On August 19, China's Lenovo Group announced that it will set up a new regional headquarters in Saudi Arabia, marking a significant step in its expansion across the Middle East and aligning with the Kingdom's ambitions to become a regional technology hub under Vision 2030, reports Reuters, Economy Middle East, and Arab News.
Lenovo said the new headquarters will be based in Al Majdoul Tower in Riyadh and led by long-time Lenovo executive Lawrence Yu. Supporting him will be Giovanni Di Filippo as general manager of Lenovo Saudi Arabia and Zoran Radumilo as the company's chief technology officer. The Riyadh hub will oversee Lenovo's wider regional strategy, including a flagship retail store, a VIP customer center, research and development, marketing initiatives, and local collaborations.
The move builds on Lenovo's strategic partnership with ALAT, a subsidiary of the Public Investment Fund (PIF), which aims to broaden the company's global manufacturing footprint and accelerate its transformation efforts. In February, Lenovo and ALAT broke ground on a 200,000 square meter advanced manufacturing facility in Riyadh, Integrated within the Special Integrated Logistics Zone. Scheduled to start production by 2026, the plant is expected to deliver millions of "Saudi Made" devices, reinforcing the Kingdom's ambition to localize high-tech manufacturing.
Matt Dobrodziej, president of Lenovo Europe, Middle East, and Africa, said the investment is projected to contribute up to US$10 billion to Saudi Arabia's non-oil GDP by 2030. "Through our strategic partnership with ALAT and investment in advanced manufacturing, we are proud to contribute to the Kingdom's Vision 2030 by supporting industrial diversification, accelerating digital transformation, and enabling sustainable economic growth," he noted.
Saudi Arabia has emerged as the Gulf's leading digital economy, with the ICT sector expanding 7.5% in 2024, according to the country's Ministry of Communications and Information Technology. FDI in the tech sector grew 18% year-on-year, driven by regulatory reforms and incentives such as the Riyadh regional headquarters program, which offers tax exemptions and operational support to multinationals. Lenovo's expansion is expected to further attract global investors and strengthen the Kingdom's innovation ecosystem.
The company's presence will also feed into Saudi Arabia's smart city initiatives, including NEOM and The Red Sea Project, which IDC estimates will generate US$135 billion in technology spending by 2030. Lenovo's CTO Radumilo is expected to spearhead solutions in AI, cloud, and IoT to meet these demands.
Lenovo's latest commitment underscores not only its ambitions in the Middle East but also the deepening ties between China and Saudi Arabia. Since 2001, the Kingdom has been China's largest trading partner in the region, and Lenovo's move signals how bilateral cooperation is evolving beyond energy to encompass technology, innovation, and industrial diversification.
Article edited by Jack Wu
