Amazon and AMD Unveil Major AI Investments in Saudi Arabia
Amazon and Advanced Micro Devices (AMD) have announced significant partnerships with HUMAIN, a new company established to drive artificial intelligence adoption across Saudi Arabia. These deals come amid US government efforts to promote AI chip transactions between American firms and Gulf countries.
Amazon Web Services (AWS) is investing $5.3 billion into HUMAIN to develop an “AI Zone” in Saudi Arabia. This initiative includes building servers and AI infrastructure, complementing an AWS infrastructure region currently being built in the Kingdom, expected to launch in 2026. Together, AWS and HUMAIN will create AI solutions and Arabic Large Language Models targeting government, energy, healthcare, and education sectors to speed up AI integration.
Alongside infrastructure development, AWS and HUMAIN plan to increase access to cloud technologies for Saudi startups. AWS will also expand its Amazon Academy training programs in AI and cloud computing, aiming to upskill 100,000 Saudi citizens.
AMD's $10 Billion AI Infrastructure Deal
On the same day, AMD announced a $10 billion collaboration with HUMAIN to build AI infrastructure and data centers in Saudi Arabia and the US. After opening a Riyadh office in February, AMD aims to deploy 500 MW of compute power over five years, targeting multi-exaflop capacity by early next year.
The partnership will extend AI access across enterprises, startups, and sovereign sectors. AMD will provide GPUs, CPUs, DPUs, and its open software platform, while HUMAIN will handle full infrastructure deployment, including data centers, power, and fiber connectivity.
“This is not just another infrastructure play – it’s an open invitation to the world’s innovators,” said Tareq Amin, CEO of HUMAIN. “We are democratizing AI at the compute level, ensuring that access to advanced AI is limited only by imagination, not by infrastructure.”
This follows NVIDIA’s recent announcement of selling 18,000 advanced AI chips to HUMAIN for a 500 MW data center in Saudi Arabia.
HUMAIN and Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund
HUMAIN was created under Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund (PIF), one of the largest sovereign wealth funds globally and controlled by Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman. The launch took place on May 13 during the Saudi-US Investment Forum, part of a Gulf tour by then-President Donald Trump and several US tech CEOs.
During the tour, Trump announced that Saudi companies would invest $600 billion in American enterprises, many in AI fields. One clear objective has been to forge a chip-focused alliance between the US and Saudi Arabia — the US leads in AI chip technology, while Saudi Arabia’s PIF provides substantial capital. Tech giants like Google and Salesforce are already engaging with PIF.
Saudi Arabia’s requirement since September for all AI companies to store data locally has increased demand for infrastructure that US firms can supply. The Biden administration’s “AI diffusion rule,” which restricted AI chip sales to countries like Saudi Arabia and the UAE, was lifted by Trump, enabling these large-scale deals with AWS, AMD, and NVIDIA.
Concerns about China remain, and US officials are reportedly considering whether to maintain controls over who can access data centers running on American-made AI chips.
What This Means for AI and Cloud Professionals
- Saudi Arabia is emerging as a key player in AI infrastructure development, backed by massive investments and partnerships with leading US tech firms.
- These projects will create new opportunities in cloud computing, AI model development, and data center management.
- With AWS and AMD committing to workforce training and technology access, professionals can expect increased demand for AI and cloud skills in the region.
- Local data storage mandates and infrastructure growth also signal a tighter integration of AI services within Saudi Arabia’s digital ecosystem.
For those interested in expanding their AI and cloud expertise relevant to these developments, exploring upskilling options can be valuable. Platforms like Complete AI Training offer courses designed to build skills in AI models, cloud infrastructure, and related technologies.
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