#Qatar #investment - San Francisco-based AI data and applications company Scale AI has signed an agreement with Qatari master developer United Development Company (UDC) to establish a long-term office space at The Pearl in Doha. The expanded Doha office covers nearly 2,000 square metres and supports an in-country team has grown to nearly 100 people since 2025. The move builds on a five-year partnership with Qatar’s Ministry of Communications and Information Technology (MCIT) to improve healthcare, justice, education and tourism services.
SO WHAT? - Scale AI is committing to Qatar with property, people and a long lease on its future. Qatar was the company’s first Gulf market, so this is the clear sign of how the company expects to grow in the region. Scale’s near-100 strong Qatar team, of which half are in engineering roles, suggests rapid delivery of solutions and services to an expanding customer base. This is also the scale of team that is well placed to bolster delivery across the region as Riyadh and Dubai hubs build-out.
KEY POINTS:
Scale AI signed an agreement with United Development Company (UDC) this week to establish a long-term office space at The Pearl in Doha. The company also celebrated the official launch of its Doha office with partners and clients.
The expanded office at The Pearl covers nearly 2,000 square metres. UDC has developed The Pearl into a waterfront community combining workplaces, homes, hospitality, dining, retail and leisure.
Scale AI’s Doha team has grown to nearly 100 employees since its partnership with Qatar was announced in 2025. Close to 50 percent are technical engineers.
The office builds on a five-year partnership with the State of Qatar and MCIT, announced at Web Summit Qatar 2025. The team works across healthcare, justice, education and higher education, tourism and wider government.
The ALIF programme, launched by MCIT with Scale AI and delivered through the Qatar Digital Academy, gives hands-on AI training to technical and non-technical government employees. Nearly 6,000 have been trained so far.
Scale AI says its work in Qatar covers evaluating performance, supporting human oversight and building the skills to operate and improve systems over time. It has shared examples ranging from legislative drafting to national recruitment.
Through Scale Labs, the company develops benchmarks and evaluations, including Humanity’s Last Exam, built with the Center for AI Safety. It has also partnered with government AI evaluation bodies in the US, UK, Korea and Singapore.
Scale AI links the investment to Qatar’s Digital Agenda 2030, which combines digital infrastructure, government services, innovation and skills in a push towards a knowledge-based economy.
ZOOM OUT - Earlier in the week, Scale AI launched its UAE entity at the Dubai AI Festival. Registered at Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC), Scale’s Dubai operation already employs more than 30 staff. It follows an October MoU with G42 group company Presight on agentic AI for government and enterprise customers. With the opening of the Dubai office, the company now has a base in each of the Gulf’s three largest digital economies. The two launches in one week suggest Scale AI plans to grow in the region through permanent offices and local teams.
[Written and edited with the assistance of AI]
Source: Scale AI, MEAN, various
Read more about Scale AI:
Scale AI opens in Dubai, its third Gulf hub (Middle East AI News)
Qatar signs 5-year deal with Scale AI (Middle East AI News)
Scale AI to open Riyadh office, following regional deals (Middle East AI News)