IDC & NTT DATA AWS Roundtable
Ambition, Engineered: Cloud Strategy for Saudi Arabia's AI Roadmap
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Saudi enterprises are setting ambitious AI goals: faster innovation, enterprise-wide scale, and stronger
governance over how AI gets used. IDC’s research across the Middle East shows that 43% of organizations say pursuing those goals has directly accelerated their move to cloud, and 24% have already rewritten their cloud strategy specifically to keep pace with AI.
IDC and NTT DATA are hosting a roundtable for CIOs in Riyadh on October 12, centered on the same question IDC posed to enterprises across the region: what really determines the progress and success of an enterprise’s AI strategy?
IDC’s own research points CIOs toward the decisions that actually determine that: where will AI run, can the infrastructure support it, is it resilient and compliant, can it operate at scale, and can the organization afford it sustainably. Join us as we unpack some of the most critical decisions that define the AI roadmap for Saudi enterprises.
Key Discussion Areas
The Infra Behind the AI Ambition
AI ambition is setting the pace for cloud decisions right now. For Saudi enterprises, that
means the cloud strategy gets built around what AI needs, not the other way around.
Modernization Aimed at AI
Legacy applications are the quiet blocker on most AI roadmaps. Many enterprises hold onto them to avoid disrupting the business, but an AI roadmap that’s serious about scale has to deal with modernization first.
Sovereign Architecture
Sovereignty isn’t a policy checkbox anymore. It’s a design decision built into the cloud architecture from the start, especially as geopolitics increasingly shapes where data and workloads can sit.
AI and Cloud Cost Control Equation
Getting the AI right also means getting disciplined about which parts of cloud actually deserve the investment.
Agenda
IDC & NTT DATA AWS Roundtable
Mon, Oct 12
Registration & Networking
IDC Keynote: From Ambition to Scale: The CIO Playbook for Saudi Arabia’s AI Roadmap
Saudi AI roadmaps are ambitious; scaling them is a challenge. Drawing on IDC research, this keynote maps the gap between ambition and production, and the five cloud decisions that close it: where AI runs, what infrastructure it needs, how sovereignty and resilience are designed in, how it operates at scale, and how its cost stays under control.
Jebin George
Senior Research Manager, Cloud and Datacenter Services, IDC
AI Ambition Meets Production Reality
As Saudi enterprises move AI from ambition to production, the cloud strategy gets built around what AI needs. This session unpacks the decisions that make that real in the Kingdom – where AI runs, how sovereignty and resilience are designed in, and the foundation that turns infrastructure into AI-ready capability.
Faisal Banaeamah
Senior Partner Solutions Architect, MENAT, AWS
The End of the Cloud Migration Project: Why Moving to the Cloud Is Just the Beginning
What happens after an organization successfully migrates its workloads to the cloud? This session challenges the traditional definition of cloud success and explores why migration should be viewed as the starting point rather than the destination. Through practical scenarios, we will examine how organizations can move from migration to modernization, data-driven applications, generative AI, and agentic workloads. Attendees will learn how to rethink their cloud journey, identify opportunities beyond infrastructure migration, and connect cloud foundations to measurable business transformation.
Mahmoud Elzayyat
Sales Manager, NTT DATA
Bassel Al Annan
Pre-Sales Manager, NTT DATA
Open Discussion: Why AI on Cloud, Why Now: What’s Compelling Saudi CIOs to Decide
Saudi CIOs are past asking whether to move to AI on cloud- sovereignty rules, national AI ambitions, and rising competitive pressure have made this a board-level decision. This session pairs IDC’s market perspective with NTT DATA’s delivery perspective to unpack what’s really driving the call.
Jebin George
Senior Research Manager, Cloud and Datacenter Services, IDC
Mahmoud Elzayyat
Sales Manager, NTT DATA
Bassel Al Annan
Pre-Sales Manager, NTT DATA
Faisal Banaeamah
Senior Partner Solutions Architect, MENAT, AWS
Summary & Closing Remarks
Dinner & Networking
Speakers
Jebin George
Senior Research Manager, Cloud and Datacenter Services
IDC
Read bio
Jebin George
Jebin George is part of IDC’s Enterprise Infrastructure global research domain. He focuses on cloud, datacenter, and infrastructure adoption trends across the Middle East, Türkiye, and Africa, with particular emphasis on how cloud strategies are evolving in the era of AI and increasing digital sovereignty requirements. His research provides strategic guidance to hyperscalers, telecom operators, system integrators, and enterprise CIOs as they navigate hybrid multicloud adoption, AI-driven infrastructure modernization, and sovereign cloud frameworks.
Jebin brings 20 years of technology market research experience, including 16 years with IDC Middle East, Türkiye, and Africa. Throughout his tenure, he has led syndicated research, custom consulting engagements, and executive advisory initiatives focused on the evolution of the cloud market, hyperscaler ecosystems, and enterprise digital transformation strategies. Prior to IDC, he worked with SunTec Business Solutions, where he supported global market research and consulting initiatives for international ICT markets.
Event Sessions
One Day Event 7:45 pm
Open Discussion: Why AI on Cloud, Why Now: What’s Compelling Saudi CIOs to Decide
Saudi CIOs are past asking whether to move to AI on cloud- sovereignty rules, national AI ambitions, and rising competitive pressure have made this a board-level decision. This session pairs IDC’s market perspective with NTT DATA’s delivery perspective to unpack what’s really driving the call.
One Day Event 7:00 pm
IDC Keynote: From Ambition to Scale: The CIO Playbook for Saudi Arabia’s AI Roadmap
Saudi AI roadmaps are ambitious; scaling them is a challenge. Drawing on IDC research, this keynote maps the gap between ambition and production, and the five cloud decisions that close it: where AI runs, what infrastructure it needs, how sovereignty and resilience are designed in, how it operates at scale, and how its cost stays under control.
Mahmoud Elzayyat
Sales Manager
NTT DATA
Read bio
Mahmoud Elzayyat
Event Sessions
One Day Event 7:45 pm
Open Discussion: Why AI on Cloud, Why Now: What’s Compelling Saudi CIOs to Decide
Saudi CIOs are past asking whether to move to AI on cloud- sovereignty rules, national AI ambitions, and rising competitive pressure have made this a board-level decision. This session pairs IDC’s market perspective with NTT DATA’s delivery perspective to unpack what’s really driving the call.
One Day Event 7:30 pm
The End of the Cloud Migration Project: Why Moving to the Cloud Is Just the Beginning
What happens after an organization successfully migrates its workloads to the cloud? This session challenges the traditional definition of cloud success and explores why migration should be viewed as the starting point rather than the destination. Through practical scenarios, we will examine how organizations can move from migration to modernization, data-driven applications, generative AI, and agentic workloads. Attendees will learn how to rethink their cloud journey, identify opportunities beyond infrastructure migration, and connect cloud foundations to measurable business transformation.
Bassel Al Annan
Pre-Sales Manager
NTT DATA
Read bio
Bassel Al Annan
Bassel Al Annan is a cloud and AI leader focused on helping organizations accelerate digital transformation and unlock business value through emerging technologies.
Event Sessions
One Day Event 7:45 pm
Open Discussion: Why AI on Cloud, Why Now: What’s Compelling Saudi CIOs to Decide
Saudi CIOs are past asking whether to move to AI on cloud- sovereignty rules, national AI ambitions, and rising competitive pressure have made this a board-level decision. This session pairs IDC’s market perspective with NTT DATA’s delivery perspective to unpack what’s really driving the call.
One Day Event 7:30 pm
The End of the Cloud Migration Project: Why Moving to the Cloud Is Just the Beginning
What happens after an organization successfully migrates its workloads to the cloud? This session challenges the traditional definition of cloud success and explores why migration should be viewed as the starting point rather than the destination. Through practical scenarios, we will examine how organizations can move from migration to modernization, data-driven applications, generative AI, and agentic workloads. Attendees will learn how to rethink their cloud journey, identify opportunities beyond infrastructure migration, and connect cloud foundations to measurable business transformation.
Faisal Banaeamah
Senior Partner Solutions Architect, MENAT
AWS
Read bio
Faisal Banaeamah
Faisal Banaeamah is Sr. Partner Solutions Architect at Amazon Web Services (AWS) in MENAT. He enables local strategic partners to build and scale cloud-native and AI-powered solutions that accelerate customers’ digital transformation goals. Previously at Amazon Alexa, he contributed to the Arabic locale launch as Sr. Solutions Architect. In his two decades of experience, he has built and delivered digital transformation strategies specializing in solutions architecture, system integrations, and modernizations. His technical expertise spans cloud computing, integration, databases, NoSQL, APIs, microservices, containers, DevOps, and at-scale solution architecture. Faisal holds B.Sc. and M.Sc. in Software Engineering from KFUPM, Saudi Arabia.
Event Sessions
One Day Event 7:15 pm
AI Ambition Meets Production Reality
As Saudi enterprises move AI from ambition to production, the cloud strategy gets built around what AI needs. This session unpacks the decisions that make that real in the Kingdom – where AI runs, how sovereignty and resilience are designed in, and the foundation that turns infrastructure into AI-ready capability.
One Day Event 7:45 pm
Open Discussion: Why AI on Cloud, Why Now: What’s Compelling Saudi CIOs to Decide
Saudi CIOs are past asking whether to move to AI on cloud- sovereignty rules, national AI ambitions, and rising competitive pressure have made this a board-level decision. This session pairs IDC’s market perspective with NTT DATA’s delivery perspective to unpack what’s really driving the call.
Partner
NTT DATA | AWS
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