Asia Tech Wire (Nov 1) -- Google Cloud and Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund (PIF) announced a strategic partnership to create a new global artificial intelligence (AI) center during the 8th Future Investment Initiative (FII8) on Wednesday.

The center, which will sit near Dammam in Saudi Arabia's Eastern Province, is expected to create thousands of jobs and add $71 billion to Saudi Arabia's GDP over eight years.

One of the highlights of the partnership is that the two companies will jointly develop Arabic language models and Saudi-specific AI applications.

Google Cloud and PIF will provide training to millions of students and professionals through AI programs to support Saudi Arabia's goal of achieving a 50% growth in the information and communications technology (ICT) sector.