Zain KSA taps Red Hat to make its organisation AI-ready

Details: John Tanner; Category: Enterprise Ecosystems; 09 July 2026; 374 views

Saudi telco Zain KSA said on Tuesday it’s collaborating with open-source solutions provider Red Hat to make its internal digital backbone ready to support AI app development and deployment across its businesses.

Zain said the tie-up with Red Hat aims to create a more coherent, agile technology environment that enables faster development and rollout of applications and services.

This means building a comprehensive AI ecosystem that supports operational and commercial functions across the organization while enabling Zain’s teams to make more effective use of data and advanced technologies.

Zain said the resulting enhanced infrastructure will expand its ability to scale AI efficiently and securely, improving operational performance and reinforcing governance and reliability, while enhancing its readiness for the digital economy.

This, in turn, will support better customer experiences, faster innovation cycles, and greater operational efficiency, Zain added.

The initiative is part of Zain KSA’s broader AI strategy, which focuses on embedding intelligent technologies across the organization and building the capabilities required to improve performance, support decision-making, and develop new digital services that address evolving customer expectations and future needs, said Maha Al Qernas, Zain’s executive VP of IT and head of its recently launched AI Center of Excellence (CoE).

“The launch of our AI CoE marked a milestone in our journey to adopt enterprise-wide AI through a systematic approach. Today, we are entering a new phase focused on strengthening the foundation required to expand these applications and translate them into tangible operational value that supports our business and accelerates innovation,” he said in a statement.

“AI only delivers its true value when built on an open, trusted, and scalable infrastructure — and that is exactly what we aim to enable for Zain Saudi Arabia,” said Feras Al-Alsheikh, GM of Red Hat in Saudi Arabia, the Gulf, and the Levant. “Through this collaboration, we will provide the platforms and tools that allow Zain’s team to develop and deploy AI applications quickly and securely, without compromising governance or operational stability.”