RIYADH: Saudi Arabia has always been open for business according to Sarah Elzeini, founder and CEO of SMZ International, a boutique strategic advisory and activities firm based in the US.
In her portfolio of work are efforts to grow cultural bridges and facilitate business deals that serve the mission of Saudi Vision 2030. Speaking on the latest episode of “The Mayman Show,” she said “Saudi (has) always been open, first of all, to engagement in business. But just what it looks like today is much different.”
She added that, with many new sectors opening up, such as tourism, advancing AI and technology, events such as the Global AI Summit, and sustainability with the Saudi Green Initiative, the Kingdom is very attractive for the international community, and in particular, the US.
Elzeini said that there is interest for international collaboration in terms of inter-governmental agencies like the UN, and the US government itself. She added that there is also a lot of engagement in educational and research fields, especially around universities.
She also said that dialogue was increasing due to the Kingdom’s economic evolution. “They (the Saudi leadership) have been investing so much in tech and sustainability, and now we’re leaning into their knowledge … talent, and their stories.
“So now, it feels like a really robust bilateral relationship,” she said.
In Sarah’s opinion, Saudi Arabia has become particularly exciting for entrepreneurs. “It’s kind of like (for) an archeologist, a new site, you know — to dig up and discover treasures in a way. Entrepreneurs are looking for new spaces to kind of breathe out their ideas. Yeah, so we have a lot of interest, I think, coming from Silicon Valley,” she said.
Elzeini explained that she is in discussions with several companies trying to bring them to the Kingdom, some of which are startups in the AI and tech space.
“They’re creating these phenomenal ideas. And actually the market isn’t US, it’s not fit for the US. It’s even better for Saudi and the MENA region. So Saudi just being open and the largest market,” she said.
SMZ International Group facilitate partnerships and new opportunities for businesses in social impact. “That’s one of the reasons why I’m in the Kingdom this week, there’s several companies I’m looking forward to bringing to the Kingdom. So I’ve been between Jeddah and Riyadh, and also there’s one company that I’m part of which is really exciting. It’s a tourism tech company. It’s the world’s first social city guide, which is the world’s first social media for tourism,” she said.
“We’re here just kind of seeing the market opportunity and how we can engage with the Kingdom, and we’ve been having meetings with the Ministry of Tourism, venture capitalists, some others in the private sector. And so it’s been exciting.”
SMZ International aims to create vehicles for organizations, whether for a foundation or a program that offers an initiative or a vision.
“Washington, D.C. (is) the intersection of not just the US domestically and culturally, but it’s the world’s capital, in a sense, too. So you have a lot of countries engaging there. And so it’s very important for foreign countries to engage there. And I do a lot of work mainly with the Middle East and with a focus on Saudi,” Elzeini said.
“I’m in this phase of business, and then just my passion is being in public affairs and kind of helping live out those initiatives and dreams that (are) coming from the region here, which I feel really connected to.”
