stc Group Net Profit for First Quarter of 2025 Increases 11.05%

CEO of stc Group Eng. Olayan Alwetaid highlighted that the group’s achievements were the result of its unwavering commitment to innovation, operational efficiency, and sustainable growth. Asharq Al-Awsat
CEO of stc Group Eng. Olayan Alwetaid highlighted that the group’s achievements were the result of its unwavering commitment to innovation, operational efficiency, and sustainable growth. Asharq Al-Awsat
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stc Group Net Profit for First Quarter of 2025 Increases 11.05%

CEO of stc Group Eng. Olayan Alwetaid highlighted that the group’s achievements were the result of its unwavering commitment to innovation, operational efficiency, and sustainable growth. Asharq Al-Awsat
CEO of stc Group Eng. Olayan Alwetaid highlighted that the group’s achievements were the result of its unwavering commitment to innovation, operational efficiency, and sustainable growth. Asharq Al-Awsat

Saudi Arabia’s stc announced on Sunday the company’s preliminary financial results for the first quarter ending March 31, reporting revenues of SAR19,210 million, a 1.60% increase year-over-year.

Gross profit rose by 5.01% to SAR9,098 million, operating profit increased by 2.02% to SAR3,584 million, and EBITDA grew by 5.25% to SAR6,120 million. Net profit for the quarter reached SAR3,649 million, representing an 11.05% increase compared to the same period last year.

According to a statement issued by stc, the group distributed SAR0.55 per share for the first quarter of 2025, in accordance with the dividends distribution policy approved by the General Assembly.

Commenting on the results, CEO of stc Group Eng. Olayan Alwetaid highlighted that the group’s achievements were the result of its unwavering commitment to innovation, operational efficiency, and sustainable growth, as well as its relentless pursuit of creating added value for shareholders, customers, and the digital economy as a whole.

He further added that, early in 2025, stc Group achieved several strategic milestones that further solidified its position in the telecommunications and information technology sector. Among these achievements was a new global milestone, as the group successfully localized the software for eSIM technology in collaboration with Thales, making stc the first telecom operator in the world to obtain SAS-UP license certification from the GSMA.

He emphasized that this accomplishment complements stc’s ongoing efforts to support local content in the ICT sector through business localization and the transfer of manufacturing and technical expertise to the Kingdom.
In continuation of the group’s efforts to enhance the digital communication infrastructure in the region, stc signed a strategic agreement with Ooredoo to establish an international ground fiber network corridor between Saudi Arabia and Oman. This strategic partnership aims to enhance the digital communication infrastructure in the region through the project, which starts with the Saudi-Oman corridor. The project will also create an integrated ground fiber network with two backup routes, connecting submarine cable landing stations on the Red Sea in Saudi Arabia to their counterparts on the Arabian Sea in Oman, passing through dedicated data centers in both countries. This agreement reaffirms the Group’s commitment to delivering advanced communication solutions, enhancing intercontinental connectivity, and driving digital transformation to support the region’s economic growth.
The statement added that stc Group strengthened its position in cloud computing and artificial intelligence by signing an agreement with Amazon Web Services (AWS). This partnership significantly boosts the Group’s ability to deliver advanced technological solutions tailored to the diverse needs of various sectors, while reaffirming its commitment to driving the shift toward an integrated digital economy and leading the future of smart technology in the Kingdom and beyond.
Furthermore, as part of its commitment to providing the highest quality of digital services, stc Group enhanced its telecommunications network in the Two Holy Mosques during the holy month of Ramadan by strengthening its infrastructure to meet the growing demand for services during peak times. This upgrade resulted in a 120% increase in connection speed, enabling the Group to ensure an exceptional communication experience for visitors to the holy sites during the peak visitor periods.



Reddit Sues AI Giant Anthropic Over Content Use

Dario Amodei, co-founder and CEO of Anthropic. JULIEN DE ROSA / AFP
Dario Amodei, co-founder and CEO of Anthropic. JULIEN DE ROSA / AFP
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Reddit Sues AI Giant Anthropic Over Content Use

Dario Amodei, co-founder and CEO of Anthropic. JULIEN DE ROSA / AFP
Dario Amodei, co-founder and CEO of Anthropic. JULIEN DE ROSA / AFP

Social media outlet Reddit filed a lawsuit Wednesday against artificial intelligence company Anthropic, accusing the startup of illegally scraping millions of user comments to train its Claude chatbot without permission or compensation.

The lawsuit in a California state court represents the latest front in the growing battle between content providers and AI companies over the use of data to train increasingly sophisticated language models that power the generative AI revolution.

Anthropic, valued at $61.5 billion and heavily backed by Amazon, was founded in 2021 by former executives from OpenAI, the creator of ChatGPT.

The company, known for its Claude chatbot and AI models, positions itself as focused on AI safety and responsible development.

"This case is about the two faces of Anthropic: the public face that attempts to ingratiate itself into the consumer's consciousness with claims of righteousness and respect for boundaries and the law, and the private face that ignores any rules that interfere with its attempts to further line its pockets," the suit said.

According to the complaint, Anthropic has been training its models on Reddit content since at least December 2021, with CEO Dario Amodei co-authoring research papers that specifically identified high-quality content for data training.

The lawsuit alleges that despite Anthropic's public claims that it had blocked its bots from accessing Reddit, the company's automated systems continued to harvest Reddit's servers more than 100,000 times in subsequent months.

Reddit is seeking monetary damages and a court injunction to force Anthropic to comply with its user agreement terms. The company has requested a jury trial.

In an email to AFP, Anthropic said "We disagree with Reddit's claims and will defend ourselves vigorously."

Reddit has entered into licensing agreements with other AI giants including Google and OpenAI, which allow those companies to use Reddit content under terms that protect user privacy and provide compensation to the platform.

Those deals have helped lift Reddit's share price since it went public in 2024.

Reddit shares closed up more than six percent on Wednesday following news of the lawsuit.

Musicians, book authors, visual artists and news publications have sued the various AI companies that used their data without permission or payment.

AI companies generally defend their practices by claiming fair use, arguing that training AI on large datasets fundamentally changes the original content and is necessary for innovation.

Though most of these lawsuits are still in early stages, their outcomes could have a profound effect on the shape of the AI industry.