area to foster technological exchange between the two innovation hubs.
The fund's launch comes as Saudi Arabia positions itself as an emerging AI powerhouse, with the Kingdom having attracted $391 million in venture capital during Q1 2025, ranking first among emerging markets globally according to Magnitt.
The backing from Lawrence E. Golub's family office marks its first investment in the region, with Golub Capital recently establishing a presence in Abu Dhabi Global Market (ADGM) earlier this year, demonstrating growing international investor confidence in the Gulf's tech ecosystem.
Wyld VC's dual-market approach aims to provide Middle Eastern founders with access to Silicon Valley's talent pool, investor networks and accelerators, while helping Bay Area technical innovations find strategic partners in Gulf countries.
ZOOM OUT - While venture capital investment in MENA's AI sector has grown in recent years, funding has predominantly targeted pre-Seed and Seed stage startups and has lacked breadth and depth. The ecosystem faces dual challenges: a shortage of differentiated AI startups with proprietary technology, and investor hesitancy toward deep tech ventures. However, this landscape is evolving rapidly as more intellectual property is being developed locally and investor knowledge deepens.
[Written and edited with the assistance of AI]
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