Salam Union moves Saudi Arabia from AI readiness to actual empowerment by 2026

Saudi Arabia reached a pivotal point in its AI adoption pathway in 2026; after years of capacity building and technical readiness, the Kingdom is now moving to the “actual empowerment” phase, where the broader focus is on scaling practical use cases and turning advanced investments and capabilities into applications that deliver real value to the business sector. This was announced by Engineer Ahmad Al-Anqari, chief executive officer of Salam Union for Telecommunications, in remarks on the sidelines of the company’s strategic sponsorship at the LEAP 2026 conference in Riyadh.

The participation slogan “We enable what’s coming” was not just a marketing tagline. Salam presented a suite of integrated AI-driven solutions for industry, healthcare, transport and security, aimed at developing scalable applications and contributing to the growth of the digital economy. Al-Anqari said the Kingdom has succeeded in laying strong foundations for the AI ecosystem, backed by advanced data infrastructure, integrated national coordination and ambitious investments targeting the desired transformation.

From a telecom provider to a full-stack technology partner

The fundamental transformation led by Salam reflects a broader shift in the role of telecom operators. The traditional model of merely providing connectivity and data capacity is no longer sufficient for the new phase’s requirements. Companies now seek a partner that can combine connectivity services, computing capabilities, and technical capacities, and manage them within a single integrated ecosystem. This is the essence of the “integrated connectivity” concept adopted by Salam, embodying its evolution from a telecom company to a comprehensive technology firm.

The model is built on delivering a system that includes fiber-optic networks, data centres, edge computing infrastructure, cloud partnerships, together with technical integration expertise. According to Al-Anqari, this mix enables handling the new corporate needs imposed by AI applications.

Three keys to accelerate adoption in the business sector

Al-Anqari identified three main factors that determine the speed of AI adoption in the corporate sector: confidence in data location, clarity regarding compliance requirements, and the presence of a partner capable of simplifying technical complexities. Many organisations have a clear ambition to leverage AI, but they face challenges related to internal readiness, starting with data governance and defining responsibilities for data management and ownership, extending to how to move from pilot projects to fully integrated operational systems that can meet regulatory demands.

Salam addresses these challenges by providing sovereign infrastructure that ensures data remains within the Kingdom, compliance-aligned environments designed for AI workloads, and by linking AI solutions to existing business systems.

Edge computing: Bringing AI closer to the point of use

Providing connectivity capacity alone is insufficient to fully exploit AI, especially in applications that require immediate decisions and responses. Al-Anqari cited examples such as defect detection on production lines, real-time vehicle rerouting in logistics, and inventory management based on direct demand signals. These applications need computing power close to the data source and capable of responding within fractions of a second.

The “integrated connectivity” concept is based on enabling data processing at the location most suitable for the application, whether that is a central data centre, the edge, or the client site itself. In Al-Anqari’s view, the true impact of AI will not be measured solely by the size of data centres or major national projects, but by the extent of its use across all components of the economy, including small and medium-size enterprises.

Sectors likely to feel impact fastest

Al-Anqari pointed to growing momentum in the energy, healthcare, government, manufacturing, tourism and hospitality sectors. The common denominator among these sectors is the need for advanced infrastructure that keeps data within the Kingdom, provides low latency for real-time applications, and simultaneously meets the highest compliance standards.

Digital sovereignty starts with infrastructure

Al-Anqari emphasized the importance of digital sovereignty as a core pillar in building the AI ecosystem. The concept is not limited to applications and software; it starts with the physical infrastructure, the location of data and its flow, and the entity that controls access. Salam owns digital infrastructure that includes a national fiber-optic network of over 19,000 km linking the Kingdom’s major cities, neutral data centres for telecom operators in Riyadh, Jeddah and Al-Khobar, as well as edge computing infrastructure and fiber loops within cities.

This integration enables the company to support sovereign AI applications, bring computing capabilities closer to customers, and meet business-sector requirements for data security, compliance and response time.

What this means for practitioners in the region

Based on the national data and AI strategy, the Kingdom will invest 75 billion riyals (US$20 billion) in this sector by 2030. Achieving these ambitions requires scaling adoption beyond large projects to reach the full spectrum of economic activities. When a plant manager in Jubail, a physician in Riyadh, and a shop owner in Abha use AI as naturally as they use electricity or communication lines today, true empowerment will have been achieved. Salam aims to be a primary enabler of this transformation, not merely a telecom operator.