Saudi Arabia ranks among top 10 global AI investors: World Bank report

The World Development Report 2026, released by the World Bank Group under the title "The Promise of Artificial Intelligence," highlights Saudi Arabia's advanced position in the global AI landscape. The Kingdom is ranked among the top 10 countries worldwide for private investment in artificial intelligence, recognized as an attractive destination for AI talent, and cited as a model for government data integration.

This international recognition is the result of sustained support and empowerment from Saudi leadership, through a comprehensive national strategy established by Vision 2030 to build a data-driven, innovative economy and cement the Kingdom’s role in shaping the future of AI.

The recently published report is the World Bank’s first comprehensive assessment of AI’s impact on developing economies, exploring the opportunities AI offers to individuals, businesses, and governments, as well as the requirements to maximize its developmental impact and manage associated risks.

The report focuses on three main pillars shaping AI’s role in development: expanding access to expertise and supporting decision-making; the concentration of advanced model production, chips, and data centers in a limited number of countries and companies; and complementary factors such as infrastructure, data, skills, and institutions.

Through these pillars, the report outlines a phased approach, starting with adopting available tools, adapting them to local languages, data, institutions, and needs, and ultimately developing advanced technologies and enabling infrastructure.

The report stresses that leveraging AI is not only about owning the largest models, but about building an integrated ecosystem of connectivity, computing, data, skills, and institutions. It notes that context-appropriate solutions broaden access to expertise, boost productivity, enhance public services, and support economic growth.

On the concentration pillar, which tracks the clustering of advanced AI infrastructure and related investments, the report notes that Saudi Arabia combines tax incentives and special economic zones to attract investment in data centers and build computing capabilities. This national approach links capital attraction with developing a system that includes talent, startups, energy, and the infrastructure needed for AI applications to grow.

This aligns with the Kingdom’s rapid digital infrastructure growth: data center capacity rose from 68 megawatts in 2021 to 440 megawatts in 2025, reaching 467 megawatts in the first quarter of 2026—an increase of over 6% since the start of the year and nearly seven times the 2021 level. By the end of 2025, 4G and 5G network coverage reached 99%, and average internet speeds hit 216 Mbps, enabling the expansion of cloud services and AI applications.

On the capabilities pillar, the report highlights Saudi Arabia’s ability to attract specialized talent. In 2025, the Kingdom ranked among the economies with the highest net inflow of AI professionals per 10,000 LinkedIn members, alongside Luxembourg, Australia, and Switzerland. Saudi Arabia also recorded a net inflow of 3.08 among leading AI authors and innovators that year, reflecting the growing appeal of its tech environment for top talent.

This progress is matched by the growth of the national tech workforce, which reached about 426,000 in Saudi Arabia—a cumulative increase of 186.6% from 150,000 in 2018. Female participation in ICT professions rose to 35%, further diversifying the talent pool and strengthening the foundation for a technology- and innovation-driven economy.

On the complementary factors pillar, the report cites Saudi Arabia as a model for building public data infrastructure. The platform managed by the Saudi Data and Artificial Intelligence Authority (SDAIA) enables integration of data from more than 60 government entities while keeping data within their own systems. The report highlights this as a leading example of organized data sharing, empowering agencies to develop more effective applications and strengthening governance, trust, and data protection.

This progress builds on broader achievements in the digital economy, which now contributes 16% to GDP. The ICT market reached SAR 199 billion ($53 billion) in 2025. Saudi Arabia also ranked second globally in the World Bank’s 2025 Digital Government Maturity Index.

Saudi Arabia’s presence in international AI policy discussions was reflected in the report’s preparation, with Minister of Communications and Information Technology Abdullah Al-Swaha serving on the high-level advisory committee. The report team also benefited from consultations with the Saudi Center for Competitiveness and Business, the joint knowledge center between the World Bank and the Kingdom, and contributions from national government, private, and research entities in data, communications, computing, and innovation.

The report’s release coincides with the Council of Ministers’ approval, in a session chaired by Crown Prince and Prime Minister Mohammed bin Salman on March 10, 2026, to designate 2026 as the "Year of Artificial Intelligence" in the Kingdom—underscoring national commitment to future technologies, development, innovation, and competitiveness.

The World Bank report affirms that Saudi Arabia is advancing on a comprehensive path in the AI era, combining investment in infrastructure, computing, and data with talent development, regulatory environment building, and expanding technology’s impact on the economy and services—cementing its position as a global hub for data and AI and supporting Vision 2030 goals.