Gulf companies are awaiting billions from the proposals of artificial intelligence giants economy

A group of Gulf companies are preparing to achieve potential gains worth billions of dollars as the anticipated public offerings of the American companies SpaceX, OpenAI, and Anthropic approach, in one of the largest listing waves in the history of global financial markets.

Estimates indicate that the three offerings may add up to $4 trillion to the market value of US stocks in the coming months, with SpaceX seeking to reach a valuation of approximately $1.8 trillion, while the value of OpenAI and Anthropic is expected to reach tens of billions of dollars each.

A public offering is when a private company lists its shares on stock exchanges so that anyone can buy a portion of these shares, thus transforming that company from private to public.

Early bets

Among the most prominent beneficiaries of these offerings are Gulf companies and investment institutions that built early positions in the capital and investments of artificial intelligence and advanced technologies companies.

The Saudi Kingdom Holding Company, owned by Prince Alwaleed bin Talal, owns indirect investments linked to SpaceX through the Elon Musk and xAI companies, which has enhanced the value of Prince Alwaleed’s assets with the rise in the valuations of these companies.

This year, the Saudi company Humin also invested about $3 billion in XAI, with this stake being converted into shares in SpaceX, giving it a direct benefit from any rise in the company’s valuation after listing on the American stock exchange.

The UAE company MGX also invests in OpenAI, Anthropic, and XAI, which gives it a direct benefit from any potential rise in the value of these companies as major listings in the artificial intelligence sector approach.

Qatar has also made investments in Anthropic and XAI, as part of a strategy aimed at benefiting from the rapid expansion of artificial intelligence technologies.

Some of these investments from Gulf companies date back to years before the current wave of artificial intelligence, as the UAE’s International Holding Company (IHC) invested in SpaceX in 2020, while the UAE’s Aabar Investment Company was one of the first investors in the commercial spaceflight sector through its investment in Virgin Galactic in 2009.

If SpaceX succeeds in being listed at the target valuation of $1.8 trillion, this may enhance the value of the investment portfolios of Gulf companies that own direct or indirect stakes in the American company, and the network of artificial intelligence companies associated with it.