Saudi Arabia exhibits remarkable AI advancement, with 40% of organizations now qualifying as AI Leaders according to a comprehensive new study by Boston Consulting Group. The report, "Unlocking Potential: How GCC Organizations Can Convert AI Momentum into Value at Scale," revealed that Saudi organizations are successfully matching global benchmarks while demonstrating exceptional scale in AI implementation across the Kingdom's diverse economic landscape.
The study, which surveyed 200 C-suite executives and assessed 41 digital and AI capabilities across seven industries, showed that 35% of Saudi organizations have reached the critical "Scaling" AI maturity stage, reflecting rapid expansion beyond experimental phases toward comprehensive enterprise deployment.
With an average AI maturity score of 43, the report demonstrated Saudi Arabia’s solid progress in AI sophistication, while also indicating a significant opportunity for continued advancement for the 27% of organizations that remain in the "Stagnating" category.
"Saudi Arabia's progress in AI adoption reflects the Kingdom's commitment to technological transformation at unprecedented scale," said Rami Mourtada, Partner & Director, Digital Transformation at Boston Consulting Group.
"AI leaders in Saudi Arabia are uniquely positioned to leverage the Kingdom's commitment to and sizable investments in building globally competitive AI infrastructures to drive substantial business impact across multiple industries simultaneously," he added.
"The key for Saudi organizations moving forward lies in adopting systematic approaches to AI value creation through comprehensive strategies that address their local challenges while nurturing a global outlook," he went on to say.
Across the broader Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) region, the report demonstrated remarkable progress in closing the AI adoption gap with global markets. According to the report, 39% of all GCC organizations now qualify as AI Leaders, compared to the global average of 40%, representing a fundamental transformation in how regional businesses approach artificial intelligence.
The GCC region demonstrates exceptional AI leadership, with its Public Sector achieving the highest AI maturity levels globally across all surveyed markets. While TMT continues to lead in AI maturity within the GCC, there is rapid advancement occurring in other critical sectors including Financial Institutions, Health Care, Industrial Goods, and Travel, Cities, and Infrastructure, highlighting the region's broad-based AI transformation, said the report.
The financial impact of AI leadership proves substantial, with AI Leaders across the GCC delivering up to 1.7 times higher total shareholder returns and 1.5 times higher EBIT margins compared to AI Laggards. This performance differential underscores the critical importance of moving beyond pilot programs toward scaled implementation.
This success is directly linked to higher AI investment levels - AI Leaders are dedicating 6.2% of their IT budgets to AI in 2025 compared to only 4.2% by Laggards. As AI budgets continue to grow, the value generated by AI Leaders is expected to be 3-5x higher by 2028, not only amplifying their competitive advantage but also significantly widening the performance gap between Leaders and Laggards.
While the GCC has demonstrated advanced digital maturity in recent years, AI maturity has surged by 8 points between 2024 and 2025, now trailing overall digital maturity by just 2 points.
The study revealed that successful AI Leaders distinguish themselves through five critical strategic moves: pursuing multi-year strategic ambitions with 2.5 times more leadership engagement than laggards, fundamentally reshaping business processes rather than simply deploying off-the-shelf solutions, implementing AI-first operating models with robust governance frameworks, securing and upskilling talent at 1.8 times the rate of competitors, and building fit-for-purpose technology architectures that reduce adoption challenges by 15%.
Looking toward frontier technologies, 38% of GCC organizations are already experimenting with agentic AI, positioning the region competitively against the global average of 46%. The value generated from agentic AI initiatives, currently at 17%, is projected to double to 29% by 2028, driven by continued experimentation and strategic deployment.
Despite this strong momentum, GCC organizations continue to face barriers to AI adoption, with AI Laggards 18% more likely than AI Leaders to encounter people, organization, process challenges stemming from limited cross-functional collaboration on AI, unclear AI value measurement, misalignment with enterprise strategy, or lack of leadership commitment.
AI Laggards are also 17% more likely to face challenges in algorithm implementation, especially around limited access to high-quality data, and 10% more likely to encounter technology constraints, such as security risks and RAI implementation, in addition to a general constraint in the availability of local GPUs, further increasing burden on organizations.
"AI laggards are more likely to face people, organization, and process barriers, often compounded by difficulties in creating AI-focused roles and attracting scarce talent at competitive market rates. Infrastructure constraints, including limited access to GPUs, add further pressure," said Semyon Schetinin, Managing Director & Partner at Boston Consulting Group.
"The next phase of value creation will depend on multi-year strategic ambitions that address these realities head-on. This includes building robust AI training and upskilling pipelines, evolving private-sector talent sourcing strategies, and strengthening public-private sector collaboration to improve access to top technology and enable sustained, scalable AI impact," he stressed.
The report emphasized that sustained AI leadership requires continued focus on executive engagement, comprehensive talent development, responsible AI governance, and strategic alignment between AI initiatives and broader business objectives. As Saudi organizations continue their AI transformation journey, their ability to deploy AI at scale across sectors, supported by strong public- and private-sector advancement, further strengthens their capacity to translate AI adoption into meaningful value creation.
