As Saudi Arabia’s Minister of Communications and Information Technology since 2017, H.E. Eng. Abdullah Alswaha has been one of the most consequential architects of the Kingdom’s digital and AI transformation. Under his leadership, the ministry has driven the country’s rise as a global technology hub, underpinning Vision 2030’s ambitions across digital infrastructure, AI adoption and the broader knowledge economy.
Before his ministerial appointment, Alswaha served as Saudi Arabia’s Chief Digital Officer, leading national digitisation efforts including a digital identity scheme and open data initiatives, and prior to that as CEO of Cisco Saudi Arabia. He also founded Ubieva, a social entrepreneurship incubator that launched the first mobile health app in the Middle East.
Beyond his ministerial role, he chairs the Communications, Space and Technology Commission, the Digital Government Authority, the Saudi Space Agency and NEO Space Group, and sits on the boards of NEOM, Alat and HUMAIN — placing him at the centre of the Kingdom’s most strategically significant AI and technology ventures.
