This Month in Saudi: AI Leadership, Winter Lights and Red Carpets

December brings film premieres, citywide music weeks, winter festivals, and bold new moves in mining and AI across the Kingdom.

December 16, 2025

November-December ‘25 Edition

Welcome back to This Month in Saudi!

Welcome back to This Month in Saudi. The past month has been one of the most packed yet: Riyadh lit up with Noor Riyadh and a citywide music week, Jeddah rolled out red carpets for the Red Sea International Film Festival, AlUla and Khobar launched winter seasons, and Riyadh played host to heavyweight economic and tech announcements. At the same time, Saudi Arabia deepened its strategic partnerships abroad, from Washington to Beijing.

Before we dive in, here is a quick PSA: the Saudi Winter 2025 program, launched by the Ministry of Tourism, is now fully live, with more than 1,200 products and 600 offers spanning Riyadh, Jeddah, Diriyah, AlUla, Khobar, Abha, and other destinations. The program aims to turn the cool months into peak travel season and support the Kingdom’s target of 150 million annual visitors by bundling festivals, heritage sites, concerts, outdoor adventures, and family‑friendly events under one national umbrella. Check out a calendar of events here.

THIS MONTH IN CULTURE AND PLACES

Noor Riyadh Closes A Record‑Breaking Edition

Noor Riyadh 2025 wrapped up earlier this month after transforming the capital into a citywide gallery of light and installation art. More than 7 million visitors engaged with large‑scale works and interactive pieces across historic and modern districts, and the festival collected international awards recognition that reinforces its status as one of the world’s leading light festivals.​

Meanwhile, Suwaidi Park continued its rotating “culture days,” with Indonesian Culture Days and Pakistani Culture Days spotlighting food, fashion, music, and performances from both countries. The program is part of a broader effort to turn neighborhood parks into cultural meeting points that reflect Saudi Arabia’s global partnerships on the ground.

Red Sea International Film Festival Attracts Star Power

From December 4 to 13, Jeddah hosted the fifth Red Sea International Film Festival, bringing global and regional filmmakers, stars, and industry leaders to the Corniche and Al‑Balad. The 2025 edition combined gala premieres and special screenings with in‑conversation sessions featuring names such as Jessica Alba, Idris Elba, Aishwarya Rai Bachchan, Darren Aronofsky, Dakota Johnson, Ana de Armas, Amir El-Masry, Alia Bhatt, Nina Dobreb, Kirsten Dunst and many more alongside a film lineup that highlighted emerging Saudi and Arab voices.​

Industry days, co‑production markets, and labs further cemented RSIFF as a key platform for Arab and African cinema, linking Saudi creators to producers, distributors, and streamers while positioning Jeddah as a serious home for year‑round film activity. At the same time, Jeddah Book Fair 2025 opened at Jeddah Superdome with a program that, for the first time, integrated screenings of popular Saudi films into its literary schedule, underscoring how publishing and screen storytelling are increasingly connected.

Ten Days that Turned Riyadh into a Music Campus

Riyadh Music Week (RMW) has just concluded a 10‑day program that brought together artists, educators, executives, creators, and communities from Saudi Arabia and around the world. Through a connected schedule of professional forums, cultural exchanges, community events, and public performances, the week showcased how quickly Saudi Arabia’s music ecosystem is expanding and maturing.

The program linked XP Music Futures, Takyah, the Fringe program, Billboard Arabia Power Players, the Music Makers Summit (MMS), the International Music Managers Forum (IMMF) Awards, citywide performances, and the region’s biggest festival, Soundstorm, into a unified experience built around connection, creativity, and community. Across those ten days, Riyadh effectively operated as a live music campus, with conversations and performances flowing between venues, districts, and formats.

Riyadh Music Week also featured a memorandum of understanding between the Saudi Music Commission and Steinway & Sons, signaling ongoing investment in music education, performance spaces, and access to world‑class instruments. The Billboard Arabia Power Players list recognized 45 regional companies and 100 individual contributors supporting the growth of the regional music sector, with special acknowledgments for Paul Pacifico, MDLBEAST CEO Ramadan AlHaratani, and artist Ahmed Saad, reflecting how industry leadership is increasingly concentrated in and around Saudi initiatives.

Throughout the week, districts such as KAFD, the Diplomatic Quarter, Diriyah, and key Metro stations, along with venues and cafés like The Fridge, Salt, and The Warehouse, hosted evening performances across genres, turning everyday locations into accessible stages. RMW concluded with Soundstorm, MDLBEAST’s flagship festival, which delivered its largest edition yet, with eight stages and more than 400,000 guests over the weekend. The lineup combined global names like Cardi B, Post Malone, Calvin Harris, Halsey, Tyla, Ava Max, and Benson Boone with regional and Saudi artists including Balqees, DJ Aseel, Tahani Sultan, and Ibrahim Alhakami, closing out ten days that placed music at the center of Riyadh’s cultural life.

THIS MONTH IN TECH & BUSINESS

Cooling Inflation, a Boom in Mining and Saudi Recognized as an AI Leader

Saudi Arabia’s mining strategy continued to gain momentum, with officials reporting a 21 percent jump in mining sector licenses since 2016 as the Kingdom positions minerals as a “third pillar” of the economy alongside oil and petrochemicals. The increase reflects rising investor interest in gold, copper, rare earths, and other critical minerals, supported by updated regulations, new exploration rounds, and infrastructure spending aimed at turning the Kingdom into a regional mining and metals hub.

Saudi Streets examined one of the most strategic pieces of that puzzle: a rare earths joint venture between Ma’aden and US-based MP Materials that will build a rare earth separation and processing facility in the Kingdom. Backed by a wider US–Saudi minerals framework, the project is designed to create a full value chain inside Saudi Arabia, from mining and refining to magnet production for electric vehicles, wind turbines, and defense applications, shifting the Kingdom’s role from raw-material supplier to processing powerhouse. Read our report here.

Inflation data provided a reassuring backdrop to that growth story. The General Authority for Statistics announced that Saudi inflation cooled to 1.9 percent year‑on‑year in November 2025, with modest increases in housing, food, and transportation prices offset by declines or stability in other categories. Analysts noted that the figure keeps inflation comfortably within targeted ranges, supporting consumer confidence and giving policymakers more room to balance fiscal reforms and growth initiatives heading into 2026.

On the digital front, the Saudi Data and Artificial Intelligence Authority (SDAIA) signed seven major technology partnerships with leading US firms to accelerate the Kingdom’s AI transformation. The agreements cover areas such as cloud infrastructure, AI research, training, and data platforms, and are designed to deepen cooperation between Saudi and American companies while equipping local institutions and talent with tools to build AI‑powered services across sectors from health and education to mobility and finance.

In parallel, Saudi Arabia secured new global recognition in artificial intelligence. According to the latest Global AI Index, the Kingdom now ranks fifth worldwide and first in the Arab world for AI sector growth, reflecting rapid advances in capacity, investment, and implementation. Saudi Streets highlighted how SDAIA-led initiatives such as the Rowad Package for entrepreneurs, AI Ethics Incentive Badges, the Gaia generative AI accelerator, and large-scale SDAIA Academy training programs have together built both infrastructure and human capital, with over one million Saudis trained through the “SAMAI” initiative

THIS MONTH IN FOREIGN AFFAIRS

A Historic Summit in Washington DC

Saudi Arabia’s foreign policy and economic diplomacy were highly active over the past month, with a series of high‑level agreements signaling a new phase in several key relationships.

In Washington, a Saudi–US summit produced a joint statement announcing multiple agreements and memoranda of understanding across defense, investment, nuclear energy, critical minerals, and advanced technologies. The two countries finalized a Strategic Framework for Cooperation on critical minerals and signed a landmark rare earths joint venture between Ma’aden, MP Materials, and the US Department of War, which will see a rare earth refinery built in the Kingdom as part of a broader push to diversify global supply chains away from China. The summit also advanced a civil nuclear cooperation agreement that sets the groundwork for long‑term collaboration on Saudi Arabia’s peaceful nuclear energy program under strict non‑proliferation standards.

At the same time, Saudi Arabia has continued to diversify its global partnerships. In mid‑December, Riyadh and Beijing signed a visa‑waiver deal for diplomatic, special, and service passports, simplifying travel for officials between the two countries and deepening the institutional side of the Saudi–China relationship. Regionally and multilaterally, Saudi Arabia has played a visible role in development and climate forums, using platforms such as G20 meetings and international climate negotiations to advocate for its own energy transition narrative while expanding its role as a financier and convener through initiatives like the Development Finance Conference and new development agreements totaling several billion riyals.​

Taken together, these moves illustrate a foreign policy that is increasingly multi‑directional: solidifying the strategic partnership with the United States around minerals, defense, and nuclear energy; broadening ties with China; and investing in multilateral platforms that allow the Kingdom to shape discussions on energy, finance, and regional stability.

THIS MONTH IN FOOD

Coffee, Dates and Chocolate Reign Supreme

In Riyadh, the World of Dates exhibition at King Saud University carried into early December, turning the campus into a curated dates village where producers from across the Kingdom presented premium varieties alongside chocolates, spreads, syrups, and modern desserts. Live cooking demos and pairing workshops helped visitors see dates as both a heritage symbol and a versatile ingredient for contemporary kitchens and global gifting.​

At Riyadh Front Exhibition and Convention Center, the Coffee & Chocolate Expo and Tea & Snack Expo welcomed specialty roasters, chocolatiers, tea brands, and snack makers from Saudi Arabia and abroad, offering tastings, masterclasses, and networking opportunities for café owners, retailers, and enthusiasts.

Along the Red Sea, Jeddah’s Winter Wonderland continued to provide rides, games, and seasonal entertainment along the waterfront, while in the northwest, AlUla transitioned from the Ancient Kingdoms Festival into preparations for Winter at Tantora. The upcoming Tantora season will bring concerts, markets, and “Year of Handicrafts” experiences to AlUla’s canyons and oases, reinforcing its role as a flagship destination for immersive heritage and culture.

Saudi Streets Team Recommends

We’ve been filling our bellies trying out eateries across Riyadh. Here is our recommendation for the month:

  • Kuuru: This Nikkei dining experience, now in Riyadh and Jeddah, is a must visit for those looking for a restaurant blending Japanese precision with Peruvian boldness. The restaurant is included in the Michelin Guide Saudi Arabia and provides an intimate, yet exciting, experience. Bookings are essential!

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