STV Secures Strategic Commitment from SAB for its Emerging Tech & AI Fund
[Riyadh, 21 May 2026] – STV, the largest independent and global top-quartile venture capital firm in the Middle East, today announced a significant investment from Saudi Awwal Bank (SAB), one of the leading banks in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, into its Emerging Tech & AI Fund. Since its launch, the Emerging Tech & AI Fund has secured tens of millions in new commitments, including from regional semi-sovereign, endowment, and institutional investors, which have been deployed into the fund alongside Google, the first backer of the fund.
This strategic commitment further strengthens the partnership between STV and SAB, with the bank joining the fund as an investor.
Saeed Assri, Chief Innovation Officer at SAB, commented: “At SAB, we see AI as a strategic enabler of higher productivity, better risk and control management and enhanced customer experience. Our commitment reflects our conviction in the next generation of AI-native companies emerging from the region, and our focus on partnering with leading platforms to drive tangible, scalable impact.”
Osama Alowedi, Chief Investment Officer at SAB Invest, said: “The pace at which AI is reshaping industries leaves no room for hesitation. We are moving decisively with partners like STV to create investment structures within growing industries that enable investors to meaningfully participate in these opportunities.”
Ahmad AlNaimi, General Partner at STV, said:"We are grateful for the continued trust of SAB as we enable the next cohort of regional AI-native champions. The strong support we have received from them and other limited partners validates our conviction that application-layer AI is the engine for the next phase of economic growth in the Middle East and North Africa.”
Since its launch, the fund has made four investments in high-potential, application-layer startups: Sawt, a Saudi-based pioneer in Arabic-native AI voice agents for customer service, becoming one of the fastest-growing B2B startups in the region; Clarity, an agentic AI platform for customer service analytics that serves tier-1 customers locally and globally; Signit, the leading AI legal startup in Saudi Arabia;and Stream the foundational billing and payments layer for Saudi businesses.
The strong traction of these initial investments mirrors a broader global shift. In 2025, the AI application layer captured over $19 billion in enterprise spending, with AI-native ventures outearning incumbents two-to-one and being the first-ever cohort of startups to reach $100 million in revenue within two years. STV is seeing similar dynamics in the region, with pent-up demand allowing application-layer ventures to scale at a pace not seen before, a trend further amplified by more regional startups winning global clients.
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