French entrepreneur and investor Julie Barbier does not see Saudi Arabia merely as a promising market for technology companies, but as a global launchpad that enables the testing, development, and scaling of breakthrough technologies. The founder and CEO of Merit believes that the Kingdom's combination of digital infrastructure, capital availability, execution speed, and broad customer base makes it an attractive environment for building technology products that can subsequently expand into regional and international markets. In an interview with Asharq Al-Awsat, Barbier said that the economic transformation driven by Vision 2030 has created a highly ambitious business environment that is quick to embrace new ideas, alongside the restructuring of major sectors including finance, tourism, transportation, trade, logistics, and government services. She cited the experience of Merit, a global company specializing in engagement and incentive technologies, whose Saudi team achieves innovation efficiency levels 59 percent higher than the company's internal innovation benchmark and generates about eight innovation initiatives each week. Barbier said Saudi Arabia has become one of the world's most attractive environments for launching, validating, and scaling new technologies, benefiting from high rates of digital adoption, a willingness among major institutions to collaborate with innovative solutions, abundant capital, and the simultaneous transformation of entire economic sectors. She explained that these conditions provide entrepreneurs with access to real-world use cases and serious customers, allowing them to launch and test new products at scale before rapidly refining and adapting them for expansion into other markets. In her view, the Kingdom's pace of transformation also encourages a greater willingness to challenge traditional methods, a critical factor when developing new solutions. For Merit, which selected Riyadh as its regional headquarters, Barbier said the company's presence in Saudi Arabia gives it direct access to customers and partners while enabling it to develop and test products before introducing them internationally. "That is why I see Saudi Arabia not simply as a technology market, but as a launchpad for companies with regional and global ambitions," she said. French entrepreneur and investor Julie Barbier (Asharq Al-Awsat) Vision 2030: From Ambition to Rapid Execution Barbier said one of Vision 2030's most significant contributions has been providing the Kingdom with a clear direction and a high level of ambition shared by government institutions, businesses, investors, and entrepreneurs. "In a transformation of this scale, it is natural for some goals to progress faster than others, but the direction is clear and the momentum is strong," she said. She believes that the clarity of ambition across the business ecosystem directly influences how new ideas are received. Decisions are made more quickly, experimentation is encouraged, and companies become more willing to adopt new ways of working. Barbier likened Vision 2030 to a wave pushing the entrepreneurial ecosystem forward. Entrepreneurs and companies operating in the Kingdom are not merely benefiting from this momentum, she said; they are also helping to create it and moving in the same direction. Merit's experience reflects that transformation. Although the company operates through approximately eight offices and employs staff from 24 nationalities, its Saudi team performs 59 percent better on the company's internal innovation index and launches around eight innovation initiatives each week. According to Barbier, these figures are a practical demonstration of Vision 2030's impact. "It is not simply a government strategy," she said. "It creates an environment that encourages people to work harder, experiment more, move faster, and think on a larger scale." She added that this momentum has become part of Merit's strategic advantage: "We benefit from it and contribute to strengthening it." A Digital Environment that Shortens the Path from Idea to Execution Discussing her experience as a French entrepreneur and investor leading a global technology company from Riyadh, Barbier said what distinguishes Saudi Arabia's business environment is the speed with which decisions move from ambition to implementation, something entrepreneurs notice in their daily operations. She noted that a wide range of services have become digital, from government services, digital identity, and payments to banking and business management. Many procedures that once required paperwork, appointments, or multiple intermediaries can now be completed digitally with increasing ease. Barbier believes this digital transformation is not simply changing service delivery but is also reshaping the business mindset itself by raising expectations regarding execution speed and customer experience, while a broad technology infrastructure continues to be built across the Kingdom. In this context, she highlighted the role of Saudi companies in strengthening the ecosystem. She noted that HUMAIN is developing capabilities in data centers, cloud infrastructure, models, and applications, while the government-owned company Elm serves as an example of how deeply technology has become integrated into sectors such as government services, finance, logistics, and business services. Regarding Merit's decision to establish its regional headquarters in Riyadh, Barbier said the Kingdom's importance to the company extends beyond market size to include the environment it offers for product development, testing, and expansion. "That is why we chose Riyadh as our regional headquarters," she said, "while continuing to develop products and technologies from Saudi Arabia that target global markets." French entrepreneur and investor Julie Barbier at the Biban Forum in Riyadh (Asharq Al-Awsat) The Future of Female Entrepreneurship in Saudi Arabia Asked about the future of female entrepreneurship in the Kingdom, Barbier said: "I witnessed tremendous passion for entrepreneurship during my recent participation in the Saudi Unicorns Forum in Abha, where I met several female founders. What stood out was not only their ability to build companies, but also their level of ambition, commitment, and desire to expand and grow." She noted that Saudi women are already active as founders, chief executives, investors, and decision-makers. What further strengthens their role, she said, is the growing entrepreneurial support ecosystem, which includes business leaders, investors, and experienced mentors who open doors, share expertise, and support the next generation of female entrepreneurs. "I would also like to mention Princess Reema bint Bandar, the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques' Ambassador to the United States, whose leadership and support have helped create more opportunities and support for the next generation of Saudi female entrepreneurs," she said. Barbier added that Merit has witnessed similar progress internally across areas including product management, design, and marketing, where women directly influence the products the company develops, the decisions it makes, and the way it grows. "Therefore, I do not believe the question today is whether Saudi women participate in entrepreneurship," she added. "They are already present and playing an active role. The next step is enabling more founders to scale by expanding access to capital, mentorship, and international networks, helping them build companies capable of growing regionally and globally."
