GCC AI News — 25 Sep 2026

Microsoft announced plans to invest more than $10 billion across the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Kuwait through 2030, expanding AI and cloud infrastructure while strengthening digital resilience, cybersecurity and workforce skills, Vice Chair and President Brad Smith said on September 24. The figure covers both capital and operating expenditure. Microsoft said it will deepen partnerships with national AI organisations and governments, including G42 in the UAE, HUMAIN in Saudi Arabia, QAI in Qatar and the Government of Kuwait, building on digital-government initiatives such as TAMM, SDAIA's ALLaM, TASMU and the rollout of Microsoft 365 Copilot across Kuwait's government. The plan emphasises sovereign-ready cloud and Arabic and multilingual AI.

A ten-year, multi-billion-dollar commitment anchored on four Gulf states signals that global tech leaders see the region as core AI infrastructure, not a peripheral market. The focus on sovereign cloud and Arabic-language AI means the benefits are designed to stay in-region, supporting local data residency, jobs and citizen services.

Regional businesses can expect more local cloud capacity and Arabic-first AI tooling, easing data-residency constraints for regulated sectors. Map which workloads can move to in-region infrastructure, and tap the accompanying skilling and cybersecurity programmes to build internal capability rather than relying on imported expertise.

Dammam-based Al-Yamama Company for Trading & Contracting has won a contract to develop infrastructure for a planned 6-gigawatt hyperscale AI data-centre campus in Riyadh, MEED reported on September 24. Saudi Arabia's PIF-owned AI company HUMAIN will deliver the project on an early contractor involvement basis, with contractors submitting methodologies and design proposals. HUMAIN, launched in May 2025 to operate and invest across the AI value chain, is building full-stack capabilities spanning next-generation data centres, cloud platforms and advanced Arabic AI models including Allam. The campus supports HUMAIN's roadmap to build roughly 1.9GW of AI computing capacity by 2030 and over 6GW by 2034.

Compute capacity is the raw material of the AI era, and a 6GW campus would place Saudi Arabia among the world's largest AI infrastructure builders. Local data centres mean lower latency, sovereign data control and the compute base needed to train and serve Arabic-first models for the whole region.

Enterprises planning heavy AI workloads in the Gulf will gain in-region capacity that reduces reliance on distant clouds. Watch HUMAIN's build-out timelines when planning data-residency-sensitive projects, and consider how locally hosted Arabic models like Allam could serve Arabic-speaking customers better than generic alternatives.

Qatar has launched Doha Investment, a new platform owned by the Qatar Investment Authority to manage and grow the sovereign fund's domestic portfolio and unlock more than $60 billion in opportunities over five years, Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim Al Thani announced at the Qatar Economic Forum's UNGA Special Edition in New York on September 20. The platform will build and expand Qatari national champions in priority non-hydrocarbon sectors while attracting international capital and expertise. Among the clusters it targets are advanced technologies, and its portfolio includes Qai, Qatar's national artificial intelligence platform established to support the deployment and scaling of trusted AI across businesses and society.

Placing a national AI platform inside a sovereign investment vehicle signals that Qatar sees AI as a long-term economic pillar, not a side project. Structured state backing gives Qatari AI initiatives the patient capital and institutional weight needed to move from pilots to scaled, trusted deployment.

Qatar-based founders and enterprises should track Doha Investment and Qai as potential partners and channels for scaling AI products domestically. Businesses in priority sectors can position for co-investment and procurement opportunities as the platform deploys capital into advanced technologies.

The UAE's Ministry of Health and Prevention (MoHAP) highlighted the country's progress in applying artificial intelligence and genomics to healthcare at a Forbes summit in Abu Dhabi on September 23, according to state news agency WAM. Officials outlined how AI and genomic data are being used to move toward more preventive, personalised and precise care, building on national programmes such as the Emirati Genome Programme and the country's broader push to embed advanced technologies across the health system. The discussion emphasised responsible adoption, data governance and partnerships to translate research into better patient outcomes across the Emirates.

Healthcare is one of the most tangible ways AI improves everyday life, and combining it with genomics points toward earlier diagnosis and treatments tailored to individuals. The UAE putting this at a global forum underlines a shift from pilots to system-wide preventive care that residents can benefit from directly.

Health providers and startups in the region can look at where AI plus genomic or clinical data could support earlier detection and personalised treatment plans. Build on national data programmes and prioritise strong governance, since trust and privacy are what allow health AI to scale responsibly.

Omani student Ayah bint Hamid al Kendi's AI project 'Project Sentinel' (Haris in Arabic) was ranked among the 13 best projects out of 738 entries submitted worldwide at the 67th London International Youth Science Forum (LIYSF), the Oman Observer reported. Sentinel uses AI to detect money laundering and other financial crimes, analysing vast amounts of financial data, identifying suspicious patterns and flagging risks faster than conventional systems, while using techniques such as graph neural networks and federated learning so raw customer data never leaves a bank's servers. Al Kendi was among ten Omani delegates sent by the Research and Innovation Authority (RIA) after a national selection of STEM projects, and was the only Omani invited to deliver a special pitch.

Homegrown talent is the foundation of any AI economy, and an Omani student competing at this level shows the country's talent pipeline is producing internationally competitive researchers, not just consumers of imported tech. It is exactly the kind of grassroots capability Oman Vision 2040 aims to nurture.

Educators, banks and public institutions in the Gulf can support and recruit this rising local talent, and study privacy-preserving techniques like federated learning for their own fraud-detection needs. For students, it is proof that ambitious AI projects built locally can earn global recognition.

Bahrain Development Bank (BDB), a leading supporter of small and medium-sized enterprises in the Kingdom, has established an AI Committee to guide the strategic and responsible adoption of artificial intelligence across the bank, Zawya reported on September 24. Chaired by Group CEO Dalal Al Qais, with Chief Strategy and Transformation Officer Nada Medhat Azmi as vice-chair, the committee brings together executive management and functions from technology to compliance and risk. It held its inaugural meeting to align on the bank's AI direction, establish a governance framework and set first-year priorities, supported by a phased AI integration roadmap covering supervision, capability building, data readiness, use-case development and value measurement.

How a development bank adopts AI matters because it shapes credit and services for the SMEs that drive the economy. BDB putting governance and a phased roadmap first, rather than rushing tools in, is a model for responsible adoption that other regional institutions can follow to deliver real customer value.

SME-focused institutions can copy BDB's approach: form a cross-functional AI committee, set a governance framework, and prioritise use cases where AI generates visible business impact before scaling. For SMEs, expect faster, smarter banking services as the roadmap rolls out.

The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and Kuwait's Central Agency for Information Technology (CAIT) assessed the country's AI landscape to identify opportunities and priorities for the responsible use of AI, UNDP announced on September 9. Using UNDP's AI Landscape Assessment (AILA) diagnostic tool, the exercise focuses on three connected areas: Kuwait's broader AI ecosystem, the use of AI in government, and AI regulation and ethics. It convened representatives from government, the private sector, academia and civil society to identify existing capabilities, gaps and challenges. Officials said the goal is to ensure AI progress supports Kuwait's development and delivers meaningful benefits for people through better public services, productivity and innovation.

Sound AI strategy starts with an honest map of strengths and gaps, and bringing in the UN plus multiple stakeholders makes the process credible and inclusive. Getting the foundations - ecosystem, government use and ethics - right positions Kuwait to adopt AI in ways that genuinely improve citizens' lives.

Policymakers and organisations can use structured readiness assessments like AILA to prioritise AI investments where they add the most value. For Kuwaiti businesses, the findings will signal national priorities worth aligning to, from public-service modernisation to responsible AI practices.

The Saudi Data and Artificial Intelligence Authority (SDAIA) and Care Medical signed a memorandum of understanding to strengthen cooperation in developing human capabilities in data and AI and to support the healthcare sector, the Saudi Press Agency reported. The agreement extends SDAIA's efforts to work with national entities on building talent, developing skills, and expanding specialised programmes in data and AI to meet the needs of the healthcare sector and other vital sectors in the Kingdom. It reflects Saudi Arabia's broader push to qualify national talent and apply AI responsibly to improve services in high-impact areas like health.

Technology alone does not transform healthcare - trained people do. By focusing on human capability building, SDAIA is investing in the doctors, analysts and specialists who will actually deploy AI safely in clinical settings, which is what turns national AI strategy into better patient care.

Healthcare organisations should pair any AI rollout with structured upskilling for clinical and data staff, following the SDAIA model. Professionals in the Kingdom can seek out data and AI training programmes to stay competitive as the health sector digitises.

Zoho launched Catalyst 3.0, an enhanced cloud development platform for the MENA region, on September 23. The update lets developers use agentic AI coding assistants such as Claude Code and OpenAI Codex to build and deploy production-ready applications, while supporting local data residency in Saudi Arabia and the UAE through Zoho's in-country data-centre infrastructure. The platform is designed to reduce infrastructure complexity and speed up the development lifecycle for regional organisations, giving them access to AI-ready application development while meeting regional data-residency requirements.

Data residency is a make-or-break issue for regulated Gulf sectors, and an AI-ready platform hosted in-country lowers a real barrier to adoption. Enabling agentic coding assistants on top means regional teams can build faster while keeping sensitive data within national borders.

Gulf development teams building AI features can evaluate platforms that combine agentic coding assistants with in-country data residency to satisfy compliance while accelerating delivery. Start by moving one regulated workload to an in-region platform and measure both compliance fit and development speed.

stc Bahrain launched Bayan, a customer-service capability built on AI agents designed to resolve up to 70% of routine customer contacts, according to a September 7 briefing. Bayan acts as a front-line layer for common, repetitive service requests - balance checks, plan queries, simple troubleshooting and billing clarifications - freeing human agents to focus on more complex or sensitive issues. For a telecom operator, such routine contacts typically make up the bulk of contact-centre volume, so automating a large share can improve response times and availability for customers, including outside business hours and during peak demand.

This is AI improving an everyday experience most people share: getting quick answers from a service provider. Handling routine questions automatically can shorten waits and extend support hours, while keeping humans for the sensitive cases where judgement and empathy matter most.

Any consumer-facing business can start with AI agents on its highest-volume, lowest-complexity queries and route the rest to people. Define clearly what counts as 'resolved' and measure real customer satisfaction, not just deflection, so automation improves the experience rather than frustrating it.