Saudi Press

Saudi Arabia and the world
Thursday, Oct 02, 2025

Bridging the Kingdom’s rapidly changing economy and top talent development

King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST) world-leading graduate research education ensures young people have the knowledge and training required for the rapidly-changing Saudi economy, which speakers explored during the Future Talent Conference: Fireside Talks on March 15.
Dr. Najah Ashry, vice president of KAUST for Strategic National Advancement, said in her opening remarks that the Kingdom is undergoing a “massive transformation towards a sustainable future” that is unparalleled anywhere throughout history. “We know that it is really going to impact the job market. It’s going to impact how we look at ourselves and how we define the future.”

The Kingdom’s Vision 2030 goals include increasing non-oil government revenue from SR163 billion to SR1 trillion per year, increasing the private sector’s contribution from 40 to 65 percent of GDP, and increasing GDP contributions from small- and- medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) from 20 to 35 percent. It also aims to lower the unemployment rate from 11.6 to seven percent.

Saudi Arabia is changing rapidly, said Ashry, and with so much investment in the research and innovation ecosystem, the impact on the career paths of Saudi students is apparent. “KAUST is also undergoing tremendous changes to be able to support the development of the Kingdom.”

Dana Al-Sulaiman, assistant professor, material science and engineering physical science and engineering division, KAUST, told the conference that the Kingdom’s Vision 2030 is aligning different industries, programs and people from across the country towards a common cause. “The nice thing about the vision is it’s really allowing the whole society to hone in on very well-defined goals and objectives.”

She said that KAUST not only advances the Kingdom through groundbreaking research, but also by preparing the next generation for opportunities. “Saudi is really becoming more diverse in terms of its economy, but the other nice thing is Saudi is empowering its youth. And so, if you look left, right and center you’ll see there are many centers for educating and empowering this generation, whether it’s through academia, through entrepreneurship or through industry.”

With a generation of future leaders inspired and educated towards addressing the same challenges, Al-Sulaiman added, the Kingdom can advance quickly towards prosperity and sustainability. “As long as you’re learning how to learn, and you have the ambition, and you demonstrate that through your activities and your approach, then you’ll go very far.”

Hosted alongside KAUST’s Spring Career Fair, March 15-16, 2023, the Future Talent Conference built on the success of last year’s conference with its ‘Fireside Talks’ featuring experts from KAUST and industry discussing how market dynamics and technology are impacting both employees and employers.

Tania Tasopoulou, director of workforce planning and development, Beacon Development, cites the Saudi Green Initiative as providing job growth, but industry must ensure the ‘right’ workforce skills are developed. Shinkyu Park, assistant professor in electrical and computer engineering, KAUST, said industry collaboration is key to academic alignment, helping to ensure young people’s education matches the technology research requirements.

Omar Khasawneh, startup incubation lead, KAUST, said that with the Kingdom’s plan to increase the presence of SMEs in the overall economy, young people have much more access to capital to start their own companies or join an early-stage enterprise. Further, he added, an increase in SMEs will change the dynamics for attracting and retaining talent, with larger employers forced to compete for a limited pool of available skilled workers.

“Even big corporates, they need now to change their processes and work culture in order to tap into this young talent that has other options. Otherwise, they’ll miss out.”

For its part, SaudiVax is a biotechnology firm developing vaccines and biologics, specifically to meet unmet regional medical demands. Along with building a biotechnological ecosystem in the Kingdom, Project Manager Leena Alameer said SaudiVax has a training program to bring more Saudis into the pharma sector. “This program will touch base from the development stage and to the upscaling and marketing stage of new products, and especially of vaccines.”
Newsletter

Related Articles

Saudi Press
0:00
0:00
Close
Altman Says GPT-5 Already Outpaces Him, Warns AI Could Automate 40% of Work
Trump Organization Teams with Saudi Developer on $1 Billion Trump Plaza in Jeddah
Electronic Arts to Be Taken Private in Historic $55 Billion Buyout
Colombian President Petro Vows to Mobilize Volunteers for Gaza and Joins List of Fighters
Nvidia and Abu Dhabi’s TII Launch First AI-&-Robotics Lab in the Middle East
UK, Canada, and Australia Officially Recognise Palestine in Historic Shift
New Eye Drops Show Promise in Replacing Reading Glasses for Presbyopia
Dubai Property Boom Shows Strain as Flippers Get Buyer’s Remorse
Top AI Researchers Are Heading Back to China as U.S. Struggles to Keep Pace
JWST Data Brings TRAPPIST-1e Closer to Earth-Like Habitability
UAE-US Stargate Project Poised to Make Abu Dhabi a Global AI Powerhouse
Trump and Starmer Clash Over UK Recognition of Palestinian State Amid State Visit
Saudi Arabia cracks down on music ‘lounges’ after conservative backlash
Saudi Arabia Signs ‘Strategic Mutual Defence’ Pact with Pakistan, Marking First Arab State to Gain Indirect Access to Nuclear Strike Capabilities in the Region
Sam Altman sells the 'Wedding Estate' in Hawaii for 49 million dollars
Turkish car manufacturer Togg Enters German Market with 5-Star Electric Sedan and SUV to Challenge European EV Brands
World’s Longest Direct Flight China Eastern to Launch 29-Hour Shanghai–Buenos Aires Direct Flight via Auckland in December
New OpenAI Study Finds Majority of ChatGPT Use Is Personal, Not Professional
Kuwait opens bidding for construction of three cities to ease housing crunch.
This Week in AI: Meta’s Superintelligence Push, xAI’s Ten Billion-Dollar Raise, Genesis AI’s Robotics Ambitions, Microsoft Restructuring, Amazon’s Million-Robot Milestone, and Google’s AlphaGenome Update
Indian Student Engineers Propose “Project REBIRTH” to Protect Aircraft from Crashes Using AI, Airbags and Smart Materials
Could AI Nursing Robots Help Healthcare Staffing Shortages?
Turkish authorities seize leading broadcaster amid fraud and tax investigation
Qatari prime minister says Netanyahu ‘killed any hope’ for Israeli hostages
Apple Introduces Ultra-Thin iPhone Air, Enhanced 17 Series and New Health-Focused Wearables
Big Oil Slashes Jobs and Investments Amid Prolonged Low Crude Prices
Social Media Access Curtailed in Turkey After CHP Calls for Rallies Following Police Blockade of Istanbul Headquarters
Did the Houthis disrupt the internet in the Middle East? Submarine cables cut in the Red Sea
Gold Could Reach Nearly $5,000 if Fed Independence Is Undermined, Goldman Sachs Warns
Uruguay, Colombia and Paraguay Secure Places at 2026 World Cup
Trump Administration Advances Plans to Rebrand Pentagon as Department of War Instead of the Fake Term Department of Defense
Tether Expands into Gold Sector with Profit-Driven Diversification
Trump’s New War – and the ‘Drug Tyrant’ Fearing Invasion: ‘1,200 Missiles Aimed at Us’
At the Parade in China: Laser Weapons, 'Eagle Strike,' and a Missile Capable of 'Striking Anywhere in the World'
Information Warfare in the Age of AI: How Language Models Become Targets and Tools
Israeli Airstrike in Yemen Kills Houthi Prime Minister
After the Shock of Defeat, Iranians Yearn for Change
YouTube Altered Content by Artificial Intelligence – Without Permission
Iran Faces Escalating Water Crisis as Protests Spread
More Than Half a Million Evacuated as Typhoon Kajiki Heads for Vietnam
HSBC Switzerland Ends Relationships with Over 1,000 Clients from Saudi Arabia, Lebanon, Qatar, and Egypt
Sharia Law Made Legally Binding in Austria Despite Warnings Over 'Incompatible' Values
Dogfights in the Skies: Airbus on Track to Overtake Boeing and Claim Aviation Supremacy
Tim Cook Promises an AI Revolution at Apple: "One of the Most Significant Technologies of Our Generation"
Are AI Data Centres the Infrastructure of the Future or the Next Crisis?
Miles Worth Billions: How Airlines Generate Huge Profits
Zelenskyy Returns to White House Flanked by European Allies as Trump Pressures Land-Swap Deal with Putin
Beijing is moving into gold and other assets, diversifying away from the dollar
Cristiano Ronaldo Makes Surprise Stop at New Hong Kong Museum
Zelenskyy to Visit Washington after Trump–Putin Summit Yields No Agreement
×