We are back in Riyadh for the third edition of the Saudi Cloud & Datacenter Convention! Saudi CDC 2025, a day-long event, will take place at Hotel Rosh Rayhaan by Rotana on October 29, and is expected to attract over 500 of the crème-de-la-crème of Saudi Arabia’s digital infrastructure industry. These include industry experts and thought leaders, C-level executives, digital infrastructure professionals including architects, engineers and consultants (AECs), key buyers, decision makers, data center owners and operators.
“Saudi Arabia is one of the fastest growing data center markets in the Middle East, and is an emerging powerhouse in the field of artificial intelligence. At Saudi CDC we aim to bring together key players from this ecosystem and enable an unparalleled networking and knowledge sharing opportunity,” says Naveen Lawrence, Managing Director – South Asia & Middle East, w.media.
Saudi Arabia’s remarkable digital transformation journey
From the days of being a predominantly oil-based economy, Saudi Arabia has come a long way, and is actively focusing on strengthening its digital infrastructure and connectivity ecosystem.
According to Mordor Intelligence, Saudi Arabia’s data center market size stands at US$ 2.11 billion in 2025, and is projected to reach US$ 3.9 billion by 2030, reflecting a 13.07 percent CAGR over the forecast period. “Robust hyperscaler capital inflows, Vision 2030 smart-city initiatives, and nationwide fiber and 5G rollouts are accelerating capacity additions even as operators contend with desert-specific cooling costs,” it says. “Long-term cloud region commitments from AWS, Microsoft, and Google continue to draw ecosystem partners, while the USD 100 billion sovereign AI vehicle HUMAIN signals sustained domestic demand for exascale compute.” Mordor further points out, “In parallel, edge facility buildouts are gathering momentum to service latency-sensitive 5G and IoT use cases, improving regional content delivery and lowering backhaul costs.”
Meanwhile, Arizton Advisory & Intelligence also projects similar growth saying that Saudi Arabia’s data center market size will witness investments of USD 3.90 billion by 2030. It also finds, “Saudi Arabia’s strategic location, competitive electricity tariffs, and robust connectivity infrastructure enhance its appeal as a data center hub. The country’s focus on becoming a leader in artificial intelligence (AI) and cloud services also contributes to the growing demand for data center infrastructure.”
The Saudi government is also playing a key role in the kingdom’s digital transformation, and is also encouraging adoption of green energy. Some key initiatives include Saudi Vision 2030 and the Saudi Green Initiative.
Saudi Vision 2030 is an ambitious plan for economic diversification, attracting foreign investment, developing high tech modern infrastructure in exclusive business and leisure zones, as well as building futuristic cities such as NEOM. After the program was first announced in 2016, it was followed up with the Saudi Green Initiative that was inaugurated in 2021.
Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund (PIF) is now increasingly investing in green energy and sustainable development projects. Riyadh plans to become Net Zero by 2060. Solar energy plays an important role in Saudi Arabia’s plans to go green.
What to expect at Saudi CDC 2025
Saudi CDC will showcase technology presentations, keynote addresses and panel discussions featuring top technology and business leaders and innovators from across the Middle East.
Some of our speakers include: Mohammad Bakir (Sr. Director, Account Cloud Engineering, Database Platform, Oracle), Yousef Maayah (Vice President – GCC, Sudlows Consulting, A Kent company), Colm Shorten (Senior Director – Head, Data Centre Development, MEA, JLL), Alistair Davis (Director, Black & White Engineering), Kostas Athanasopoulos, (Country Operations Director – Saudi Arabia, Syska Hennessy), Jan Neuenfeld (Project Director, Turner & Townsend), Steven Yule (Director of Digital and Data – Middle East, Jacobs), Fadwa AlBawardi (Founder & CEO, FSAB Consulting), Abdullah Alfahaid (Group CIO & Chief Shared Services Officer, Ajlan & Bros Holding Group), Peter Kaniu (Senior Data and Digital Consultant- PWC, ME) and many more!
“As an AI expert and trainer, I am inspired by Saudi Arabia’s rapid digital transformation and commitment to innovations and investments, which create a vibrant environment for advancing AI technologies and empowering local talent,” says Fadwa AlBawardi (Founder & CEO, FSAB Consulting), who will be one of the expert speakers and panelists at the conference. “I was attracted to the Saudi Cloud and Data Center (CDC) conference to share insights and collaborate with industry leaders. Through my panelist role, I aim to foster knowledge exchange regarding the role of AI in the development of cutting-edge data center solutions in Saudi Arabia.”
The event would not be possible without our generous sponsors: Uptime Institute, CIMC, BPE, Technavious, and Bureau Veritas.
“We aim to connect with key stakeholders shaping Saudi Arabia’s digital future, addressing challenges in this booming industry, and demonstrating how our global expertise in mission-critical data center spaces can support the Kingdom’s digital transformation,” said a spokesperson from Bureau Veritas shedding light on their expectations from participating in Saudi CDC. “Beyond projects, we seek to exchange insights, foster innovation, and build long-term partnerships that strengthen the Kingdom’s digital infrastructure and resilience.”
Sign up now!
If you haven’t booked your passes yet, hurry! Click here to register, and learn more about the agenda, speakers, schedule, and session information. For sponsorship, exhibition and further involvement opportunities, get in touch with our team at [email protected]