RIYADH — The Saudi Data and Artificial Intelligence Authority (SDAIA) has entered a partnership with Huawei to launch the National AI Capability Development Program as part of its efforts to establish the Kingdom among the world's leading economies in the adoption of artificial intelligence (AI).
The new program recognizes that AI is an essential technology domain for achieving national digital transformation in support of Vision 2030. To date, AI is still in its early stage of expansion in Saudi Arabia.
SDAIA has previously estimated that the value of the country's data and AI economy is around $4-5 billion, with an opportunity to generate additional government revenues and savings of over $10 billion by harnessing data insights to help guide government decisions.
SDAIA is thus leveraging the most advanced solutions and global insights from the private sector, as seen through its partnership with Huawei.
The National AI Capability Development Program will aim to support governments, enterprises and research institutes in the Kingdom to find suitable technology partners in the AI domain, to enhance their own talent pool, and to ultimately find new growth strategies through AI applications.
As a partner, Huawei brings a wealth of local and international experience from 500 AI projects in various fields, including city management, energy, manufacturing, healthcare, transportation, logistics, and more.
Dr. Majid Altuwaijri, CEO of the National Center for Artificial Intelligence (NCAI) at SDAIA, said: “Through its vision, SDAIA seeks to establish the Kingdom as a global leader among the league of data-driven economies.
“We believe that public-private partnerships will help accelerate this progress, and are pleased to be working with Huawei on our latest National AI Capability Development Program.”
Charles Yang, president of Huawei Middle East, commented: “Huawei has adopted an ambitious long-term research and development strategy regarding AI, creating unprecedented opportunities through the synergy of AI with 5G connectivity, cloud, computing, and industry applications.
“In cooperation with SDAIA, we look forward to creating new value across these tech domains, collaborating with local AI developer and industry partners to transform the Kingdom into a leading data-driven economy.”
Dr. Altuwaijri added: “Through the National AI Capability Development Program and our cooperation with Huawei, Saudi Arabia can not only continue acquiring the most cutting-edge technologies, but also learn from successful experiences internationally in adopting best practices.”
Terry He, CEO of Huawei Tech Investment Saudi Arabia, noted: “AI is now a general-purpose technology that can be applied to all industries in the Kingdom. Tapping into Huawei’s all-scenario, full-stack AI capabilities, we will support Saudi organizations to maximize their performance while also lowering the entry barriers to AI applications.” — SG
