Noha Gad 

E-wallets have transformed the way people handle financial transactions as they provide a seamless and safe digital alternative to cash and physical cards. These wallets consolidate various payment methods, such as credit cards, debit cards, and bank accounts, into a single, user-friendly interface, offering users a convenient experience and enabling them to make purchases, transfer money, and manage finances swiftly through their smartphones or any other connected devices. This simplification of payments has significantly boosted consumer adoption worldwide, particularly in urban communities and developing economies where mobile connectivity is widespread.

The rise of e-wallets considerably contributed to reducing dependency on cash and traditional banking infrastructure, ultimately promoting financial inclusion, especially in regions with a large unbanked population. 

There are several types of e-wallets, each catering to different user needs and technological ecosystems. In this blog, we will dive deep into the five main types of e-wallets and how they meet the evolving needs of both businesses and end-users.

Types of e-wallets

Closed wallet

Closed wallets, also known as a power wallet, operate as a preloaded account used for specific products or services within a particular transaction, often linked to the issuer’s payment gateway. Businesses and organizations often issue closed wallets to their customers for making payments exclusively within their ecosystem. Users of a closed wallet can only use the stored funds to make transactions with the wallet’s issuer.

Semi-closed wallet

This type of wallet has a limited coverage area as it is accepted only within a specific network of merchants or service providers. Merchants must agree to partner with the issuer to accept payments from a semi-closed wallet.

The semi-closed wallets allow users to make transactions at various merchant outlets and enable peer-to-peer transfers; however, they cannot be used to withdraw cash or make payments outside the specified network.

Open wallet

Open wallets are offered by banks to be used for any type of transaction. Unlike closed and semi-closed wallets, this versatile digital payment tool allows users to store funds and transact across various merchants and platforms. Both sender and receiver must have the same application installed on their devices.

Open wallets offer convenience and flexibility, enabling users to make payments at any merchant accepting digital payments via that wallet.

Crypto wallet

Crypto wallets facilitate secure transactions using cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin, Ethereum, and Litecoin. They store public and private keys required for initiating transactions on the blockchain network. The public key serves as an address where others can send cryptocurrency, while the private key is used to securely access and manage the stored funds.

Crypto wallets can be software-based (online or offline by using a USB stick) or hardware wallets that store the keys offline for enhanced security. Hardware wallets, also known as cold wallets, provide an extra layer of security and safety.

Internet of Things (IoT) wallets

The IoT wallets enable transactions between interconnected devices within the IoT ecosystem, allowing devices to exchange value and authenticate transactions seamlessly and securely.

This type is pivotal for various use cases, such as smart meters that facilitate automated utility payments, connected vehicles that enable in-vehicle payments, and supply chain tracking where devices interact to validate and record transactions.

Integration of emerging technologies into e-wallets

In recent years, the integration of emerging technologies, such as virtual reality (VR) and artificial intelligence (AI), has further reshaped the capabilities and user experience of e-wallets. 

AI has played a pivotal role in transforming the capabilities and user experience of e-wallets. Integrating AI tools can enhance e-wallets' security, personalization, and operational efficiency.

AI can contribute to enhancing fraud detection and prevention, providing personalized offerings, and helping users identify saving opportunities by analyzing their expenses. AI agents, virtual assistants, and chatbots are instrumental in elevating customer experience by providing 24/7 support, instantly answering queries, troubleshooting common issues, and guiding users through payment processes.

VR emerged as an innovative trend that enriches the retail and payment experience through an immersive digital environment. These technologies enable users to visualize products in virtual space and make instant purchases through their e-wallets without leaving the experience. 

VR can transform traditional e-wallet interfaces into interactive and visually rich experiences, making money management, bill payments, or fund transfers more engaging and less transactional.

Finally, e-wallets have revolutionized how consumers manage their financial transactions, offering a convenient and secure alternative to traditional cash and cards. By consolidating multiple payment methods into a single digital platform, e-wallets simplify payments and enable seamless money transfers, purchases, and financial management across diverse devices.

The integration of AI and VR into e-wallets can revolutionize social commerce and peer-to-peer payments within virtual worlds and redefine how consumers interact with e-wallets, blending convenience, security, and immersive experiences in the digital economy.

Ghada Ismail

Saudi Arabia, a nation with a historically strong savings culture but a relatively nascent public investing scene, is witnessing an undeniable shift. Propelled by the forces of Vision 2030, an overwhelmingly young and digital-native population, and a post-pandemic surge in financial literacy, automated investment platforms are breaking down the barriers to wealth management. They are offering a new generation of Saudis an accessible, affordable, and Sharia-compliant path to grow their wealth, fundamentally democratizing finance in the world’s largest oil exporter.

 Investment advice is now landing in the pockets of everyday citizens, delivered not by suited advisers, but by algorithms running on smartphones. What was once a fringe experiment in global finance has begun to carve out a place in the Kingdom’s financial landscape, marrying cutting-edge technology with a youthful, digitally fluent population. Robo-advisory is changing how Saudis imagine their financial futures: more automated, more accessible, and more aligned with local values.

What is a Robo-Advisor?

A robo-advisor is, at its core, an automated platform that provides algorithm-driven financial planning and investment management with minimal human supervision. A user answers a series of questions about their financial goals, risk tolerance, and time horizon. The algorithm then constructs and manages a diversified portfolio of exchange-traded funds (ETFs) tailored to that individual.

However, in Saudi Arabia, the algorithm must do more. It must be confined to Sharia.

The demand for Sharia-compliant investing is not a niche preference; it is a foundational requirement for the vast majority of local investors. This means the algorithms powering Saudi robo-advisors are intricately coded with specific filters. They automatically screen out companies involved in prohibited (haram) activities, such as alcohol, gambling, and conventional banking (interest-based), among others. Furthermore, they perform rigorous financial ratio analysis to ensure companies do not hold excessive debt or derive significant income from interest.

A Market Built in the Lab: Where Regulation Meets Innovation

This shift didn’t happen by accident. At the center of it is the Capital Market Authority’s FinTech Lab, a regulatory sandbox where new ideas are allowed to grow under careful watch. Here, start-ups and banks alike are testing automated portfolio-management tools with time-limited permits. The goal? To make sure investors are protected, risks are mapped, and systems are transparent before a permanent license is granted.

The approach has worked. Today, companies that once operated under experimental conditions have graduated into fully licensed capital-market institutions, cleared to advise, manage, arrange, and even hold assets. By releasing regular bulletins and tracking everything from assets under management to user demographics, the CMA ensures this growth is not just fast, but also safe.

Open Banking & Digital Adoption: Fueling the Engine

Robo-advisory thrives on data: income flows, spending habits, savings goals. Saudi Arabia’s embrace of Open Banking—first through account information sharing, then payment initiation—has created the perfect rails for these platforms to operate. With APIs powering seamless onboarding and automatic contributions, investing has become as effortless as setting up a direct debit.

This is layered on top of a society already primed for digital adoption. Mobile banking, e-wallets, and instant payments are part of everyday life. Smartphone penetration is near-universal. For a young population that already lives online, a robo-advisor isn’t a foreign tool, but a natural extension of their digital routines.

Who’s Leading the Charge?

Behind the buzz, a few names stand out as the architects of Saudi, regional, and global robo-advisory:

• Malaa Technologies: Founded in 2021, Malaa Technologies is a Saudi robo-advisory platform licensed by SAMA. It offers Sharia-compliant portfolios built from ETFs covering U.S. stocks, Saudi stocks, gold, and bonds, with investment entry starting at SAR 1,000. The platform uses algorithms to match portfolios to each investor’s risk profile, charges low fees of 0.35% only upon withdrawal, and even handles Zakat calculations. Beyond investments, Malaa also provides expense-tracking tools and plans to expand into financing services.
• SNB Capital, part of Saudi National Bank, which has built goal-based advisory services directly into customer accounts, allowing wealth to grow almost on autopilot. Back in 2023, SNB took a leading step in digital wealth management with the launch of its Idikhari robo-advisory program, designed to make investment more accessible to everyday users. The platform uses automated financial planning tools to create personalized portfolios based on an individual’s risk profile, goals, and time horizon, while keeping the process simple and Shariah-compliant. By integrating advanced algorithms with SNB’s banking ecosystem, Idikhari not only lowers barriers to entry for first-time investors but also supports the Kingdom’s Vision 2030 agenda of boosting financial literacy and expanding participation in capital markets.
• Derayah Financial, a homegrown pioneer, whose “Derayah Smart” platform offers Shariah-compliant portfolios with transparent fees and low entry barriers. Derayah Smart is one of the Kingdom’s earliest homegrown robo-advisory platforms, aimed at simplifying investment for both beginners and experienced investors. The service provides automated portfolio management by assessing clients’ financial goals and risk appetite, then allocating assets across global markets through diversified exchange-traded funds (ETFs). With a fully digital onboarding process and low entry requirements, Derayah Smart has helped broaden access to investment opportunities in Saudi Arabia, positioning itself as a key player in the country’s growing fintech-driven wealth management space.
• Founded in 2021, Drahim is a Saudi robo-advisor licensed by both SAMA and the CMA. It offers ten Sharia-compliant portfolios spanning sukuk, real estate, and Saudi and global stocks, with a minimum investment of SAR 1,000. Fees start at 0.25% annually, and investors can track all accounts and assets through the app, which also provides detailed financial reports.
• Abyan Capital is a Saudi robo-advisor also founded in 2021 and licensed by the CMA with a focus on long-term savings and retirement planning. It quickly grew to manage over SAR 500 million in its first year and offers three Sharia-compliant portfolios across stocks, real estate, and sukuk, primarily via ETFs. Investors can start with SAR 1,000, with a 1% annual management fee, and enjoy flexible deposits and withdrawals.
• Sarwa, the UAE-born fintech operating under a CMA permit, targets millennials with low-cost, diversified portfolios. Sarwa, which officially launched its robo-advisory platform in February 2018 under the Dubai Financial Services Authority’s Innovation Testing License, presented itself as the region’s first regulated automated investment advisor. The platform combines automated investing with human financial advice, offering diversified portfolios built with low-cost ETFs and tailored to individual risk profiles. With features such as zero-commission trading, fractional shares, and Shariah-compliant investment options, Sarwa has positioned itself as both accessible and innovative, attracting thousands of young professionals seeking simple, affordable ways to grow their wealth. Its cross-border presence also makes it a benchmark for how robo-advisory can scale across the wider MENA region.
• Tamra Capital, licensed by the Capital Market Authority, is a leading UAE-based robo-advisory firm by assets under management. Its platform offers Sharia-compliant ETFs and simplifies access to local and international funds, publishing AUM and subscriber data quarterly through the CMA.
• Vault Wealth, the UAE’s first digital private wealth app for high-net-worth individuals, blends robo-advisory with human expertise. It offers global portfolios of equities, bonds, and private markets, alongside a high-yield cash solution. Partnered with Interactive Brokers for custody, Vault also provides Sharia-compliant portfolios of equities and sukuk for ethical investors.
• Wahed Invest, a global halal robo-advisor already familiar to Muslim investors worldwide, is bringing faith-aligned investing into Saudi homes. The platform, widely recognized as the world’s first Shariah-compliant robo-advisor, has steadily grown its presence across key markets. Founded in 2015 and launching its service in the U.S. in 2017, Wahed secured a pivotal US$25 million funding round in June 2020—led by Saudi Aramco Entrepreneurship Ventures (Wa’ed)—to support its global expansion and establish a dedicated subsidiary in Saudi Arabia following regulatory approval from the CMA

Demand Side Momentum: Culture, Demographics, and Behavior

Several cultural and demographic forces are driving robo-advisory into the mainstream.

The fintech explosion is one. By 2023, Saudi Arabia had nine active robo-advisory platforms, and their growth has been breathtaking. Assets under management leapt 354% in a single year, from SAR 308 million to SAR 1.4 billion. Investors flocked in, nearly half a million of them by 2023, pushing regular, automated investments up by an astonishing 568%.

The youth factor is another. More than three-quarters of robo users fall between the ages of 20 and 40, with Riyadh, Makkah, and the Eastern Province leading adoption. This is a generation that’s digitally native, comfortable with risk, and eager for transparent, low-friction ways to build wealth.

Finally, the numbers suggest this is no passing fad. Statista projects Saudi robo-advisory assets to top US $4.29 billion by 2025, rising to over US $5 billion by 2029. Ken Research even forecasts a compound annual growth rate of nearly 48%, underlining the sheer velocity of adoption.

The Saudi Take on Robo-Advisory: Faith-Aligned, Goal-Oriented, and Hyper-Local

Saudi robo-advisors are not carbon copies of their Western counterparts. Two features set them apart.

First is Shariah compliance. Every portfolio is rigorously screened to exclude prohibited instruments or non-interest-bearing products, no non-compliant equities. Many platforms even publish endorsements from Shariah boards, ensuring investor trust.

Second is a goal-based approach. Rather than focusing on abstract benchmarks, platforms guide users through tangible milestones: saving for a wedding, buying a home, funding a child’s education, or planning retirement. Dashboards, auto-funding schedules, and risk alerts help keep users anchored to real-life aspirations.

Innovation on the Horizon

Looking ahead, Saudi robo-advisory is expected to branch into new directions. Artificial intelligence will drive personalization, tailoring portfolios to behavior and life stage. Hybrid models will blend algorithms with human advisors, catering to more complex needs such as estate planning. ESG and sustainability-focused portfolios are also on the horizon, meeting a growing demand for values-based investing. And with embedded finance, robo-advisors may soon be integrated into banking apps, e-wallets, or even telecom platforms like STC Pay, broadening reach even further.

Balancing Innovation with Investor Protection

Yet the path is not without hurdles. Regulators are pressing for more transparency around how algorithms work, how fees are charged, and how risks are communicated. Investor education campaigns are being rolled out to ensure that first-time users understand what they are signing up for.

Risks remain. Algorithms can be opaque, leaving users confused during market swings. Poorly designed questionnaires can misclassify risk tolerance, producing portfolios that don’t match real-life temperament. And because automation is so convenient, some investors disengage altogether, missing out on adjustments that require human judgment.

Competition adds another layer. With low switching costs, platforms must continuously innovate or risk losing clients to rivals.

Looking Toward 2030

By the end of this decade, success for Saudi robo-advisory will be measured not just in numbers, but in trust and resilience. It will be about how deeply retail investors are engaged, how well returns are delivered net of fees, and how faithfully Shariah compliance and transparency are upheld. Most of all, it will be about whether Saudi citizens continue to see these platforms not as novelties, but as reliable partners in building their financial futures.

Conclusion: A Saudi-Engineered Wealth Revolution

Robo-advisory in Saudi Arabia is more than a fintech trend; it is a deliberate instrument of national transformation. It brings together youthful demographics, Islamic investment values, regulatory foresight, and digital infrastructure into a uniquely Saudi model of wealth automation. What began as experimentation in a regulatory sandbox now stands ready to redefine how an entire nation saves, invests, and grows. The future of investing in the Kingdom is not just digital. It is algorithmic, values-driven, and unmistakably Saudi.

Shaimaa Ibrahim 

The global real estate industry is undergoing a profound digital transformation, redefining traditional methods of buying and selling property. This evolution has paved the way for property technology (PropTech) companies to become key catalysts for change—delivering innovative solutions that enhance user experience and streamline real estate transactions.

Among the standout players leading this shift is Huspy, a UAE-born company with a bold vision to revolutionize the home-buying journey through seamless, technology-driven experiences. Since its inception, Huspy has emerged as a prominent force in the Gulf region’s real estate innovation landscape, helping reshape the way people engage with the property market.

In this interview, we spoke with Jad Antoun, CEO and Co-founder of Huspy, to explore the company’s origins, its mission to digitize real estate, and the technology powering its growth. We also delve into Huspy’s expansion strategy—particularly its focus on the Saudi market—as well as its perspective on the future of PropTech in the region and the growing influence of artificial intelligence in shaping the next era of real estate.

How did Huspy’s journey in proptech begin in the UAE, and what are the company’s main markets today?

Huspy started in the UAE with a simple idea, to fix the inefficiencies in real estate transactions by building better infrastructure for mortgage brokers and real estate agents. In doing so, we also wanted to build a global technology brand from the region for the rest of the world.

Our early focus was on mortgages, helping brokers get approvals faster and serve their clients better. We then expanded into real estate to support agents and agencies. Today, our main markets are the UAE and Spain, with Saudi Arabia now becoming a major priority. We’re aim to be in over 10 cities by the end of the year and are working toward making Huspy the technology backbone of real estate professionals in all of our markets.

What are Huspy’s flagship tech solutions, and how do they differ from traditional offerings in the real estate industry?

We’ve built tools that give mortgage brokers and real estate agents a competitive edge and the ability to serve their clients better. On the mortgage side, brokers use Huspy’s platform to manage clients, access best-in-market interest rates, submit applications, and get fast approvals. On the real estate side, agents use our app to manage showings, negotiate offers, and coordinate with mortgage offers, all in one place. Traditionally, these processes are disconnected and manual. What makes Huspy different is that everything is integrated, built for professionals, and designed to help them close transactions faster, and earn industry-leading commissions.

What sets the real estate chatbot you recently launched apart from traditional advisory services, and what challenges did you encounter in its development and deployment?

Most chatbots in real estate have primarily been built to capture home buyer contact details. Ours is built to act more like a digital partner and accessible via WhatsApp, making it easy for customers to use. Huspy.Ai pulls from real-time market data and offering tailored answers based on user queries. We also made sure that the AI powered platform could handle the complexity of regulations and offer accurate responses in multiple languages, based on the latest information. 

What is Huspy’s current operational scale, what is the total value of real estate transactions it manages, and what are the company’s plans through the end of 2025?

Huspy currently facilitates over 7 billion dollars in real estate transactions annually. In the UAE, we’ve captured around 25 percent of the mortgage market, and 30 percent in Dubai alone. We’re live in multiple cities in Spain and entering Saudi Arabia very soon. By the end of 2025, we aim to operate in over 10 cities across Europe and the Middle East, while deepening our ecosystem of services for professionals.

Having recently raised 59 million dollars, how will this investment be utilized to support your expansion plans in European and Middle Eastern markets, particularly in Saudi Arabia?

The investment will help us scale both our product and our reach. In Europe, we’re focused on Spain and will expand into other high-volume real estate markets across the continent. In the Middle East, Saudi Arabia is a top priority. The funds will go toward hiring local teams, building country-specific features, and forming partnerships with local brokers and agencies. We’re also investing in our core technology to make our tools even more powerful for agents and brokers.

Saudi Arabia has been long on our horizon. We now believe that we are in a strong position to enter the market and succeed. The government’s recent updates on real estate rules is a positive sign, and we are excited to come to Riyadh very soon. 

Given the company’s plans to enter the Saudi market, how do you perceive the digitization of the Saudi real estate sector? What are your expansion plans in this market over the coming years?

Saudi Arabia is undergoing a major transformation in real estate. The government is supporting digitization, but many agents and brokers still rely on offline processes. That’s where we see opportunity to fix the fragmentation. Our goal is to partner with local professionals and give them tools that help them close deals faster and serve clients better. Over the next few years, we plan to onboard leading agencies, localize our tech stack, and establish Huspy as the preferred partner for real estate professionals in the Kingdom.

In your opinion, what are the most significant technological trends that will impact the future of real estate in Saudi Arabia, the UAE, and the Gulf region?

The biggest shift is happening in professional enablement. Instead of replacing agents or brokers, technology is giving them new capabilities. We’re seeing trends like automated mortgage approvals, smart agent workflows, and fully digital closing processes. There’s also growing interest in data-driven pricing tools and AI-powered property search. Markets like Saudi Arabia and the UAE are moving fast, and we believe the winners will be platforms that help professionals work more efficiently, not just faster.

How do you foresee the role of AI in reshaping the real estate markets in the UAE and Saudi Arabia in the coming years?

Real estate is the world’s largest asset class and the high-value nature of transactions means that humans will remain a crucial part of transactions. AI will become a behind-the-scenes engine for real estate professionals. It won’t replace the agent or broker, but it will support them in decision-making, personalization, and lead qualification. In markets like the UAE and Saudi Arabia, where customer expectations are rising and deal cycles can be complex, AI can help streamline everything from property recommendations to document verification. At Huspy, we’re using AI to improve agent workflows and make customer interactions smarter without losing the human connection.

What are the most prominent opportunities for entrepreneurs in the proptech sector?

The biggest opportunities lie in solving pain points for real estate professionals. That could be building tools for pricing, analytics, financing, or transaction management. There’s also room to innovate in underserved segments like rentals, cross-border deals, and agent training. Additionally, entrepreneurs need to think beyond real estate, and look at related areas such as property maintenance, interior design, rentals, etc. In fast-growing markets like the GCC, founders who can combine deep local knowledge with scalable tech have a real chance to build category-defining companies. 

Kholoud Hussein

Saudi Arabia is attempting something few countries have tried at national scale: using law as a market-design tool to attract sovereign-grade data, compute, and corporate R&D while giving startups a safer, faster path to build with sensitive datasets. In April 2025, policymakers published for consultation the draft “Global AI Hub Law,” a framework that proposes special legal, technical, and governance regimes for AI “hubs” physically in the Kingdom but flexible enough to interoperate with foreign rules and hyperscaler standards. If enacted close to the draft, it could change where mission-critical AI gets trained, where high-value data sits, and where founders choose to launch. 

At its core, the draft law imagines a ladder of AI hubs, with different protection levels depending on the sensitivity of hosted data and workloads. This isn’t just about attracting cloud capacity. It’s a diplomatic and commercial instrument that enables foreign governments and multinationals to process data in Saudi Arabia under tailored arrangements while maintaining Saudi oversight.

Several legal analyses note the “beyond-borders” data sovereignty concept and the ambition to create a neutral legal environment for cross-border digital commerce and dispute resolution. In other words, Riyadh is trying to become a neutral ground for global AI compute and data flows.

Critically, the policy is not emerging in a vacuum. Over the last five years the Kingdom created supervisory institutions (notably SDAIA) and a national AI strategy; PwC estimates AI could add about $135 billion—roughly 12–12.4% of Saudi GDP—by 2030. The government has even articulated an explicit 12% GDP target for AI’s contribution. The draft Global AI Hub Law looks like the legal scaffolding to capture that upside at home rather than offshoring it. 

What the Law Proposes & Why Startups Should Care

The consultation text outlines a regime to license and govern AI hubs that can host “sovereign” or “semi-sovereign” data centers with contractual carve-outs for foreign states or firms. The point is continuity of service, clearer allocation of liability, and predictable compliance pathways for AI training and inference at scale. For startups, three implications stand out: access, trust, and time. 

• Access to premium datasets and compute: If foreign incumbents and public-sector owners are willing to warehouse sensitive data in Saudi-licensed hubs, curated data-sharing arrangements become more plausible. Startups that clear onboarding and compliance may win rights-restricted, auditable access to de-identified or synthetic derivatives of those datasets—unlocking model performance otherwise unattainable. The law’s emphasis on interoperability with external regimes could help founders sell into regulated verticals (health, finance, mobility) without re-architecting for each jurisdiction.
• Trust by design: The proposal bakes in governance, auditability, and security expectations that many enterprise buyers demand before piloting with young companies. For venture-backed founders, that reduces sales-cycle friction. It also lowers the “compliance tax” by aligning security baselines with large buyers’ requirements, potentially letting startups piggyback on the hub’s certifications rather than building redundant controls alone. 
• Time to market: If licensing and dispute-resolution are centralized and fast, contracting cycles shrink. Commentary around the draft law explicitly frames Saudi Arabia as a legal venue for AI-related disputes—signal to global players that enforcement will be practical. For founders, predictable dispute processes and choice-of-law clarity de-risk big-ticket partnerships.

The Capital and Infrastructure Backdrop: Why Timing Matters

The legal initiative dovetails with an investment super-cycle in Saudi AI infrastructure and venture capital. In 2025 the Kingdom launched HUMAIN—a state-backed AI enterprise and funder aiming to process ~7% of global AI workloads by 2030, underpinned by multi-billion-dollar compute and chip procurement plans from U.S. giants. 

This is not abstract: public reporting points to tens of billions in contracts and a roadmap for gigawatt-scale data centers. If that buildout proceeds, the country’s bottleneck won’t be GPUs so much as the rules and governance necessary to attract workloads that matter. That’s exactly the gap the Global AI Hub Law tries to fill.

On the venture side, Saudi Arabia led MENA VC in H1-2025, with roughly $860 million across 100+ deals—more than the Kingdom deployed in all of 2024—signaling both domestic and foreign appetite for Saudi tech exposure. While VC is cyclical, a legal framework that clarifies data rights, liability, and cross-border compliance could convert that financing momentum into durable product velocity for AI startups.

How Officials and Founders Are Framing the Moment

During LEAP 2025, Minister of Communications and Information Technology Abdullah Al-Swaha touted a pipeline of generative and autonomous AI applications and name-checked local companies—arguing that the Kingdom intends to be a “hub for generative AI, GenTech, and autonomous AI, powered by talent and technology.” The minister’s remarks underscore a policy mix that pairs capital with an open-for-business regulatory posture; the draft law is an institutional manifestation of that posture. 

Private-sector voices are leaning in. Intelmatix’s leadership, for example, has publicly connected recognition on the global stage with the company’s push to “push the frontiers of enterprise AI.” Founders in talent-tech and event-tech told local media in 2025 that Saudi’s ecosystem is creating unusual access to investors and customers; several described accelerated dealmaking and piloting cycles tied to the national tech agenda. Although these quotes aren’t about the law per se, they reflect a buyer’s market for startup solutions that a clear hub regime could amplify. 

From Vision 2030 to Sovereign AI

The Global AI Hub Law aligns with two strategic narratives. First, Vision 2030’s diversification thesis: national productivity gains and non-oil exports derived from data-intensive services. PwC’s long-running estimate—$135 billion in incremental GDP from AI by 2030—remains the headline figure used by both policymakers and investors to justify the spend. 

Second, the global “sovereign AI” trend: countries seeking domestic control over compute, data, and critical models. If Saudi Arabia can offer a legally neutral, operationally excellent venue for allies to compute on their data—while maintaining domestic oversight—then Riyadh becomes a node in allied AI supply chains, not just a buyer of chips. 

What Founders Should Do Now

• Design for the hub: Startups should map draft compliance requirements to their current controls: data lineage and provenance; model documentation; bias and safety testing; and incident response. The more a product can “snap into” a hub’s governance, the faster enterprise procurement will go once the regime is live. Legal analyses suggest hubs will differentiate by data sensitivity tiers; products that support tier-appropriate controls (e.g., confidential computing; KMS segregation; privacy-preserving learning) will be advantaged. 
• Target regulated verticals early: If the law lands close to the consultation version, AI work in fintech, health, logistics, and government services should be first to benefit. For example, remarks at LEAP referenced healthcare robotics and decision-intelligence deployments; hub licensing that clarifies cross-border data access could multiply such proofs of concept across providers and agencies. Founders building to these buyers should invest in audit-readiness and model cards now.
• Leverage capital-infrastructure synchronicity: HUMAIN, hyperscaler partnerships, and giga-watt build-outs create new buyer surfaces: data-center operators, sovereign cloud platforms, and national-scale integrators. Those actors will need privacy tech, tooling for model evaluation, and MLOps hardened for regulated contexts. A startup that slots into these buyers’ roadmaps can ride procurement waves—especially if it can demonstrate hub-aligned compliance artifacts. 
• Tell a compliance story investors can underwrite: VC sentiment tracks risk clarity. The MENA venture data from H1-2025 shows a return of later-stage checks; pairing product metrics with a credible plan to navigate hub rules could convert more term sheets. Investors know regulatory moats can be real moats. 

Risks, Unknowns, and the Path to Impact

This is still a draft. Key uncertainties include how “foreign legal regime” carve-outs will be validated and supervised; how liability is apportioned among hub operators, tenants, and application developers; and the duration and scope of any safe harbors for experimentation. There’s also the geopolitics of data localization: how will the regime interoperate with EU GDPR, U.S. sectoral rules, or Asian data-transfer constraints? Early commentary suggests the drafters anticipate these issues, but the proof will be in secondary regulations and intergovernmental MOUs. 

Another risk is over-reliance on physical scale—chips, megawatts, and square meters—without the human capital to operate within higher-tier hubs. Here, the government’s messaging emphasizes talent pipelines and women’s participation gains in tech (from 7% in 2018 to 35% in 2024), which, if sustained, would improve the labor supply for hub tenants and their startup suppliers. But talent competition is global, and retaining senior ML engineers is a challenge everywhere. 

Ultimately, capital cycles can shift, and oil revenue volatility can challenge public investment promises. Yet the Kingdom’s recent AI investment announcements and the creation of HUMAIN indicate a long-term, strategic posture. If the law can import external demand (sovereign datasets and foreign R&D) alongside domestic investment, revenue diversification improves the regime’s resilience. 

A Realistic Startup-Sector Outlook

If enacted with clear implementing rules and transparent licensing, the Global AI Hub Law would likely have three near-term effects on the Saudi startup landscape:

1. Bigger, earlier enterprise pilots. Ministries, SOEs, and multinationals operating in Saudi Arabia would gain a home jurisdiction to try higher-stakes models and data combinations. That shortens pilots and expands purchase orders for local startups that can meet hub standards. Founders at 2025 events already described unusual access to investors and customers—a dynamic the hub regime should amplify. 
2. Stronger founder narratives for export. A startup that survives procurement and compliance in a high-tier Saudi hub can market that pedigree abroad. For enterprise buyers, compliance is a proxy for reliability. Legal analysts observing the draft have underscored its novelty in reconciling sovereignty with interoperability—a positioning foreign buyers may find compelling. 
3. Thicker middle-layer tooling markets. Expect demand for audit, evals, red-teaming, and privacy-preserving compute to surge. These aren’t sideshows; they’re the glue that makes regulated AI stackable. Local founders who specialize here can become acquisition targets for hyperscalers and sovereign cloud providers active in the Kingdom. 

Meanwhile, venture funding momentum and marquee infrastructure commitments should keep top-of-funnel opportunities flowing. Reports through mid-2025 show the Kingdom leading regional VC by dollars and deals, while the LEAP platform is still announcing multi-billion-dollar AI commitments. If the law tightens the link between that capital and compliant, data-rich workloads, the flywheel for Saudi startups could spin faster. 

Finally, the Global AI Hub Law is not just another digital policy. It’s an operating manual for a new kind of economic zone—one organized around data sovereignty, compute intensity, and cross-border legal interoperability. For founders, it promises clearer rules, faster enterprise access, and a shot at privileged datasets—provided they build for governance from day one. 

For the Kingdom, it’s the missing legal layer that could connect ambitious infrastructure plans and generous capital with the kind of high-value AI activity that actually moves GDP. If Saudi Arabia can deliver credible licensing, transparent oversight, and trusted dispute resolution, it will not merely host the AI economy—it will help define its rules. 

Ghada Ismail

In the startup scene, raising money is rarely a straight line. Founders often find themselves between major funding milestones, needing extra capital to keep moving forward. This is where two financing tools come in: the bridge round and the extension round. While they sound similar, each serves a distinct purpose and is applied differently depending on the company’s stage and needs.

What is a Bridge Round?

A bridge round is exactly what it sounds like: a bridge. It’s temporary funding that helps a startup “cross over” to its next big milestone. For example, a startup might raise a bridge round to extend its runway until it can close a larger Series A or Series B.

These rounds often come from existing investors, who already believe in the company and want to protect their earlier investment. Sometimes, bridge rounds are structured as convertible notes or SAFE agreements, which postpone the valuation discussion until the next major funding event.

In the MENA region, several startups have turned to bridge rounds. A notable example is Kashat, the Cairo-based fintech offering nano-loans to Egypt’s unbanked population. In 2021, the startup raised $1.75 million in bridge financing, providing the short-term capital it needed to further develop its platform and expand operations before securing larger rounds. This illustrates how bridge funding can give startups in emerging markets the breathing space to strengthen their fundamentals while preparing for the next stage of growth.

What is an Extension Round?

An extension round, by contrast, is not about survival; it’s rather about momentum. In this case, a company has already raised a round, say a Series A, but wants to bring in more capital under the same terms. Instead of rushing into a higher-priced Series B, the startup simply extends its existing round, allowing new or existing investors to participate without changing the valuation.

Extensions are particularly useful when the company is performing well and sees fresh opportunities, but the timing isn’t right for a new fundraising milestone. 

For example, UAE-based cloud kitchen giant Kitopi reportedly tapped into extension rounds in its growth phase, bringing in extra firepower from new investors while keeping its valuation steady until it was ready for a much larger jump. In mid-2021, Kitopi closed a $415 million Series C funding round, led by SoftBank Vision Fund 2 with participation from other investors. Later that year—or into early 2022—the company raised an additional $300 million as a Series C extension, bringing the total size of the funding round to approximately $715 million and lifting its valuation to about $1.55 billion.

How Founders Decide Between the Two

So how does a founder know which path makes more sense—bridge or extension? It often comes down to intent.

• If the company is under pressure—perhaps revenue growth slowed, or the market turned tough—a bridge round provides short-term relief until conditions improve.
• If the company is doing well but wants to capitalize on opportunities before the next major raise, an extension round allows for flexibility without the burden of a new valuation.

Both tools have risks. A bridge round can signal distress if not managed carefully, while an extension round could dilute founders more than they’d like. Yet, when used strategically, both can be powerful instruments to keep momentum alive.

Why It Matters in MENA

The startup ecosystem in the Middle East and North Africa is still maturing. Many companies operate in fast-changing regulatory environments and fragmented markets. That means fundraising is not always as predictable as in Silicon Valley.

Bridge and extension rounds offer founders flexibility in navigating this landscape. They buy time, bring in the right investors, and allow companies to align growth with the realities of local markets. As more MENA startups scale beyond their home countries, we’re likely to see these tools used more frequently.

Wrapping Things Up…

For founders in Saudi Arabia and the broader region, the lesson is clear: not every funding story has to fit neatly into the Seed–Series A–Series B path. Sometimes, it’s about building the right bridge or extending what’s already working.

Investors, too, are becoming more open to these structures as they realize the unique challenges startups face in this region. Whether it’s a Saudi fintech waiting on central bank licensing or an Egyptian logistics startup expanding to Africa, bridge and extension rounds are proving to be valuable stopgaps that help startups stay on track.

In the end, the key is transparency. Founders should communicate clearly why they’re raising a bridge or extension, what the money will achieve, and how it sets the stage for the next big leap. Done right, these rounds are not a detour; they’re part of the journey.