Filed under gulf-ai.

Two Clocks in Riyadh, One Deficit

Saudi Arabia and the UAE are simultaneously building AI datacentres — with vendor contracts and two-to-four-year payback windows — and AI workforces, whose returns compound over decades. Under significant fiscal pressure, these two clocks are running against one balance sheet. The education and training lines are structurally the most deferrable: the observable signal will not be a headline cut but a quiet slip in timelines, with vendor-branded programmes filling the gap.