Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund and Aramco announced on Sunday the closing of a transaction in which Aramco, through a wholly owned subsidiary, acquires a 49% stake in HUMAIN, with PIF retaining 51% ownership. The transaction will further accelerate HUMAIN’s growth and advance its full range of AI capabilities globally, with PIF and Aramco contributing AI assets, capabilities, and talent, a joint statement said. It involves approximately SAR 9.9 billion ($2.6 billion) in cash contributions in 2026 from Aramco to HUMAIN, in addition to AI, compute, and digital assets. The transaction will accelerate HUMAIN’s ambition to build a globally competitive, integrated AI ecosystem spanning the full stack: from data centers and high-performance compute to advanced models, applications, and industry solutions. Additionally, it will further enable HUMAIN’s plans to develop data center capacity by 2030 and deliver solutions that help the public and private sectors to deploy AI at scale, the statement said. The transaction builds on Saudi Arabia’s efforts to further enable the development and deployment of the most advanced data and AI technologies while attracting talent and investment opportunities, it added. According to the statement, PIF's strategy for AI and the digital economy benefits from Saudi Arabia’s position as a globally competitive market through innovation and capacity building. Partnering with Aramco in HUMAIN aligns with PIF 2026-2030 strategy, which aims to deepen integration across economic ecosystems, expand opportunities with the private sector, and accelerate the growth of national companies into globally competitive leaders. Aramco is expected to leverage HUMAIN’s AI infrastructure to translate advanced AI capabilities into industrial applications, further enhancing its global ecosystem and operations. Aramco will benefit as a shareholder and strategic partner from HUMAIN’s advanced AI infrastructure and services. With opportunities for revenue growth and attractive margins, the partnership is expected to enhance Aramco’s monetization of existing AI and digital assets, support its broader strategy, and complement its core energy business, the statement said. “Bringing PIF and Aramco’s AI portfolio of investments together under HUMAIN creates a powerful synergy that fuels talent growth, technological advancement, and intellectual property creation,” said Yazeed A. Al-Humied, Deputy Governor and Head of MENA Investments at PIF. “Fully aligned with PIF’s strategic objectives, this transaction accelerates HUMAIN’s growth into a global leader in the sector, strengthening AI as an enabler of PIF’s six ecosystems and further expanding private sector participation across our portfolio while advancing the development of cutting-edge technologies in Saudi Arabia.” Aramco President & CEO Amin H. Nasser said he was proud of the achieved progress in developing and deploying advanced digital and AI technologies to enhance performance across the oil and gas sectors. “Since 2023, Aramco has achieved $11.3 billion in Technology Realized Value, with a significant portion coming from AI solutions. This partnership with PIF strengthens Aramco’s position as a global technology leader and AI powerhouse, while laying the foundation for localizing the AI industry and enabling faster, more integrated, and scalable deployment of AI systems. AI will therefore play a vital role in the future of business. We are delighted to collaborate with PIF to help shape the future of AI regionally and globally,” he added.
