The News
The Future Investment Initiative is known for its deals: Over its nine editions, around $250 billion in agreements were signed, according to Public Investment Fund’s governor Yasir Al-Rumayyan. This year, artificial intelligence dominated — led by PIF’s AI unit HUMAIN — both the conversation on stage and the contracts signed.
The Deals
Energy
- Aramco completed its $11 billion lease and leaseback deal for the Jafurah gas facilities with a consortium led by Global Infrastructure Partners. Other investors include Hassana, The Arab Energy Fund, and Aberdeen Investcorp.
- ACWA Power and SNBC, one of the leading Saudi banks, secured financing for $6 billion in solar projects across Saudi Arabia.
- UAE energy firms Masdar and EtihadWE were awarded 3.5 GW of projects in Saudi’s $2.4 billion renewables round. Masdar won two solar plants, while EtihadWE, in its first known Gulf project, will build the Al Dawadmi wind project.
Industry
- The Ministry of Industry and Mineral Resources, PIF, and its subsidiary ALAT launched the Human Capability Initiative in Advanced Manufacturing to train Saudi talent in technical skills for industrial and mining sectors.
- Red Sea Gateway Terminal and CMA CGM, a French shipping and logistics company, agreed to jointly develop and operate a new $450 million terminal at Jeddah Islamic Port.
- UAE conglomerate Al-Futtaim Group announced a 10 billion Saudi riyal ($2.6 billion) investment in the kingdom to be deployed in the next 3 years, targeting sectors including automotive, finance, retail, and real estate.
Tech
- HUMAIN, Public Investment Fund’s AI unit, signed a $3 billion agreement with AirTrunk, backed by Blackstone, to build a data center campus in Saudi Arabia.
- HUMAIN and Qualcomm Technologies will deploy edge-to-cloud hybrid AI infrastructure in Saudi Arabia, offering global inferencing services. HUMAIN plans to roll out 200 megawatts of Qualcomm AI200 and AI250 rack solutions starting in 2026.
- Aramco agreed to acquire a minority stake in HUMAIN, and will contribute its AI assets, capabilities, and talent to the new firm. The deal aims to accelerate HUMAIN’s global growth and AI capabilities.
- Arabian Dyar, a Saudi real estate developer, signed a partnership with Google to invest up to $100 million in AI and big data for real estate development and analytics.
Trade
- PIF and UK Export Finance are in talks to increase UK-Saudi trade. UKEF plans to support projects in the PIF ecosystem, with the goal of creating opportunities for UK-based firms.
AD