Report: Generative AI drives economic growth and contributes to raising the Kingdom’s GDP

A recent economic report issued by the Saudi Data and Artificial Intelligence Authority (SDAIA) in cooperation with Accenture stressed the importance of generative AI’s contribution to driving economic growth in the Kingdom, expecting that adopting generative AI will contribute to increasing the Kingdom’s GDP.

The report, which was announced during the third edition of the Global AI Summit under the title “Generative AI Opportunities in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia,” provided an overview of the potential of generative AI in enhancing productivity, providing new job opportunities, and enhancing the overall competitiveness of the Kingdom’s economy, in addition to clarifying the role of this technology in achieving economic diversification goals and enhancing innovation in the Kingdom, as these innovative technologies can save 37% of routine working hours in various professions to enable workers to spend more time doing more important work.

The report’s research methodology included analyzing professional data collected from national statistical offices and databases distributed across 19 countries, with the aim of comparing them with the current reality in the Kingdom, in parallel with conducting an assessment of language-based tasks to calculate the labor productivity measure used to calculate the efficiency ratio. The research also benefited from academic materials and statistical models to predict future behavior so that the report reveals the extent of the impact of generative artificial intelligence on efficiency in various sectors in order to enhance these competencies. The report indicated that the Kingdom is working to benefit from the full potential of generative artificial intelligence to accelerate its pace of innovation, and this has already been achieved with the remarkable steps it has taken on the path to drawing and formulating a more sustainable future through generative artificial intelligence, indicating that supporting human-machine cooperation provides an important opportunity to enhance capabilities and potential and achieve a profound transformational impact in various Saudi sectors, in addition to consolidating an advanced position for the Kingdom in the world. The report called for a strategic approach to fully harness the potential of generative AI in the Kingdom, and adopting a comprehensive plan that includes targeted and results-oriented steps, and identifies the necessary elements to build a strong and responsible generative AI system, starting with technology and talent and reaching sustainability and accountability. The report highlighted four critical steps that the Kingdom can take to benefit from generative AI, and indicates that the Kingdom can focus on achieving value from generative AI by prioritizing use cases and high-impact applications that achieve economic and societal benefits, and reshaping skills and work methods, as the Kingdom will benefit greatly from enhancing talent development strategies, and activating work procedures and paths to be compatible with the capabilities of generative AI, in parallel with establishing a culture that embraces and fosters continuous learning and innovation. He stated that the steps that enhance the benefit of generative AI include developing a secure digital core supported by AI, which contributes to developing the infrastructure and technical capabilities of AI to ensure comprehensive and effective operations and services in various industries, in addition to addressing gaps in AI ethics, as the report indicates that the Kingdom has a golden opportunity to lead the responsible use of generative AI technologies. The report reviewed a detailed analysis and insights into the potential impact of generative AI on the Kingdom’s economy and workforce, and presents strategic recommendations aimed at harnessing the power of this innovative technology.