KARACHI: Pakistan and Saudi Arabia have agreed to continue talks on building a broader partnership in artificial intelligence, data governance and advanced technologies, the IT ministry in Islamabad said on Tuesday, as Pakistani technology firms seek a deeper foothold in the Kingdom’s rapidly expanding digital economy.

The announcement comes as Pakistan seeks to expand technology exports and commercial links with Saudi Arabia, with Pakistani firms attending LEAP 2026 in Riyadh this week targeting clients, partnerships and permanent operations in the Kingdom.

On Tuesday, Pakistan’s IT Minister Shaza Fatima Khawaja met Abdullah bin Sharaf Alghamdi, president of the Saudi Data and Artificial Intelligence Authority, or SDAIA, on the sidelines of LEAP 2026 in Riyadh, according to a statement from Pakistan’s IT ministry.

The IT ministry said Khawaja briefed Alghamdi on Pakistan’s initiatives to advance its national AI and data-governance agenda and reiterated Islamabad’s commitment to building a stronger data ecosystem and digital economy.

The two sides “agreed to continue discussions toward establishing a comprehensive and sustainable partnership between the two brotherly countries in AI, data governance and advanced technologies,” the ministry said.

The statement did not specify what projects or initiatives such a partnership could include or give a timeline for reaching a formal agreement.

The government-level discussions come as Pakistani technology companies are also seeking to expand commercially in Saudi Arabia, with several firms telling Arab News ahead of LEAP that previous editions of the technology gathering had generated business links and helped them better understand the Saudi market.

“This is the fourth edition that we would be attending at LEAP, and I can say for sure that every next edition has been better than the previous one,” Abdul Muqsit Abbasi, CEO of Karachi-based ByteCorp. Technologies, told Arab News on Saturday.

“We’ve made very deep industry connections,” he said. “We’ve been able to understand the market. We’ve been able to make very long relationships that has helped open a lot of doors for us.”

“MORE OPPORTUNITIES“

Pakistan recorded its largest-ever presence at LEAP last year, with more than 100 companies and over 1,500 delegates, according to a post-event report by the Pakistan Software Export Board. Its annual report said Pakistan’s participation generated $9.74 million in business and 78 leads.

This year, Pakistan has a dedicated pavilion featuring 20 technology companies through the Pakistan Software Export Board and Trade Development Authority of Pakistan, while other Pakistani firms and startups are attending independently.

For some returning companies, previous participation has led to plans for a permanent presence in Saudi Arabia.

“After the 2025 LEAP, we got the opportunity to have a local presence in Riyadh, and we are going to develop our office over there,” Khizer Ahmed Siddiqui, founding member and director of KAACIB, told Arab News ahead of this year’s event.

“And what we are looking forward to, right now in 2026, is to have more opportunities, more partnerships, more connections, more business, and more local presence in Saudi Arabia.”

Other Pakistani companies are adapting products specifically for the Saudi market.

Stellisys, an operations and enterprise resource planning platform developed by FifthThought, is attending LEAP as part of a startup delegation backed by Ignite National Technology Fund.

“We are bringing the Saudi version of the product, ZATCA invoicing plus the AI layer, and the migration tooling that moves a business off its old system without losing legacy data,” its co-founder and CEO Rajiv Pardhan told Arab News ahead of the event, referring to invoicing requirements of Saudi Arabia’s Zakat, Tax and Customs Authority.

Saudi Arabia has made technology and digital transformation an important part of its Vision 2030 program to diversify its economy away from oil, creating a growing market that Pakistani technology companies are seeking to tap.

For Abbasi, LEAP offers companies entering the Kingdom an opportunity to understand the market and build relationships that can eventually translate into business.

“I think this is the best place for any new entrant to come and understand how the market is operating,” he said.