MUST-READS

• Saudi Aramco leads $30m investment in tech startup

  Wa’ed Ventures, the $500 million venture capital fund owned by Saudi Aramco, and Japanese conglomerate Sumitomo have invested in Zension Technologies, a consumer electronics startup. Wa’ed led the funding raise of $30 million, which also included Dubai-based Global Ventures. Based in Riyadh, Zension provides consumers with access to the latest tech devices. Instead of purchasing devices outright, customers can subscribe to use them for a monthly fee, with options to upgrade, switch brands or return devices as needed.

• Saudi deep tech startups raise more than $100 million since 2020

  Saudi Arabia’s Ministry of Communications and Information Technology (MCIT), in partnership with King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST) and Hello Tomorrow, has published a report on the Kingdom’s deep tech ecosystem. According to the study, Saudi deep tech startups have raised over $100 million in funding since 2020. Mapping Saudi Arabia’s Deep Tech Ecosystem defines five pillars for the sector: ecosystem development, investment, infrastructure, talent, and government incentives. It also identifies 43 high-growth startups: 50 percent of which focus on AI and IoT (Internet of Things) technologies.

• Saudi Arabia sells $12 billion 3-part bond amid strong demand
   Saudi Arabia raised $12 billion from global debt markets in a three-part bond sale, attracting strong investor demand, according to a government statement early Tuesday, with proceeds expected to help cover its budget deficit and pay down debt. The kingdom sold $5 billion, $3 billion and $4 billion in tenors of three, six and 10 years, respectively, the National Debt Management Center (NDMC) said in a statement, adding that the total order book reached around $37 billion. The issuer was able to lower the pricing on the bonds from initial guidance, fixed income news service IFR reported earlier on Monday, indicating strong investor appetite. "This transaction is part of NDMC's strategy to diversify the investors' base and meet the Kingdom's financing needs from international debt capital markets efficiently and effectively," the NDMC said. Saudi Arabia, the world's top oil exporter, has forecast a fiscal deficit of $27 billion for 2025 as it continues strategic spending on projects linked to Vision 2030, the kingdom's ambitious plan to overhaul the economy.

• Saudi Arabia Affirms Readiness To Participate In Syria’s Renaissance

  Prince Faisal reiterated the Kingdom’s commitment to supporting Syria’s sovereignty, independence, and territorial integrity while emphasizing efforts to achieve security, stability, and prosperity for the Syrian people, the Saudi Press Agency reported. The discussions also focused on preserving Syrian state institutions, enhancing its capabilities, and facilitating its reintegration into the Arab and Islamic worlds, SPA added. Senior Saudi officials including Prince Musab bin Mohammed Al-Farhan and ambassadors Saud Al-Sati and Faisal Al-Majfal were also in attendance.

• How Artificial Intelligence Will Affect Asia’s Economies

  Asia-Pacific’s economies are likely to experience labor market shifts because of artificial intelligence, with advanced economies being affected more. About half of all jobs in the region’s advanced economies are exposed to AI, compared to only about a quarter in emerging market and developing economies. However, as we show in our latest Asia-Pacific Regional Economic Outlook, there are also more jobs in the region’s advanced economies that can be complemented by AI, meaning that the technology will likely enhance productivity rather than replace these roles altogether. The concentration of such jobs in Asia’s advanced economies could worsen inequality between countries over time. While about 40 percent of jobs in Singapore are rated as highly complementary to AI, the share is just 3 percent in Laos.

• Senior Saudi officials meet new Syrian counterparts in Riyadh

  Saudi Arabia’s Defense Minister Prince Khalid bin Salman and Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan met their new Syrian counterparts during a trip to Riyadh. Syrian Foreign Minister Asaad Hassan al-Shibani met Prince Faisal at the Saudi Foreign Ministry before the pair joined a larger meeting with Prince Khalid. “We discussed developments in Syria and explored ways to support the transitional political process in achieving the Syrian people’s aspirations for security, stability, and unity,” Prince Khalid said after their meeting.

• GASTAT: Saudi Women’s Participation in the Labor Force Reaches 36.2%

  The General Authority for Statistics (GASTAT) released today the Labor Market Bulletin for the third quarter of 2024. Figures show that the unemployment rate among Saudis in Q3 of 2024 was 7.8%, an increase of 0.7 percentage points over Q2 of this same year, and a year-on-year decrease of 1 percentage point from Q3 2023. The bulletin also shows that the Saudi and non-Saudi labor force stood, in Q3 of this year, at 66.6%, a 0.4 percentage point increase over Q2 of 2024. Among Saudis, the labor force grew by 0.7 percentage points in Q3 2024, to reach 51.5%, marking a year-on-year increase of 0.7 percentage points. The employment-to-population ratio among Saudis went up by 0.2 percentage points, reaching 47.4%, or an annual growth of 1.1 percentage points. The bulletin also highlighted the growth of Saudi women's participation in the labor force, which increased by 0.8 percentage points, to 36.2%, in the mentioned period.

• Saudi Group Announces 1 GW of Renewables as Part of $50 Billion China Investment

  Saudi Arabia energy major ACWA Power announced it is developing more than 1 GW of renewable energy projects in China. The company in reports published Dec. 31 said the portfolio includes solar and wind power installations that would be owned jointly by ACWA Power and Chinese renewable energy developers. ACWA Power in a statement to Tadawul, the Saudi stock exchange, confirmed that the projects are sited across China and are in advanced stages of development. Yunhe Lyu, who leads ACWA’s operations in China, earlier in December said the company plans to invest as much as $50 billion to build renewable energy projects in that country by the end of this decade. Lyu said ACWA envisions as much as 20 GW of renewable energy generation capacity, along with development of green hydrogen projects.

• Elon Musk and GCC: A partnership shaping the Gulf’s tech future

  In recent years, Gulf countries such as Saudi Arabia, the Sultanate of Oman, and Qatar have emerged as key partners in Musk’s ventures. The most recent example is Oman Investment Authority’s (OIA) acquisition of a stake in xAI, announced in December 2024. The company specialises in developing artificial general intelligence (AGI), aimed at solving complex global challenges while prioritising ethical and safe development. This investment aligns with the Gulf’s broader strategies to leverage advanced technologies, enhance economic diversification, and develop robust digital infrastructure. Initiatives such as Oman Vision 2040 and Saudi Vision 2030 reflect an ambition to move beyond oil-dependent economies by embracing knowledge-based industries.

• Saudi-US partnerships set to power Vision 2030 Goals

  On the heels of the first Saudi-US Higher Education Partnerships Forum, co-organised by the Saudi Arabian Ministry of Education, the US Embassy, and IIE, and held in Riyadh,The PIE sat down with Michael Ratney, US ambassador to Saudi Arabia to explore the evolving landscape of educational collaboration between the two nations. “There’s a decades long educational affinity between Saudi and the US,” said Ratney. “Saudi Arabia has been sending students to the US for decades… We think there’s probably over 700,000 Saudis that have studied in the US over the years.” Historically, much of this outbound mobility has been, and continues to be, driven by the Saudi’s government scholarship program – the King Abdullah Scholarship program. In recent years, Vision 2030 – Saudi’s national economic and social transformation program – has meant the sending of students has been more focused.

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