SDAIA President: Saudi Arabia Advances in AI, Contributes to International Decision-Making

Saudi Data and Artificial Intelligence Authority (SDAIA) President Dr. Abdullah bin Sharaf Al-Ghamdi underscored that the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia has made significant strides in technological advancement, positioning itself as a global competitor in data and artificial-intelligence (AI) technologies, citing in this regard the Riyadh-hosted third edition of the Global AI Summit, which drew significant global attention and re-emphasized the Kingdom’s prominent position in this advanced technological field.
Al-Ghamdi explained that the constant support the authority receives from His Royal Highness Prince Mohammed bin Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, Crown Prince, Prime Minister, and SDAIA Chairman of the Board of Directors, has elevated expectations for excellence in performance, global competition, and establishing Saudi Arabia as a global technological hub for advanced and AI-related technologies. He said the Global AI Summit, through its three editions, has marked an important turning point in the Kingdom’s development journey, serving as a Saudi platform engaging with the advanced world and keeping pace with its technological movement, and it has yielded numerous outcomes that align with the Kingdom’s technical interests and support its role in contributing to international decision-making in the field.
The SDAIA president noted that each year the Kingdom takes pride in continuing to achieve accomplishments under the Saudi Vision 2030, which laid out a roadmap inspiring achievement after achievement on local, regional, and international levels. He said the the Riyadh Charter for Artificial Intelligence in the Islamic World, announced at the 3rd Global AI Summit, demonstrated the Kingdom’s leadership and aims to establish a comprehensive framework for developing AI technologies in line with Islamic values and principles, promoting inclusive and sustainable development, and enhancing international cooperation in this field.
Al-Ghamdi highlighted that 2024 has witnessed several global achievements for the Kingdom, including UNESCO’s official announcement during the last summit of the “International Center for Research and Ethics of Artificial Intelligence,” which will be established in Riyadh under its auspices.
He noted that the summit resulted in the launch of guidelines for addressing fake technology operations using AI tools, supporting efforts to raise awareness and outline best practices for utilizing these promising technologies responsibly.
The SDAIA president discussed the launch of the largest national initiative this year, the “Million Saudis for AI” (SMAI), in cooperation with the Ministry of Education and the Ministry of Human Resources and Social Development. The initiative aims to equip 1 million Saudis with skills and knowledge in data and AI technologies, aligning with SDAIA’s efforts to develop human capital in the Kingdom to meet the aspirations of the wise leadership for Saudi Arabia to be a global leader in technology and innovation.
He explained that the Kingdom ranked 14th globally and first in the Arab world among 83 countries worldwide in the Global AI Index, endorsed by the United Nations’ AI Advisory Body, and has maintained its first-place position globally in the Government AI Strategy metric according to the same index, highlighting its status as the world’s fastest-growing country in AI, having advanced 17 positions.
The SDAIA president noted that Saudi Arabia topped the United Nations’ 2024 e-Government Development Index (OSI) for open government data and digital knowledge and skills, underscoring the success of efforts towards transitioning to a digital economy and building a national data-driven economy within the Saudi Vision 2030 framework.
He said that the 3rd Global AI Summit introduced additional technological initiatives that benefit the country, including the signing of agreements with major global technology and AI companies to acquire skills, localize expertise, and enhance the capabilities of Saudi nationals. The summit also saw the launch of the Saudi Private Integration Network Exchange (SPINE), which aims to build a widely integrated network system for virtual connections at international and local levels with the National Information Center, covering all regions of the Kingdom with high-speed service to governmental and non-governmental entities.