Saudi Arabia Partners with Google Cloud to Establish a Global AI Hub

The Public Investment Fund (PIF) and Google Cloud have announced a partnership to establish a new global artificial intelligence (AI) hub near Dammam in Saudi Arabia’s Eastern Province. The partnership, signed at the Future Investment Initiative 8th Edition (FII8), further positions Saudi Arabia as a global hub and top AI destination for local and international enterprises and startups, the official release said.

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AI Hub in Dammam

Located near Dammam, the hub will feature Google Cloud’s AI infrastructure, including TPU and GPU accelerators and the Vertex AI platform, enabling businesses to leverage state-of-the-art tools for AI applications. This partnership will also support Arabic AI development through Google’s Gemini model, allowing local organisations to build AI solutions tailored for the region.

Yasir Al-Rumayyan, Governor of PIF, said: “We are delighted to welcome this new Google Cloud AI hub to Saudi Arabia. This partnership demonstrates PIF’s dedication to fostering an AI-friendly environment through investments in human capital and technology, upskilling thousands with cutting-edge tools to support our sustainable and innovative infrastructure goals. Saudi Arabia is a prime location for global tech partners as PIF brings both sector expertise and a long-term approach to investment.”

Ruth Porat, President and Chief Investment Officer of Alphabet and Google, said: “This strategic partnership will accelerate adoption of AI in the local language and across industries — including healthcare, retail, financial services and more — for enterprises and startups in Saudi Arabia, across the Middle East, Africa and around the world. As part of Saudi Arabia’s rich technology ecosystem, we aim to create highly-skilled jobs for Saudis and opportunities for global businesses to fuel growth through cloud adoption.”