Chinese tech firms expand cloud and hardware operations in Saudi Arabia during LEAP

During the LEAP technology showcase in Riyadh, several Chinese firms disclosed major expansion plans in Saudi Arabia. BytePlus, the enterprise cloud arm of ByteDance, signed a deal with local carrier Mobily to build the region’s first on-site cloud infrastructure. Tencent Cloud secured a Saudi operating licence, a step that builds on the $150 million it has already invested in the market.

Lenovo revealed that it will commence large-scale production of a newly unveiled laptop in Riyadh before the end of the year. These initiatives may attract attention from Washington, where the Trump administration has offered advanced chips to Gulf states to deter Chinese involvement. Nonetheless, American tech interest persists, as Elon Musk’s xAI announced at the same conference its intention to open a data centre outside the United States in Saudi Arabia.