LEAP 2025 opened on February 9 in Riyadh, bringing together global technology and innovation leaders to strengthen Saudi Arabia’s role as a key player in digital transformation and a destination for tech investment.
On the first day, the event saw the announcement of over US$14.9 billion in AI sector investments.
These aim to develop digital skills, support tech startups, and drive innovation, reinforcing Saudi Arabia’s position as the largest digital economy in MENA.
The announcement was made by Minister of Communications and Information Technology Abdullah Alswaha, who credited Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud for supporting these initiatives.
He said the investments would help advance the technology sector and accelerate Saudi Arabia’s shift towards an AI-driven economy in line with Vision 2030.
LEAP 2025 is organised by the Ministry of Communications and Information Technology, the Saudi Federation for Cybersecurity, Programming, and Drones (SAFCSP), and Tahaluf Company – a joint venture between SAFCSP and Informa PLC – supported by the Events Investment Fund.
The first day featured several major investment announcements:
- Groq & Aramco Digital: US$1.5 billion to expand AI-powered cloud computing.
- Alat & Lenovo: US$2 billion to establish an AI and robotics manufacturing and technology centre and open Lenovo’s regional headquarters in Riyadh.
- Google: Plans to launch a global AI hub in Saudi Arabia.
- Qualcomm: Introduced the ALLaM language model on the Qualcomm AI Cloud and launched the ALLaM AI PC.
- Alibaba Cloud: Announced an AI empowerment programme in partnership with Tuwaiq Academy and STC to train local talent.
- Databricks: US$300 million investment in Platform-as-a-Service (PaaS) solutions to support app developers and AI expertise.
- SambaNova: US$140 million for advanced AI infrastructure development.
- KKR & Gulf Data Hub: Investment in Saudi Arabia’s data centres, with up to 300 megawatts of capacity.
- Salesforce: US$500 million to expand its Hyperforce platform in the region.
- Tencent Cloud: US$150 million to establish its first Middle East cloud region in Saudi Arabia.
Featured image credit: edited from freepik
