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  • Saudi FM discusses developments in Palestine with PM Mohammad Mustafa

    Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan on Monday received a phone call from Palestinian Prime Minister Mohammad Mustafa. During the call, the two officials discussed developments in Palestine and efforts made in regard to them, Saudi Press Agency reported. Prince Faisal also received a phone call from his Pakistani counterpart Ishaq Dar. They discussed regional developments and joint efforts with regard to them, SPA said.  Later on Monday, Prince Faisal received another phone call from his Iranian counterpart Abbas Araghchi. The officials discussed the latest regional developments.

  • PIF’s Private Sector Forum returns to Riyadh

    The third edition of PIF’s Private Sector Forum takes place on February 12-13 in Riyadh, building on the success of previous years, with its focus on cooperation and fostering partnerships between PIF, its portfolio companies and the private sector to drive economic growth in Saudi Arabia and beyond. This year’s forum introduces four key tracks, as part of its program aimed at empowering the private sector. “There will be places and times throughout the two days where everyone interested in an opportunity will come together and there will be a series of discussions,” explained Jerry Todd, Head of National Development Division at PIF, during a Reuters Plus podcast interview. “Some of these will be led by PIF, some of these will be led by portfolio companies, and some of these will be led by industry experts.”

  • Ten million Indians take holy dip on key day of Kumbh Mela festival

    More than 10 million devout Hindus seeking absolution from their sins took a dip in holy waters in northern India during a span of four hours on Wednesday, authorities said, as they braced for millions more to swarm the site of the Kumbh Mela. Authorities stepped up the numbers of police officers and put air ambulances on standby in the city of Prayagraj in Uttar Pradesh state on one of the holiest days of the Hindu festival, considered the world's largest gathering of humanity.  "There are more people in this city in one day than the population of many countries, and the numbers are swelling by the minute," Prashant Kumar, the state's chief of police, told Reuters. The numbers arriving had pushed infrastructure arrangements to the brink, making delays and traffic jams inevitable, he added. Media said vehicles were backed up for hundreds of kilometers from the edges of the city.

  • Saudi fintech RasMal closes $4.8 million pre-Series A

    RasMal, the first cap table management and investment governance platform in the MENA region, closes its Pre-Series A investment round led by Syndicate Element Holding Group (SHG), a leading investment firm, with a total value of $4.8 million (18 million SAR) during LEAP 2025 in Riyadh. This investment aims to introduce new tools and services to streamline fundraising processes and equity transfers, aligning with Saudi Vision 2030 to build a technology-driven financial ecosystem.

  • Salesforce pledges $500 million investments in Saudi Arabia

    Salesforce today announced plans to invest $500 million in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, building on its commitment to innovation and economic growth in the region. The investment also aims to spur workforce development through AI skilling and expand Salesforce's local partner ecosystem to support local businesses. The announcement, made today at LEAP 2025, follows the company's Davos pledge to expand its presence in Saudi Arabia with new regional headquarters in Riyadh. The increasing adoption of Agentforce, Salesforce's digital labor platform, by businesses in the region underscores the growing demand for AI-driven solutions and reinforces Salesforce's commitment to this technology in the Kingdom.

  • Trump’s Gaza Comments Aren’t Receiving a Warm Welcome in the Middle East

    Over the past few weeks, U.S. President Donald Trump’s repeated comments about plans for Gaza’s future have sparked rare unity in the Middle East. Leaders have worked together to build a unified Arab position rejecting any attempt to displace Palestinians from Gaza. Below, three experts on Egypt, Jordan, and Saudi Arabia discuss the domestic and regional impacts of Trump’s statements. Although gauging Saudi public opinion directly is difficult, well-positioned commentators clearly feel free to reiterate (and even celebrate) the Kingdom’s rhetorical support for a Palestinian state. Prince Turki Al Faisal, pointedly wearing a keffiyah, appeared on CNN to criticize what he termed a “mad ethnic cleansing plan.”

  • IBM watsonx to Support AI Initiative in Saudi Arabia: Stock to Gain?

    International Business Machines Corporation IBM recently announced that it has joined forces with Lenovo to support and accelerate the development of generative-AI infrastructure in Saudi Arabia. Lenovo, a global technology juggernaut, boasts an extensive portfolio of AI-enabled, AI-optimized products that include smartphones, PCs, workstations and infrastructures, like servers, storage, high-performance computing and software-defined infrastructure. IBM is the leader in the AI space and its robust portfolio of watsonx AI products expedites the impact of generative AI in critical workflows to boost productivity.

  • Inaugural Olympic Esports Games to be held in 2027 in Saudi Arabia

    The first Olympic Esports Games will be held in two years in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, the International Olympic Committee said on Tuesday, as part of a 12-year-deal with the country signed last year. The IOC has been looking into Esports for several years, forming a dedicated commission to find opportunities to tap into a younger generation involved with gaming. With its traditional audience base gradually ageing, the governing body is trying to connect with a younger generation of potential Olympics fans. In 2021, it developed the Olympic virtual series, a pilot venture in Esports before signing the deal with Saudi Arabia last year for hosting the Olympic Esports Games.

  • Saudi pension fund invests in Tabby as valuation tops $3bn

    Buy now, pay later (BNPL) operator Tabby has raised $160 million through a new funding round, more than doubling its valuation to $3.3 billion. The Series E financing round was led by Hong Kong-based investor Blue Pool Capital and Saudi pension company Hassana Investment Company, in addition to Saudi Technology Ventures and Wellington Management. Founded in Dubai in 2019, but with its headquarters in Riyadh since October 2023, Tabby was valued at $1.5 billion following its previous funding round in 2023. The fintech has almost doubled its annual transaction volumes to over $10 billion. It acquired Tweeq, a Saudi Arabia-based digital wallet, last September, expanding its product portfolio.

  • Salesforce plans $500 million in AI-related investments in Saudi Arabia

    Cloud software seller Salesforce said on Monday that it plans to invest $500 million in Saudi Arabia related to artificial intelligence, as countries compete to secure investments in the nascent but critical technology. As part of the investment, Salesforce will introduce Hyperforce, its platform architecture delivered through a strategic partnership with Amazon Web Services, in the country.