On International Day of the Arabian Leopard, together, we can make a difference

DAVOS: Technological innovation and its potential to reshape economies is inspiring growing optimism among business leaders despite a global backdrop of geopolitical tension, economic uncertainty, and the urgent challenges of climate change, the CEO of Publicis Sapient told Arab News.

Nigel Vaz, speaking at the annual meeting of the World Economic Forum in Davos, said he sees a moment of both caution and opportunity for businesses worldwide. 

“In many ways, businesses thrive on certainty,” Vaz said. “After years of unpredictability, there’s now a sense of optimism about what lies ahead. Investments in technology, particularly in AI, are helping unlock new economic opportunities, from reducing costs to driving transformational growth.”

While acknowledging lingering concerns over inflation and the impact of macroeconomic policies such as tariffs, Vaz believes the focus is shifting toward pro-growth initiatives, including government-led reforms to alleviate pressure on businesses.

“Governments are increasingly exploring tax reforms and other measures to create a more favorable environment for growth,” he said. “And alongside that, investments in AI and digital innovation are starting to deliver real results, moving from proof-of-concept to large-scale implementation.”

With artificial intelligence the hot topic of the day, Vaz said enthusiasm around AI is no longer solely about its potential but also its measurable impact on businesses.

“Last year, AI was something everyone was interested in. This year, they’re seeing the economic benefits of it,” he said.

Vaz pointed to several ways Publicis Sapient is leveraging AI to accelerate transformation, with one significant area in marketing, where AI-driven platforms are enabling businesses to personalize their messages and reach audiences more efficiently.

Publicis Sapient has partnered with its parent company, Publicis Groupe, to invest $300 million in advanced marketing technologies.

“It’s not just about content generation anymore,” Vaz said. “AI is helping with everything from content audits to ensuring the right message gets to the right person at the right time. The ability to connect identity and tailor communication is driving incredible acceleration.”

AI’s influence is also being felt in operational areas traditionally weighed down by inefficiencies.

Publicis Sapient’s work includes modernizing mainframe systems — once seen as expensive and slow — through AI-driven solutions.

“We’ve taken what used to be 10-year migration projects involving millions of lines of code and compressed them into just three years,” Vaz said. “This is digital red-tape removal in action, and it’s allowing businesses to innovate far more quickly than they ever thought possible.”

Vaz also highlighted the Middle East as a critical player in the future of AI and digital transformation. He pointed to countries such as Saudi Arabia and the UAE, where governments are making significant infrastructure investments to foster innovation.

“The Middle East is laying the groundwork for a truly transformational moment,” Vaz said. “If you think of AI as the electricity of the 21st century, the investments being made here are akin to building the power grids of the industrial revolution. It’s about creating an environment where businesses can innovate and thrive.”

He also praised the region’s commitment to developing local talent to drive these initiatives.

“I was speaking with a minister (this week), and he stressed that while they’re putting the infrastructure in place, it’s Saudi talent that’s building and leading these projects. That’s a powerful message about the long-term vision here.”

Looking ahead, Vaz urged business leaders to abandon a “wait-and-see” approach to AI and instead embrace the transformative potential of the technology.

He said that 2025 will be a pivotal year, adding that “the gap between those who adopt AI and those who don’t is going to widen dramatically. Businesses need to act now to ensure they don’t get left behind.”

Vaz added that leaders should move beyond treating AI as a technical tool and instead reimagine their entire business models. “This is not just about technology — it’s about fundamentally rethinking how your business operates and delivers value.” 

As Publicis Sapient continues to expand its footprint in key regions such as the Middle East, Vaz is clear about his priorities for the future. “Our focus is on enabling businesses to learn and iterate in real-world applications,” he said. “Whether it’s in travel, financial services, or retail, we’re seeing tremendous benefits from these transformations. The key now is to keep moving forward.”

In a world still grappling with uncertainty, leaders such as Vaz see the promise of AI and digital transformation as a beacon of opportunity. “The future is here — it’s just a matter of who seizes it first,” he said.

DAVOS: Saudi Arabia’s Vision 2030 has enabled the Kingdom to “leapfrog other countries,” creating a robust ecosystem that aligns with Intel’s digital transformation strategy, the company’s executive vice president and chief commercial officer told Arab News.

Speaking on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum in Davos, Christoph Schell emphasized the Kingdom’s commitment to growth and its importance as a key market for Intel, building on a 20-year legacy of collaboration.

“Having lived for eight years in the Middle East, I know that once you define a plan, and you work that plan, that plan will also work out,” Schell said. “So there’s a lot of trust that this vision will become reality.”

Schell, who previously served as HP’s general manager for the Middle East, described the region — and Saudi Arabia specifically — as being at an “exciting historical moment” in terms of technology, innovation and business, positioning the Kingdom as a “crucial market in size and influence.”

Intel has maintained a strong presence in Saudi Arabia for more than two decades, with its innovation and priorities evolving in response to the Kingdom’s changing needs.

“There’s a very long legacy that the Kingdom has of engaging with Intel and for the population of Saudi Arabia to actually use Intel in their daily lives. That’s true on the consumer side, but that’s also true for the large corporations,” Schell said.

“What I see happening for the first time is that the Saudi customers have been, over these 20 years of engagement, buying monolithic products that Intel had to offer. I think this industry is changing as such that we are talking more and more about custom solutions, custom chips, and these are the first (type of) engagements that we have with Saudi customers now, cross-customization.”

He attributed this shift to significant investments in digital infrastructure and the growing tech sophistication of Saudi consumers and businesses.

“I see Saudi not just consuming technology that is off the shelf, but to demand technology that is best in the very specific requirements that you have,” he said.

Highlighting examples, Schell said that Saudi Arabia’s extreme temperatures had led to customized design requests for products operating in harsh conditions, such as on oil platforms and in peak summer heat.

“That requires different design principles across different products. And that’s the opportunity for us,” he said.

In January 2024, Intel announced a partnership with Aramco Digital to establish Saudi Arabia’s first Open RAN (radio access network) development center. Open RAN technology, which allows multiple service providers to deliver services over the same network infrastructure, is expected to accelerate innovation and drive the Kingdom’s digital transformation in line with Vision 2030.

“If you want to scale a data center, if you want to grow a data center, if you want to grow a cloud operation, getting access to power is super important,” he said.

“Obviously the Kingdom has a lot of power, but on the other hand, it is also demanding for that power to be delivered in the most efficient way, and for the computer to be cognizant of power not being there in abundance, but to be managed in a way that is responsible.”

Schell argued that this evolution is a consequence of the cultural and societal shifts in Saudi Arabia, emphasizing the country’s focus on innovation and bridging the digital divide.

“Technologies (are) at the heart of societal development. And I think a lot of the goals that you have as a society is to innovate, is to make sure that there’s no digital divide within the country,” he said.

As part of its vision for the future, Saudi Arabia is prioritizing the development of a robust tech ecosystem by attracting manufacturers, creating jobs and nurturing local talent — a strategy that Schell described as “sustainable.”

“It has a lot to do with education, but I think beyond educating, the ability to design products together, to engineer products together, is something that needs to start, in particular, working together with select universities,” he said.

Schell emphasized the role of AI in shaping the Kingdom’s future, particularly in practical applications such as education and daily life.

“The output that an AI engine delivers is based on the model it uses. And I think what is very important for Saudi Arabia in this context is to have models that have cultural awareness, that have cultural content.”

Drawing on his own experience, Schell highlighted the importance of localization.

“I live in the US right now. I’m German. If I use a US model, a US-centric model, I will get US-centric answers. (While) If I use a Saudi-centric model, I will get Saudi-centric answers.

“This is very important from a culture and from a historic point of view,” he added, stressing the “government’s responsibilities” in fostering an ecosystem that supports culturally relevant AI.