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Luma AI opens Riyadh office and teams up with Publicis ME to speed AI-driven creative across MENA

Luma AI is planting roots in Riyadh and deepening its work with HUMAIN Create, while Publicis Groupe Middle East has named Luma its preferred generative AI partner across the region. For creatives, this means Arabic-native models, faster production cycles, and tighter collaboration with teams on the ground.

The Riyadh hub will support client work, partnerships, and AI development focused on Arabic language and regional data. HUMAIN's platform and infrastructure sit behind this push, with Project Halo providing frontier compute for training and large-scale deployment.

Why this matters if you create for MENA markets

• Arabic-native outputs: Better nuance across dialects, references, and brand tone so campaigns land as intended.
• Faster concept-to-craft: Generative video and multimodal tools move you from idea to testable assets in hours, not weeks.
• Local collaboration: Forward-deployed creatives and engineers in Riyadh to co-build workflows with agencies and brands.
• Enterprise-grade scale: HUMAIN's infrastructure supports high-volume content generation and experimentation.

Inside the Riyadh office

The team will train models on Arabic and regional datasets through HUMAIN Create, keeping outputs culturally fluent and context-aware. Luma AI plans to hire locally across engineering, go-to-market, and embedded creative-technical roles to work directly with clients across Saudi Arabia and MENA.

"Saudi Arabia is the natural home for our regional headquarters in MENA... Establishing a local office allows Luma AI to work directly with this next generation of builders and creators," said Amit Jain, CEO and Co-Founder of Luma AI.

Publicis partnership: what changes in your workflow

Publicis Groupe Middle East is integrating Luma's generative video and multimodal tech into its creative and production pipelines. Expect quicker iteration, personalized storytelling across markets, and assets that respect local cues without bloated timelines.

• Brief-to-board: Turn scripts and concepts into visual studies for faster client buy-in.
• Localization at scale: Versioning across dialects and markets with consistent brand memory.
• Production lift: Tighter previsualization, fewer reshoots, and clearer creative direction.

Tools you'll likely touch

• Dream Machine: Generate professional-grade video and images for storyboards, animatics, and hero shots. Great for testing visual directions before full production. Learn more
• Ray3 (2025): A reasoning video model built for physically accurate motion and lighting-useful for product demos, choreography, and dynamic scenes that need believable movement.

Use cases to test right now

• Pitch comps: Turn a one-page brief into 3-5 visual routes and motion tests in a day.
• Market versions: Spin localized edits (VO, on-screen text, scenes) for Saudi, UAE, Egypt, and Levant markets without starting from scratch.
• Product storytelling: Physics-aware motion for packaging, device features, and automotive shots.
• Content engines: Build series templates for social, then refresh visuals weekly with new prompts and data.

Action plan for agencies and studios

• Codify Arabic brand voice: Build reusable prompt blocks for tone, dialect, visual references, and compliance.
• Pilot a sprint: 2-week test using Dream Machine for storyboards, animatics, and one market-ready asset.
• Data hygiene: Create a client-approved reference library (logos, color, product shots, cultural cues) for safer, on-brand outputs.
• Pricing model: Quote by scope and iteration count; track time saved vs. standard workflows.
• Upskill your team: Train creatives, producers, and editors on prompt craft, QA, and review cycles. A practical starting point: AI tools for generative video.

What to watch next

• Local hiring signals in Riyadh-especially embedded creative-tech roles.
• Arabic-native model access through HUMAIN Create (sandbox, API, or partner-only initially).
• Publicis case studies showing time-to-first-cut, cost deltas, and lift in engagement across markets.
• Updates on Project Halo capacity and how it translates to training speed and throughput for campaigns.

The bigger picture

This move ties creative ambition with local fluency. With a Riyadh hub, HUMAIN's infrastructure, and Publicis workflow integration, creatives across MENA get faster feedback loops and assets that speak the region's language-literally and visually.