Minister of Communications: Saudi digital economy grew 13% annually since launch of Vision 2030

Eng. Abdullah Al-Swaha, Minister of Communications and Information Technology, revealed that the growth rate of the digital economy in the Kingdom has witnessed a remarkable leap of 13% annually since the launch of Vision 2030, adding that the growth in the digital economy in the Middle East region has reached 73% after the Kingdom witnessed a growth of 50%.

Al-Swaha explained during the government press conference on the sidelines of LEAP 2025 that the Kingdom is witnessing an unprecedented technical movement in the 21st century, stressing that this has been positively reflected in the labor market, as 381,000 jobs have been provided in the communications and information technology sector during the past seven years.

Al-Swaha pointed out that Aramco has launched the largest center for artificial intelligence inference in the Kingdom with a capacity of up to 150 megawatts, which enhances the Kingdom’s technical position worldwide.

Al-Sawaha stressed that the goal is for the Kingdom to become a global center for bridging the gaps in artificial intelligence, noting that the Kingdom has achieved great progress in this field, as the number of technology professionals has jumped from 150,000 to 381,000 in recent years. In a dialogue session on the sidelines of the “Leap 25” conference, Al-Sawaha brought together Arvind Krishna, Chairman and CEO of IBM, entitled “Bringing Technology to Life,” the Minister stressed that the Kingdom is working to accelerate the pace of technological innovation by attracting global companies and building an advanced system in artificial intelligence, cloud and quantum computing, noting that the future direction requires anticipating changes and accurately analyzing market trends, to ensure leadership and move to the smart age. Al-Sawaha added that the Kingdom, thanks to its ambitious investments in modern technologies, is making steady progress towards strengthening its position as a global center for digital innovation, stressing the importance of strategic partnerships in driving the transition to the smart age and achieving the Kingdom’s Vision 2030. The session, which was attended by a number of technology and innovation leaders and investors, highlighted the future of artificial intelligence and quantum computing, the Kingdom’s pioneering role in technology, innovation and the transition to the smart age, and developments in quantum computing.