Sign in
Global tech player Dell sees Saudi becoming a prime location for AI-related ventures, CEO Michael Dell told Asharq Alawsat on the sidelines of the annual Dell Technologies World event in Las Vegas. Saudi’s “abundant and inexpensive” energy makes it a good hub to host power-intensive AI training data centers, he said.
In Dell’s words: “These training centers require a lot of energy, and there is no doubt that energy is available [in Saudi Arabia],” he said, adding that “just as artificial intelligence goes where there is data, it will go where there is energy.”
SOUND SMART- Energy is the only common denominator for gauging data center capacity, which is why energy-intensive facilities are quantified in MW. Data centers are home to thousands of servers as well as networking equipment and cooling systems, all of which consume massive amounts of energy. There are currently 24 operational data centers in Saudi with a combined capacity of 123 MW, and another 37 facilities in the pipeline.
IN CONTEXT- The Kingdom is cooking up a world-scale AI play that could see the new technology contribute as much as USD 135 bn to the local economy by 2030, a recent report from PwC showed. Additionally, the Public Investment Fund is looking to set up a USD 40 bn AI-focused fund that would make it the world’s largest investor in artificial intelligence.
“A lot of new skills” will be needed to drive AI growth, Dell said, adding that his company is helping Saudi develop talent. “There will be a lot of new skills required in the Kingdom,” the CEO said without providing any further detail on the cooperation.
ALSO IN TECH- The Saudi Data and Artificial Intelligence Authority said its Arabic text generation model ALLaM was integrated into leading global technology company IBM’s watsonx platform, according to a post on X. ALLaM isa Saudi’s first locally developed AI system to answer inquiries in Arabic. IBM said the addition of ALLaM to its AI specialized platform would help it understand multiple dialects of the Arabic language, its CEO Arvind Krishna told Reuters.
REMEMBER- IBM has a big appetite for the Saudi AI story, with some USD 250 mn in planned investments to launch the first MENA software lab in Saudi, it said during Leap 2024 in March.
