The growth of the digital population coupled with the accelerated pace of economic reforms has caused the need for a robust embrace of next-gen technologies. Backed by consistent governmental support and strong digital infrastructure, Saudi Arabia emerged as MENA’s fastest-growing IT market, with technology spending anticipated to be worth $37.5 billion in 2024.
At the heart of this monumental shift lies cloud computing technology, the country’s next frontier for economic growth and job creation. Saudi Arabia’s transition towards a cloud-native nation is strengthened by increasing demand for cloud expertise, fueling a corresponding rise in demand for global cloud services providers, such as Bespin Global MEA, an e& enterprise company.
The company has recently expanded its operations to Saudi Arabia with the help of AstroLabs, driven by the lucrative market opportunity as more firms are actively scaling up their cloud innovation. Before marking their entry into the Kingdom, our team helped them expand from Korea to the Gulf, with Dubai as their launchpad.
Their first move in the region was acquiring Falcon 9, one of the leading cloud technologies consulting and management companies in the Middle East, to further accelerate the cloud industry in the Gulf by enabling customers on their journeys to building data-driven organizations through the Cloud, DevOps, Big Data, and AI technologies.
Highlighting AstroLabs’ impact in streamlining the Saudi market entry for Bespin, Mouteih Chaghlil, CEO of Bespin Global MEA, said: “The AstroLabs team made it considerably easy for us to launch our operations in the Saudi market and has been very helpful in guiding us through the intricacies of entering the market.”
“From establishing our legal entity to providing physical offices for our on-ground team, they served as an indispensable extension of our own team, offering guidance and expertise throughout the process.”
Paving the Way for a Sustainable, Digitally-Driven Future
The Kingdom was Bespin’s next destination of choice and a key market of focus across MENA, with Vision 2030 being a primary factor sustaining the market’s positive momentum.
“The Saudi market has always been one of the main Middle Eastern countries where we aim to establish a strong presence, especially with the Kingdom’s Vision 2030 and the cloud-first strategy declared by the country,” Chaghlil revealed.
With the surging AI and cloud adoption in Saudi Arabia, Bespin has been ramping up its push to help Saudi enterprises leverage AI-driven cloud capabilities and achieve digital transformation through industry-leading solutions. Notable clients include Jarir Bookstore, Imtiaz, Muvi Cinemas, and Al Dawaa, among others.
Working with Bespin has been instrumental for its partner companies in terms of “achieving significant cost savings, enhancing operational efficiency, and bolstering the overall resilience of IT infrastructure by transitioning their workloads to the cloud.”
In 2021, Bespin established its first MENA headquarters in the UAE, and it has since cemented its position as a key player in the realm of cloud services.
Strengthened by its position as a market leader in the UAE, Bespin formed a joint venture with e& Enterprise only a year after its entry into the UAE market. The newly created venture was founded with the aim of becoming the largest pure-play, public cloud-managed, and professional services provider in the Middle East, Turkey, Africa, and Pakistan.
Saudi Arabia and the UAE are among a growing list of global markets where Bespin has a presence, reflecting its global reach and impact. The list includes China, Korea, Singapore, India, Vietnam, and the USA.
The Kingdom’s Rise as a Global Hotspot for Cloud Technologies
The Kingdom has already made significant headway in cloud adoption, with cloud registrations recording a 40% year-on-year increase in the fourth quarter of 2023. The figure, according to Chaghlil, is well above the global average. The shift towards higher cloud adoption is largely mirrored in the rise in public spending on cloud services, expected to exceed $2.4 billion in 2024 and $4.7 billion in 2027.
Saudi Arabia’s innovation drive is inextricably linked with the government’s proactivity to foster cloud innovation, paving the way for the Kingdom’s ascent as one of the most evolving cloud computing markets in the world.
“We believe these strategies and the newly established Cloud Computing Special Economic Zone in Saudi Arabia are shaping the country’s groundbreaking digital infrastructure, and cloud companies should be there to collaborate in writing this new chapter and help businesses leverage the endless capabilities of the cloud,” he added.
The paradigm shift towards cloud computing and its implications extend far beyond digital innovation, as the technology holds immense potential to boost Saudi GDP and its economic growth.
Citing market data, Chaghlil further explained that cloud computing will contribute SR7 billion ($1.8 billion) to the Kingdom’s GDP by 2030, with a target of an 80% adoption rate of cloud computing in the public sector. Chaghlil further stated that the cloud can be the driving force behind significant economic and social transformation.
“This includes the development of a digital and data-driven e-government infrastructure; rapid and secure delivery of innovative citizen-centric services; improved ease of doing business; attainment of a vibrant, diversified, and knowledge-based digital economy and retail sector; and enhancement of focus on the emerging sustainable economy,” he explained
Cloud services remain central to Saudi’s tech resurgence and serve as a cornerstone of its economic future. Bespin, with its extensive reach and global influence, heralds a new era of business digital transformation in the country, positioning it as the epicenter of cloud technologies worldwide.
Expand to Saudi with AstroLabs, get in touch with us today