Saudi Aramco has announced a strategic partnership with Zoom and an increase in funding for Wa’ed Ventures, a development which is expected to accelerate digital transformation in the Kingdom.
As a part of this initiative, a data center is expected to connect to the Zoom global data center network. This will serve Saudi Arabia and the region. The announcements were made at the second edition of LEAP, a major international technology conference held annually in Saudi Arabia, as reported by Arab News.
With Aramco, Zoom will also explore the joint development of innovative technology solutions for the energy sector. The partnership aims to contribute to the digital transformation of various market sectors, such as energy, industry, education and healthcare. Amin H. Nasser, Aramco President & CEO, said:
“Our establishment of a diversified network of partners has helped us maintain a track record of reliability, and our new strategic partnership with Zoom is expected to further enable innovative solutions focusing on the digital transformation ecosystem. Furthermore, with an expanded fund size, Wa’ed Ventures aims to facilitate the cross-pollination of innovation between the global and local markets.”
Aramco also announced additional funds had been allocated by the company to Wa’ed Ventures, increasing the size of its Kingdom-focused venture capital arm from $200m to $500m. The increase aims to enable the company to deliver an accelerated investment performance regionally and globally.
Wa’ed Ventures aims to localize global frontier technologies to advance the Kingdom’s innovation ecosystem; expand investments in mid and growth-stage startups; and fund underserved domains such as environmental, social and governance, the metaverse and quantum computing.