World’s 1st industrial distributed cloud deployed in Saudi Arabia
Aramco Digital, Armada & Microsoft deploy edge computing data centres
#SaudiArabia #edgecomputing - Edge computing pioneer Armada, Saudi Aramco’s digital innovation arm Aramco Digital, and Microsoft have deployed the world’s first industrial distributed cloud. This initiative integrates Microsoft’s adaptive cloud, Armada’s edge infrastructure, and AI-driven digital solutions to enhance real-time decision-making, operational efficiency, and industrial automation at Aramco’s facilities. The deployment, completed in just months, uses Armada’s Galleon edge data centres, Commander software platform, together with Azure cloud technologies to power AI applications across Aramco’s sites. The collaboration marks another significant step in Aramco’s digital transformation strategy.
SO WHAT? - The new Armada deployment represents a major leap in industrial cloud computing by merging AI, edge computing, and high-performance cloud infrastructure. Aramco’s size and scale as the world’s largest oil company makes it an ideal customer for Armada, but nevertheless it is Aramco Digital’s vision to push the boundaries that has led to this world first. The industrial distributed cloud will process vast industrial data at the edge, enabling real-time, AI-powered decision-making in mission-critical operations. It sets the bar for distributed cloud.
Here are some key points regarding this announcement:
Armada, Aramco Digital, and Microsoft have collaborated to create the world’s first industrial distributed cloud, deploying advanced AI-driven cloud infrastructure optimised for real-time industrial applications.
The project was implemented within months, accelerating Aramco’s broader industrial digitalisation initiatives.
Microsoft’s Azure adaptive cloud powers real-time data processing within Armada’s Galleon edge data centres. Meanwhile, AI-driven safety monitoring, operational intelligence, and predictive maintenance enhance efficiency and resilience at industrial sites.
The system integrates Azure IoT for data ingestion, Azure Arc for resource management, and Azure Local for distributed infrastructure control.
Armada’s satellite communication solutions ensure reliable, high-speed network access for remote and bandwidth-constrained environments.
Aramco Digital and its partners plan to scale the industrial distributed cloud across the Kingdom, ensuring high-performance edge computing at all Aramco sites.
Armada will establish a regional presence in Saudi Arabia with dedicated support resources, a regional headquaerters, and local manufacturing plans.
Armada recently secured a $40 million funding round, bringing its total investment to over $100 million.
ZOOM OUT - Aramco's digital transformation is breathtaking to watch, with the energy giant making huge investments in digital infrastructure and applying AI at scale. With two of the three largest supercomputers in the Arab world, and plans to build another, Aramco is quickly assembling the resources required to run AI througout its enormous enterprise. Last year the company announced the world's largest industrial large language model, together with plans to build a 1 trillion parameter version. Aramco Digital announced plans with Groq to build the world's largest AI infrastructure hub. The combination of such initiatives give the company unrivalled digital capability in its industry.
Read more about Aramco Digital’s digital investments:
Groq ships to Saudi to for huge AI infrastructure cluster (Middle East AI News)
Groq to offer on-demand services from Saudi Arabia (Middle East AI News)
World's largest industrial LLM revealed! (Middle East AI News)