Nvidia's high performance chips will be made available to Saudi Arabia within the next year.

• Nvidia's high-performance chips are optimistically viewed by Saudi Arabia as a means to develop and operate advanced artificial intelligence models.
• Having access to Nvidia H200s, the company's most powerful chips, would greatly benefit Saudi Arabia, according to Habib.
• National security concerns have led the U.S. to impose restrictions on exports of chips to China, which is Saudi Arabia's top trading partner.

Saudi Arabia is hopeful about acquiring high-performance chips from U.S. chipmakers, allowing it to advance its artificial intelligence technology.

On Thursday, Abdulrahman Tariq Habib, a top official at the Saudi Data and AI Authority, stated that the kingdom anticipates taking a significant step forward in the next year.

According to Habib, Deputy CEO of SDAIA's strategy management office, who spoke to CNBC's Dan Murphy, it is expected that the chips will be exported to Saudi Arabia within the next year. This is a significant expectation given that the United States' strict export controls have so far prevented the chips' export to the kingdom. Habib made these comments on the sidelines of GAIN, Saudi Arabia's international AI summit, which took place in Riyadh this week.

Having access to Nvidia H200s, the most powerful chips used in OpenAI's GPT-4o, would greatly benefit Saudi Arabia, according to Habib.

"Collaboration with the US will facilitate business and enhance computational capabilities in Saudi Arabia, opening doors for data analysis and human capacity building. However, it's not just computational capabilities that matter. Over the past three years, we have been working hard to build both human and data capacity. We are now collaborating with the international community to become one of the top active countries in data analysis."

The kingdom of Saudi Arabia is investing significantly in developing a strong AI ecosystem, with the goal of having AI contribute 12% to its GDP by 2030. The report by SDAIA, published on Sept. 9, states that the $925 billion Public Investment Fund will lead the investment.

In March, it was reported that the PIF was in discussions with Andreessen Horowitz and other venture capital firms to establish a $40 billion fund for investing in AI.

U.S. chip export restrictions

The positive relationship between Riyadh and Washington in the AI space is evident from the news that the U.S. government is considering easing its export rules to allow Saudi Arabia access to the coveted chips, as first reported by Semafor, according to Habib.

"He stated that the collaboration and work with the international organization, particularly the U.S., are showcased in the overall effort, and that this also highlights Saudi Arabia's growing strength in AI, investment, and product production in this field, with the U.S."

The curbs were due to national security concerns about Saudi Arabia's close ties with Beijing. China is Saudi Arabia's largest trading partner and a significant investor in Vision 2030. Between 2016 and 2020, Chinese arms exports to the kingdom increased by nearly 400% from the previous five-year period, according to the Gulf Research Center.

The Saudi government is reportedly working to meet Washington's demands regarding its relationship with China and the U.S.' security concerns, while also keeping the door open to Beijing in case the U.S. refuses to export its chips to the kingdom, according to the Semafor report.

CNBC has contacted the U.S. Department of Commerce for comment.