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Billions of Deals at Saudi-US Investment Forum; Dubai Airshow Updates; Cityscape Enters Last Day
Thursday, November 20, 2025
Happy Thursday everyone!
AI deals and consolidation of trade relations was the main topic as the Saudi-US Investment Forum took place on Wednesday in Washington, with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman as the host of the event. US President Donald Trump was joined by named like Elon Musk and Jensen Huang at the event. Details below.
Meanwhile, Dubai Airshow 2025 and Cityscape Global in Riyadh are in full flow. Who signed what, find out in the news well.
But before that: For quick daily updates, follow us on Instagram, and you can watch our Smashi Business Show live every weekday from 10AM onwards (UAE time). Also, you can join our Whatsapp channel to receive updates from the business world.
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The third day of Dubai Airshow 2025 delivered a flurry of strategic partnerships, industrial expansions, and sustainability-driven initiatives that underscore the UAE’s accelerating ambitions in aerospace and advanced air mobility.
Emirates will invest $10–12B in Dubai’s new Al Maktoum International Airport, part of a wider $35B redevelopment set to replace DXB by 2032. Sheikh Ahmed said total costs will far exceed current estimates. UK Export Finance has pledged $3.5bn to support UK firms in Dubai’s $35bn expansion of Al Maktoum International Airport.
Calidus Holding Group and Airbus announced plans to explore establishing a dedicated A400M MRO centre in the UAE, strengthening localisation, Emirati talent development, and supply-chain capacity. Airbus also joined the UAE Ministry of Energy and Infrastructure in hosting a high-level SAF and low-carbon fuel roundtable, reinforcing the nation’s drive toward decarbonised aviation.
In advanced air mobility, SkyGrid and High Lander signed an MoU to co-develop a next-generation airspace management ecosystem for crewed and uncrewed aircraft, aligning with Abu Dhabi’s Economic Vision 2030. Meanwhile, flydubai expanded its aviation training capabilities with new competency-based training agreements with Boeing to elevate pilot and engineering standards across its growing fleet.
Etihad Engineering, Lufthansa Technik Middle East and GE Aerospace launched a comprehensive Maintenance Training Programme to equip UAE nationals with specialised MRO skills and expand the region’s aviation workforce pipeline. Rounding out the key announcements, Emirates and ENOC Group signed an MoU to assess pathways for establishing a reliable Sustainable Aviation Fuel supply chain in Dubai, advancing the UAE’s 2031 low-carbon aviation targets.
Cityscape Global 2025 Enters Day 4 as Deals Flurry Continues
Cityscape Global’s third day in Riyadh saw a surge of agreements aimed at strengthening Saudi Arabia’s urban development, workforce localization, and real estate infrastructure.
Total real estate agreements at the four-day event surpassed SR161.2 billion ($42.3 billion).
The Ministry of Municipalities and Housing signed an MoU with Al-Othaim Investment Co. to boost Saudi youth participation through training, employment, and entrepreneurship programs.
Al-Othaim will provide job opportunities and help build a national talent database aligned with municipal sector needs.
Al-Jouf Municipality signed a SR9.92 million contract with TUV Rheinland Arabia to privatize excavation control and address construction violations, improving regulatory efficiency.
Al-Jouf is showcasing 1,000 investment opportunities spanning parks, infrastructure, entertainment, and services.
Holy Makkah Municipality partnered with Umm Al Qura Development to beautify the Masar destination’s western entrance, increasing green areas and enhancing the urban experience in line with the Saudi Green Initiative.
📅 November 17–20, 2025
📍 Riyadh Exhibition & Convention Center – Malham
Register now for free and be part of the world’s largest real estate event.
Who Said What and Deals Signed on Saudi Crown Prince Day 2 of US Visit
A wave of major tech, energy, and investment agreements was sealed at the Saudi-US Investment Forum in Washington, where government commitments from the White House meeting were rapidly converted into billions of dollars in private-sector deals.
Who said What?
Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman
Said foundations had been laid for a stronger Saudi-US partnership.
Expected further investment agreements in defense, energy, AI, and financial services.
US President Donald Trump
Announced $270 billion in agreements and sales between dozens of companies.
Praised the crown prince as a bold leader committed to the Saudi-US relationship.
Khalid Al-Falih — Saudi Minister of Investment
Opened the forum highlighting:
Large-scale Saudi-US cooperation.
Launch of “groundbreaking business agreements worth hundreds of billions of dollars.”
Confirmed that G2G agreements were signed across defense, AI, critical minerals, and supply chains.
Noted the US is the largest foreign investor in Saudi Arabia — 1 in every 4 international investment dollars comes from America.
Announced progress on a US-Saudi strategic framework on investment acceleration.
Prince Faisal bin Farhan & US Secretary of State Marco Rubio
Formally signed the Strategic Artificial Intelligence Partnership, calling it a historic step in AI and technology cooperation.
Tareq Amin — CEO of Humain
Confirmed launch of a 100MW data center with AMD and Cisco (renewable-powered).
Revealed Luma AI already booked the entire capacity of the first cluster.
Stated goal to scale to 1 gigawatt of data centers by 2030.
Elon Musk (Tesla / xAI) & Jensen Huang (Nvidia)
Participated in an AI discussion.
Musk confirmed xAI and Saudi Arabia are working on a 500MW project with Nvidia.
Wassim Chourbaji — Qualcomm MEA President
Described the partnership mood as “super positive.”
Announced:
Qualcomm AI engineering center co-located with Humain.
Partnership with Humain + Adobe to run creative content on Qualcomm/Humain infrastructure.
Plans to build advanced AI chips and hybrid AI solutions in Saudi Arabia.
AI’s transformational impact on industries like oil & gas.
Amin Nasser — CEO of Saudi Aramco
Announced $30 billion in new Saudi-US energy sector agreements.
MP Materials, US DoD, and Maaden
Announced major rare earths refining joint venture in Saudi Arabia.
Aimed at establishing a non-China supply chain for critical minerals.
Deals Signed
1. Strategic AI Partnership (G2G)
Signed by Prince Faisal bin Farhan & Marco Rubio.
Includes cooperation on:
AI clusters
Semiconductors
Data infrastructure
National AI capability building
2. AMD – Cisco – Humain Joint Venture
To build data centers in the Middle East, beginning with:
100MW data center in Saudi Arabia (renewable energy).
Expansion target: 1GW by 2030.
First customer: Luma AI, which booked full capacity of the first site.
3. xAI – Nvidia – Saudi Arabia Project
500MW AI infrastructure project using Nvidia hardware.
4. Qualcomm – Humain – Adobe Partnerships
AI engineering center in Saudi Arabia.
Collaboration on creative AI content.
Building advanced AI chips and “hybrid AI” systems in the Kingdom.
5. Aramco – US Companies
$30 billion in new energy sector deals.
6. MP Materials – US DoD – Maaden
Major rare earths refinery in Saudi Arabia.
Ownership structure:
MP + US DoD: 49%
Maaden: 51%
Aim: Secure critical mineral supply chains for EVs, defense, and industrial tech.
7. Additional Sectors Engaged
Not formalized as major headline deals, but active engagement in:
Sports
Creative infrastructure
Entertainment
Lifestyle technology
Advanced manufacturing
🦄 World of Startups
Zid, Saudi e-commerce enablement platform, expands into Egypt through a partnership with digital store provider Zammit.
Bahrain launches $185mln fund to support SMEs
Deplike, Turkey-based AI music learning platform, raised undisclosed seed funding from 216 Capital to grow its Chordie AI app with 250K active users.
Chari, Morocco-based fintech and e-commerce platform, raised undisclosed Series A extension funding from Egypt’s DisrupTech Ventures to expand its embedded financial services for retailers.
Arab Therapy, Jordan-based online mental health platform, secured a strategic investment from Value Makers Studio (VMS) to grow its licensed telemedicine and corporate wellness services.
First Circle Capital, a female-led VC in Uganda and Morocco, raised $6M from IFC for its $25M pan-African fintech fund targeting pre-seed and seed-stage startups in fintech, insurtech, and climate tech.
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🔍In other news…
Pakistan Takes a Page From Abu Dhabi With Bold Offshore Artificial Island for Oil & Gas Push
KKR Opens Abu Dhabi Office in Deepening Foray Into Middle East
Brookfield Asset Management Ltd. is targeting $10 billion of fund commitments for a global artificial-intelligence infrastructure program in partnership with Nvidia Corp. and the Kuwait Investment Authority.
France obtains freeze of Dubai properties linked to drug trafficking, minister says
