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PIF Establishes Company for Immersive Experiences Inspired by Saudi Heritage

QSAS will enrich the cultural landscape by developing interactive and creative cultural, historical, and heritage storytelling experiences.
QSAS will enrich the cultural landscape by developing interactive and creative cultural, historical, and heritage storytelling experiences.
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PIF Establishes Company for Immersive Experiences Inspired by Saudi Heritage

QSAS will enrich the cultural landscape by developing interactive and creative cultural, historical, and heritage storytelling experiences.
QSAS will enrich the cultural landscape by developing interactive and creative cultural, historical, and heritage storytelling experiences.

The Public Investment Fund (PIF) announced on Wednesday the establishment of the National Interactive Entertainment Company (QSAS) to create immersive storytelling experiences inspired by Saudi heritage and Islamic history.

According to a PIF statement, QSAS will enrich the cultural landscape by developing interactive and creative cultural, historical, and heritage storytelling experiences.

The company will specialize in creating, owning, and operating world-class interactive exhibitions across Saudi Arabia, which will contribute to meeting pilgrims’ and tourists’ growing demand for high-quality cultural experiences.

QSAS, derived from an Arabic word meaning "stories," will aim to enrich visitors' experiences, especially of those interested in culture. It will highlight historical milestones and inspiring personalities from Saudi Arabia and beyond.

The company plans to start by holding exhibitions locally and sharing narratives that draw from Islamic history and Saudi heritage, and aims to broaden its reach to global markets and vary the content it offers.

Establishing QSAS is consistent with PIF's strategy to enable the private sector locally through partnerships in areas such as building, event management, and technology, and is expected to contribute to the creation of more than 11,000 direct and indirect jobs by 2030, the statement said.

"QSAS will contribute to strengthening Saudi Arabia's position as an attractive tourist destination with storytelling inspired by history, culture, and heritage, and will invest in local talent to build new economic activity focused on providing interactive experiences; a sector witnessing significant global growth,” said Head of Entertainment, Leisure, Sports and Education, MENA Direct Investments at PIF Mishary Alibraheem.

QSAS will complement other PIF investments in the entertainment and leisure sector, such as the Diriyah giga-project and the recently launched Dan Company, which focuses on agriculture and eco-tourism. It also aligns with the objectives of the Pilgrim Experience Program, a Vision 2030 initiative that aims to welcome 30 million pilgrims by 2030, and with the Ministry of Tourism's National Tourism Strategy, which envisages attracting 150 million visitors annually by 2030 by enhancing the visitor experience.

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Culture

Syria's Aleppo Set for Revival Despite War Scars to its Heritage

During the four years of fighting before Assad's forces recaptured Aleppo following a devastating siege, the city was virtually emptied - AFP
During the four years of fighting before Assad's forces recaptured Aleppo following a devastating siege, the city was virtually emptied - AFP
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Syria's Aleppo Set for Revival Despite War Scars to its Heritage

During the four years of fighting before Assad's forces recaptured Aleppo following a devastating siege, the city was virtually emptied - AFP
During the four years of fighting before Assad's forces recaptured Aleppo following a devastating siege, the city was virtually emptied - AFP

The historic Baron Hotel in Syria's Aleppo is dilapidated and damaged by years of war but still standing and ready for a revival, much like the city itself.

Aleppo's old city, designated a UNESCO World Heritage site, was ravaged by the conflict that erupted after a government crackdown on protests in 2011.

Between 2012 and 2016, it became a battleground between Syria's military and opposition factions.

The army of now-ousted president Bashar al-Assad shelled opposition fighters from the ground and struck them from the air, supported by Russian firepower.
Opposition groups, meanwhile, used mortars and artisanal rockets, as the fighting turned ancient streets into sniper alleys.

During the four years of fighting before the government recaptured Aleppo following a devastating siege, the city was virtually emptied.

Now, after Assad's fall following a lightning opposition offensive led by Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, residents are looking forward to reconstruction.

"Unfortunately, more than 60 percent of the edifices in the old city, monuments of the old city of Aleppo, were devastated to ground zero," said Georges Edleby, a tour guide in the city for 35 years.

"Hopefully there will be a day that we see them again restored."

The ancient souks where Aleppo's famed olive oil soap is piled up in stacks for sale has been reduced in many places to little more than rubble.

- 'Hope for a better life' -

Aleppo's medieval citadel, however, remains relatively intact.

Opposition fighters, one with a rose slipped into the barrel of his gun, stood guard outside the ancient ramparts, which Syria's army turned into a stronghold during the war.

Most of the damage in the citadel was caused by a 2023 earthquake, locals say.

Below in the old city, a few alleys of the souk -- once the largest in the world with 4,000 stalls -- have reopened after being restored, including with Saudi financial aid.

Jamal Habbal, 66, has spent all his life under the stone vaults of the old city and reopened his macrame and rope shop there a year ago.

"We have so many memories here. It was a big market that was vibrant and lively. Girls used to come to buy items for their trousseaus. They could find everything," he told AFP.

"And then suddenly, the crisis," he said, reluctant to even say the word war.

"We had to leave. I returned in 2018, but it's still difficult," he added, speaking in a dark and largely deserted alley.

Fadel Fadel has also reopened his shop offering souvenirs, soap and mother-of-pearl inlaid boxes.

"It was completely destroyed here," said the 51-year-old.

He is hoping to see Aleppo returned to its status as a "center of commerce, industry and tourism."

"We hope for a better life."

- Museum ready to reopen -

Outside, dusty streets wind between ruins that await reconstruction and revival.

The Baron Hotel once welcomed Agatha Christie, Egyptian president Gamal Abdel Nasser and France's Charles de Gaulle.

Visitors flocked to see the somewhat faded glory of its rooms, as well as its terrace and the unpaid bar bill belonging to one Lawrence of Arabia.

But now, several broken windows adorned with shutters hanging from a single hinge offer a view into a deserted building covered in dust.

The hotel's future is uncertain.

Its last owner, Armen Mazloumian, has passed away. He told AFP back in 2014 that he felt the hotel's glory days were behind it and it would "never be what it once was again".

Nearby, however, the National Museum of Aleppo is readying to reopen. Its courtyard was hit in shelling but its building and collection were spared.

Director Ahmed Othman said the museum "took lessons from the experience of our neighbours," including institutions in Iraq and Lebanon.

"We took the necessary measures to protect our collections," he said.

"The statues that were too heavy to move were encased in concrete and the smaller pieces were moved to safe places."

Treasures that trace nine millennia of history and the birth of writing in nearby Mesopotamia have been preserved unharmed as a result.

"We did many things in order to protect the museum as a whole," said Othman