From Energy to AI: How Saudi Arabia and UAE Became the Global Sovereignty Leaders for the $17 Trillion Data and AI Economy

The league table for the sovereign future of AI and data is already being set. Research shows that where your organization resides may determine how it ranks globally.

AI and data are projected to deliver 7% to global GDP growth  over the next three years. 

While this $16 trillion infusion would make AI and data the third-largest economy in the world, signs suggest that the wealth won't be distributed equally. For enterprises to fully utilize AI for a true economic advantage, their data must be secure and accessible, whether it resides in clouds, on premises, or both, to work together in near real time.

This is what true data and AI sovereignty  will involve. Not in cloud(s) or on-premises, but agile and secure from the edge through the core, all working together in one hybrid control plane or single pane of glass. AI and agentic AI factories, migration factories, will all depend on the secure and agile nature of the user’s AI and their data to work in real time to deliver results.

We know this based on recent global research from EDB, a leading sovereign data and AI  platform company. 

The research surveyed 2,050 executives and leaders across 13 major economies around the globe, from the US to EMEA, MEA, and then in APJ (India, Singapore, and Japan). 

The 13% of organizations showing clear signs of thriving saw up to 5X ROI over their peers, had double the number of agentic and GenAI projects in production, and, perhaps most strikingly, were 250% more confident in their ability to lead their industry in three years’ time.

This is why the future will be shaped by enterprises and geographies where sovereign AI and data infrastructure are deliberately designed and delivered to meet local regulatory and compliance demands.

“Industrial revolutions are generally born of five things converging at the same time: Available infrastructure, technological innovation, abundant natural resources, including electricity, favorable political and economic conditions with capital investments, and access to markets. We’re seeing the perfect storm in the Middle East, where nations are treating their AI and data as sovereign assets rather than mere technological tools,”  said Michael Gale, Wall Street best-selling author on Digital Transformation, AI thought leader, and CMO at EDB.

Saudi Arabia and the UAE are Leading the Next Sovereign and AI Industrial Revolutions

Postgres and AI leader EDB analyzed sovereign AI and data future readiness across 13 countries representing  $48 trillion in combined GDP. The results: Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) hold the top spot. Singapore ranks second, followed by Germany and the U.S.

What Drives Success? Location, Location, Location.

The more enterprises in a region that treat AI and data as sovereign assets, the higher the chances of regional success. Consider the isolated success of John Cockerill & Cie in Belgium compared to the league of industrial titans that emerged near one another in the UK—Wedgwood, Boulton & Watt, Cadbury, Arkwright, Atkins & Pearce, Coalbrookdale. Or look at Silicon Valley: Apple, Google, Intel, HP, Meta, Oracle, Cisco, Adobe.

Proximity to other successes generates even more success.

From Oil Kingdom to AI Empire

Saudi Arabia's and the UAE’s ascension to the top of the sovereignty rankings isn't accidental; it's the result of a deliberate and significant investment in AI infrastructure and capabilities.

The kingdom's  HUMAIN initiative, launched in May 2025 under the Public Investment Fund and chaired by Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, represents one of the most ambitious AI sovereignty projects in history.

 

HUMAIN plans to invest $77 billion to capture 7% of global AI training and inferencing by 2030, with 1.9 gigawatts of data center capacity and partnerships with technology giants that include Qualcomm, Nvidia, AMD, and Amazon. The company's $10 billion HUMAIN Ventures fund will invest globally in AI startups, while developing one of the world's most powerful multimodal Arabic large language models.

This comprehensive approach—from infrastructure to venture capital to indigenous AI development—exemplifies the sovereign AI strategy that's propelling Saudi Arabia to the top.

Global Competition and Collaboration Through Stargate

The United States, ranking fourth in the sovereignty index, is undertaking its own massive initiative. 

The Stargate Project

, announced in January 2025, represents a $500 billion investment in AI infrastructure by 2029. This joint venture between OpenAI, SoftBank, Oracle, and investment firm MGX will build data centers across multiple states and expand internationally to Japan and the UAE, creating over 100,000 jobs.

The project's multi-state rollout and international expansion plans demonstrate how the U.S. is building AI sovereignty through technological leadership, global partnerships, and massive private sector coordination.

The Open Source Advantage

It isn’t just the investment scale that sets top performers apart. It's their strategic approach. EDB has found that open-source data management dominates the strategy in 81% of leading sovereign AI and data future economies, along with hybrid data management (67%+). 

Technologies like EDB Postgres AI are also becoming fundamental to this architecture, enabling organizations to maintain control over their data while leveraging advanced AI capabilities across cloud and on-premise environments.

"The Middle East isn't just adopting AI, it's redefining what responsible AI leadership looks like," says Gale. "By handling data and AI as sovereign assets, these nations are creating the conditions for sustained competitive advantage. They're building their own Silicon Valleys, but with sovereignty at the center."

Just as Silicon Valley is a magnet for talent, investment, and breakthrough innovation, sovereign-focused regions are drawing like-minded organizations that amplify each other's success. Location is key, not just for access to resources, but for participating in these open source, sovereignty-focused ecosystems that drive innovation and growth.

Create the Roadmap for Success

By viewing the AI and data revolution as an opportunity to create your own true sovereign and AI data platform, you can inspire other enterprises to do the same. As more enterprises in your region embrace the idea of AI and data sovereignty, the more secure your enterprise’s future will be in this next industrial revolution.