IBM, a provider of global hybrid cloud, Artificial Intelligence (AI) and consulting expertise, has announced plans to invest over 200 million dollars in talent and infrastructure in a new IBM Software Lab that will come up in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
The announcement was made on the main stage of LEAP 2024 during a discussion between H.E. Abdullah Alswaha (Minister of Communications and Information Technology, Saudi Arabia) and Arvind Krishna (Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, IBM).
In a press release, IBM revealed, “The lab will be designed to focus on accelerating digital innovation and product development, management and design, with solutions in the areas of Data & AI and Sustainability Software,” adding, “With innovation and knowledge exchange at its center, the IBM Software Lab’s goal will be to accelerate skills building and help create high-quality jobs for skilled young IT professionals in Saudi Arabia’s technology ecosystem, co-creating solutions to export globally.”
The planned IBM Software Lab will join a wide network of IBM Software Labs across the world in the US, Canada, India and Europe. The decision reinforces IBM’s commitment to expand its investments in the region and further solidifies IBM’s support for the Kingdom’s Vision 2030. In January this year, IBM had inaugurated its new regional headquarters in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
His Excellency Abdullah Alswaha said, “IBM’s commitment to open an international Software Lab in Saudi Arabia is a testament to Saudi Arabia’s unparalleled success in the ICT industry. The IBM Software Lab in Saudi Arabia will not only give a push to our efforts to become a prominent global technology hub, but also expedite the development of AI-driven innovation and business models for our entrepreneurs and public and private sectors.”
“The new IBM Software Lab will provide significant, differentiated value for our global clients through collaboration with the region’s most skilled innovators on critical technologies, including AI and hybrid cloud,” said Arvind Krishna. “IBM has been a reliable presence in the Kingdom’s digital transformation journey, and this new lab demonstrates and extends our strong commitment to the region.”
