When Saudi Arabia first announced plans to reinvent its oil-based economy, huge infrastructure projects like the futuristic region NEOM and smart city The Line were championed as central to the transformation.
Almost a decade on from the launch of its “Vision 2030” transformation strategy, however, and Riyadh’s priorities have shifted with the times.
Now, technology and artificial intelligence are key priorities for the kingdom.
“We’re reprioritizing a little bit towards sectors that need it the most, and today it’s technology, artificial intelligence,” Faisal Alibrahim, Saudi’s economy minister, told CNBC Wednesday.
“We want to move into an economic structure that is productivity-led and at the heart of productivity is technology, innovation and generative AI,” he told CNBC’s Dan Murphy on the sidelines of the Future Investment Initiative (FII) in Riyadh.
