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  • DARPA wants to use AI to find new rare minerals

    Secure access to rare Earth minerals is a critical national security issue, as the entire United States' economy is highly dependent on minerals—and the majority of them discovered so far are in China. The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency, or DARPA, has partnered with a company called HyperSpectral that applies artificial intelligence to spectroscopic data, which could be key to using satellites or drones to find minerals that would be difficult to detect otherwise.

  • New Google collaboration advances AI research in Saudi Arabia

    Google announced $100,000 in seed research grants to AI researchers at King Abdullah University of Science and Technology ( KAUST) faculty in Computer, Electrical, and Mathematical Sciences and Engineering (CEMSE) to advance research in multilingual, multimodal machine learning, specifically in the use of generative and large language models (LLMs). The researchers will advance research in topics including health, cross-cultural language understanding, sustainability, privacy and education.

  • Saudi border guards seize over a ton of qat

    The General Administration of the Mujahideen and Border Guard patrols successfully thwarted multiple smuggling attempts in Jazan and the Asir Region, seizing a total of 1,222 kg of qat. Patrols in Jazan thwarted the smuggling of 507 kg of qat, and the confiscated items were transferred to the appropriate authorities after initial regulatory procedures. Security regiments in the Asir Region also intercepted 240 kg of qat in the Al-Farsha Governorate. In the Al-Raboah sector of the Asir Region, Border Guards arrested 11 Ethiopians attempting to smuggle 275 kg of qat.

  • Saudi banks post $1.95 billion in aggregate profits for May 2024, reaching 14-month high

    The Saudi Central Bank (SAMA) reported that these profits are before zakat and taxes. Cumulatively, banks recorded a total profit of SAR34.78 billion ($9.27 billion) in the first five months of 2024, compared to SAR31.12 billion in the same period last year.

  • “Saudi consumers are developing a more sophisticated palate”

    Clients (brands) are demanding more effective marketing strategies in the face of a booming domestic market. The  ever-increasing number of homegrown brands is pushing the boundaries, forcing established players to up their game. This translates to a growing need for data-driven campaigns and innovative experiences that deliver measurable results. The government’s own digital transformation efforts have set a high bar, raising client expectations across industries.

  • Saudi Arabia’s Liquidity Hits All-Time High of $760 billion

    Saudi Arabia's liquidity levels continued to grow strongly, reaching SAR2,825,715 million at the end of May 2024, marking an annual growth of approximately 8.6%. This represented an increase of more than SAR222,928 billion compared to the same period in 2023, which stood at SAR2,602,786 million. These levels reflect the broad money supply (M3) as reported in the Saudi Central Bank (SAMA)'s monthly statistical bulletin for May 2024.

  • Saudi wealth bolsters WTA’s ambitions for women’s tennis

    In May, the Women’s Tennis Association sealed a multiyear partnership with Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund. As a result, PIF became the naming partner for the WTA’s player rankings, while the WTA Finals — the tour’s biggest showcase — will move to Riyadh for the next three years. Prize money for the annual event will increase from $9mn to $15.25mn.  And that deal came just over a year after the WTA joined forces with CVC Capital Partners. The European private equity firm paid $150mn for a 20 per cent stake in WTA Ventures, a new entity that controls the commercial income generated by the women’s tour.

  • Saudi Arabia arrests over 16,000 residency, work, and border security violators

    Joint field campaigns to follow up and arrest violators of residency, work, and border security regulations, which took place in all regions of Saudi Arabia from June 27 to July 3, 2024, revealed a total of 16,565 violators. This included 9,969 violators of the residency system, 4,676 violators of the border security system, and 1,920 violators of the labor system.

  • Saudi Arabia’s e-commerce records grow by 17.47% in Q2 2024, driven by Riyadh’s leading issuance

    The issuance of existing commercial records for e-commerce recorded a growth of 17.47% by the end of the second quarter of 2024, with 40,697 records issued compared to 34,645 in the same period of 2023, according to the Business Sector Bulletin issued by the Ministry of Commerce for Q2 2024. Riyadh City topped the regions in Saudi Arabia for issuing e-commerce records, with 16,535 commercial records. Makkah followed with 10,325 records, the Eastern Province with 6,525, Madinah with 1,938, and Al-Qassim with 1,326.

  • Saudi Aramco Jackup Suspensions And The Story So Far

    Saudi Aramco’s ambitious post-Covid jackup fleet expansion programme, in which the operator looked to increase its fleet size from approximately 49 jackups in June 2022 to 90 in just two years, seemed a daring feat. But fast forward to March 2024 and the Saudi Arabian National Oil Company (NOC) almost met its target having 89 jackups at work.