Minister of Media: Saudi Arabia is transforming into an open global laboratory for big ideas Over 2000 delegates attend 4th edition of Saudi Media Forum that kicks off in Riyadh

RIYADH — Saudi Minister of Media Salman Al-Dossary said that Saudi Arabia has the greatest success story of the 21st century, narrated by its media that works with the tools of the future featuring an unstoppable movement.
Addressing the opening session of the fourth edition of the Saudi Media Forum in Riyadh on Wednesday, he said that Saudi Arabia is transforming into an open global laboratory for big ideas where smart media merges with artificial intelligence, big data, mixed reality technologies, and virtual reality.
The three-day event with the theme of "Media in an Evolving World" is a global platform shaping the future of media. It brought together more than 2000 participants, including 200 speakers, professionals in the fields of politics, energy, media, economics, artificial intelligence technologies, and entrepreneurship from both local and international arenas, in 80 sessions and knowledge dialogues, and 11 initiatives and interactive experiences.
Al-Dossary said that every day that passes without artificial intelligence equals years of delay. "Talking about the future of media means talking about a world born of predictive algorithms, journalistic robots, and artificial intelligence. "When we talk about media, we are talking about the future, we are talking about a world born of predictive algorithms, journalistic robots, and artificial intelligence, in which Saudi Arabia is transformed into an open global laboratory for big ideas, in which smart media merges with artificial intelligence, big data, mixed reality technologies, and virtual reality."
Referring to the vital role that Saudi wants to play in the media field, the minister said: "We are proud of our roots in history and move from them to the future, we draw inspiration from Saudi Vision 2030, the spirit of ambition, renewal, and achievement. In the equation of influence, the sender is Saudi Arabia, and the recipient is more than 8 billion people on this planet, and the message from Saudi Arabia is: We build the human being, inspire the world, and create the future."
The minister noted that Saudi Arabia witnessed in 2024 and until at present the visit of 24 leaders from different countries of the world to contribute to shaping the future of humanity. The Kingdom also witnessed the organization of more than 15,000 events, conferences and occasions with an attendance of more than 42 million visitors. This means an average of two events every hour throughout the year. All these events are non-stop media events, through which the news, title and main headline are made," he said.
In his speech, Al-Dossary announced the priorities of the 'Year of Media Influence' in Saudi Arabia. This included developing a non-profit media strategy; announcing the organization of an international conference on the future of news in Riyadh to contribute globally to innovating news industry technologies; completing the digitization of the historical archive of the Saudi Press Agency (SPA); opening the headquarters of news journalism fellowships this year; working on a document governing digital advertising sectors to regulate this sector; and establishing an artificial intelligence and emerging technologies laboratory for media.
The minister said that the influence industry is the seventh sense that every media professional must have. "When we talk about the influence industry, we look at the Kingdom as the most important center for hosting major events, from Expo 2030, which will redefine innovation exhibitions, to the 2034 World Cup, where the sports experience will be transformed into a story told with augmented reality, production, and smart broadcasting technologies."
Al-Dossary announced the launch of a media initiatives package, which includes a package of programs to support media business incubators and accelerators, within the business incubators and accelerators that aim to improve the media infrastructure supported by artificial intelligence, through the Saudi Media Innovation Bootcamp (Saudi MIB) in cooperation with the Saudi Data & AI Authority (SDAIA) The forum will also witness the signing of financing agreements for emerging companies in the media sector in cooperation with the Kafala program.
Al-Dossary said that the first handshake at the previous Saudi Media Forum was a promise of "a media transformation moving towards the future. "And today we are here again, to draw the year of influence. We meet today at the Saudi Media Forum in its fourth edition, which goes beyond the present to the future, through which the forum monitors the future media scene. Together we write a Saudi media story that befits the size of the ambitious vision, media that befits the event, and influences the directions of creating a new future, in which programming is mixed with content, and in which the story is transformed into a digital economy, according to new equations."
Al-Dossary stressed that the new reality established in the Saudi media sector has contributed to creating dream opportunities, as the media sector will provide about 150,000 jobs by 2030 to be an incubator for talents and an accelerator for innovation. "This remarkable media growth is based on six transformational pillars, including the transformation in demand rates, infrastructure, financial transformation, talent support, adoption of technologies, and organizational transformation, stressing that these are not traditional transformations, but rather tools and enablers for creating influence locally, regionally, and internationally," he said.
The minister asked a question about how to confront the future of media in a world of challenges, saying: "This was a hypothetical question we asked artificial intelligence, and it answered that it is innovative and sustainable media that integrates technology with cultural diversity, enhances awareness, and confronts future challenges, to achieve continuous interaction and media movement in a rapidly changing world, with a focus on transparency and credibility."
"This moment clearly explains that we are now in an interactive equation between humans and machines, in a creative challenge that the passionate professional realizes, that the real equation begins with humans first, whenever they delve into discovering their capabilities, and that creativity is the ability to reach first and lead the future," he added.
The forum is hosting a distinguished lineup of media professionals and influential figures in the media and political landscape. They will enrich the sessions with in-depth discussions across various tracks tailored to meet the interests of media professionals and investors.
The forum is featuring 80 sessions: 40 panel discussions and 40 knowledge exchange sessions, serving as an international platform for forecasting and developing the future of media and exploring the latest technologies. It will spotlight the Kingdom's media leadership in the region and globally.
On the first day of the forum, the Future of Media Exhibition (FOMEX), one of the most significant accompanying events, also started. The exhibition is expected to draw more than 250 local, international, and regional companies to showcase the latest technologies and solutions in media production and digital broadcasting.