Written by Ayman AlRashed

At a time when — according to our study, CEO decision-making in the age of AI, Act with intention — a considerable number of CEOs across the Kingdom (48% of respondents) say that technology continues to significantly impact their organizations. AI (including generative AI, deep learning and machine learning) will be key to unlocking Saudi Arabia’s considerable potential.

Ayman AlRashed-Regional Vice President IBM Saudi Arabia

Harnessing AI for Saudi Arabia’s data-driven transformation

As AI continues to reshape industries worldwide and unlock new insights that are transforming the landscape of businesses and government sectors, we recognize the important role that generative AI will play in driving this change within the Kingdom’s ambitious digital transformation journey. AI is identified as the foundation of the tech-powered future the Kingdom aims to build, a future in which innovative data and AI solutions are leveraged to enhance the Saudi business ecosystem, contribute to economic diversification and transform society as a whole.

Recognizing this and catering to the evolving needs of the Saudi market, the Saudi Data and Artificial Intelligence Authority (SDAIA) has taken proactive steps by leveraging AI solutions to simplify and enhance the use of Arabic-language data across various sectors. SDAIA partnered with IBM to offer SDAIA’s open-source (with optional AUP) Arabic Large Language Model (LLM), ALLaM, on IBMs’ enterprise AI and data platform, watsonx. 

Addressing the complexities of Arabic data with Generative AI

The traditional methods for translating, interpreting, and summarizing Arabic-language data were not only time-consuming but also difficult to scale, making it challenging to extract valuable insights quickly and efficiently. Now, clients can access the model through watsonx.ai, IBM’s enterprise studio for AI builders, which enables organizations to train, validate, fine-tune, and deploy ALLaM. With built-in governance features, watsonx.ai helps enable responsible deployment in alignment with IBM's ethical AI standards, providing a robust solution for efficient and secure AI-driven processes.

The availability of ALLaM on watsonx broadens the reach and application of Arabic LLMs. The integration helped eliminate language barriers and allowed for the confident deployment of Arabic generative AI with the full support of watsonx, creating opportunities for further innovation in both enterprises and government entities.

To further enhance collaboration, the Saudi Data and Artificial Intelligence Authority and IBM recently announced that watsonx.ai and the ALLaM model are available on the Kingdom’s DEEM cloud platform. Deem is a Government Cloud operated by SDAIA to provide complete, high performing and trusted Cloud services to Saudi government entities. Deem today hosts 190 government entities and consolidates 258 data centers, which led to save more than 5.6 Billion Riyal in cost, reduce the carbon emissions by 608,000 tons and decrease in energy consumption by 64 Megawatts. In Addition, Deem offers more than 50 services and features to support the current hosted government entities The addition of watsonx.ai and ALLaM to DEEM Cloud provides access to fully managed generative AI platform services, empowering Saudi authorities, organizations, and government entities to harness the full potential of their data with enhanced agility, efficiency, and trust.

IBM watsonx: A comprehensive AI and Data platform for business transformation

watsonx is a business-focused AI and data platform and a set of AI assistants designed to help enterprises  to scale and accelerate the impact of AI with trusted data in the digital age. watsonx includes three key components: watsonx.ai, an enterprise AI studio to support organizations train, tune, validate and deploy both traditional machine learning and generative AI capabilities powered by foundation models, through an open and intuitive user interface.  Clients can choose from IBM-developed Granite models, open-source and third-party models, or bring their own custom foundation model, as well as integrate and deploy AI workloads into the hybrid-cloud stack of their choice. watsonx.data  an open, hybrid data lakehouse that helps organizations simplify data access and sharing for AI and analytics at scale, anywhere their data resides. And watsonx.governance  an AI governance toolkit that assists enterprises accelerate responsibility, transparency and explainability in data and AI workflows. watsonx focuses on business use cases, enabling organizations to streamline customer interactions, automate workflows, enhance IT processes, bolster security and fraud detection, and advance sustainability goals, among other initiatives. Now, with the addition of the ALLaM model, watsonx offers even more greater potential for Saudi businesses to innovate and lead.

In addition, watsonx Assistants are applications powered by watsonx, which can help companies automate workflows and implement AI across a variety of business and technical functions such as customer service, HR and code development.

The power of collaboration

Leveraging watsonx.ai has enabled entities to manage and process Arabic data with greater speed and accuracy to utilize ALLaM. The automation of key data retrieval processes has enabled faster access to relevant information, while the generative AI models provide clear and concise summaries of complex data, empowering decision-makers to act with confidence.This milestone builds on the strong, long-standing collaboration between IBM and SDAIA, reinforcing our shared mission to drive innovation and positive change across Saudi Arabia's business and government sectors. By equipping both government agencies and businesses with advanced Arabic generative AI tools, this collaboration marks a pivotal step toward fostering even greater innovation. Our joint efforts continue to enhance technical solutions on government cloud platforms, helping positio Saudi Arabia as a leader in AI innovation.

Looking at the future

Looking ahead, AI is expected to contribute $135 billion to Saudi Arabia’s economy by 2030, equivalent to 12.4% of GDP (PwC). With the support of AI,SDAIA and IBM are paving the way for smarter, more efficient data analysis, enabling Saudi government authorities and entities to build customized AI services that are adaptable, scalable and simple to use.With AI-powered platforms like watsonx and models such as ALLaM, Saudi enterprises and government entities are well-positioned to lead the region in technological innovation. Together, we are unlocking new possibilities in AI, showcasing the power of collaboration in advancing technology and building a future where data fuels success across all sectors.