Nokia Opens First Saudi Arabia R&D Centre in Riyadh Dedicated to AI Network Automation and 6G Innovation
RIYADH — Global telecommunications infrastructure vendor Nokia has officially opened a specialized Research and Development (R&D) centre in Riyadh, marking the company's first R&D facility in Saudi Arabia. The centre is dedicated to advancing Artificial Intelligence (AI)-powered network automation and orchestration software for telecom operators and enterprise networks locally and worldwide.
The newly inaugurated facility will focus on advancing next-generation network architectures, including:
Service Management and Orchestration (SMO): Streamlining multi-domain service operations across cloud-native environments.
Self-Organising Networks (SON): Enabling cellular networks to self-configure, self-optimize, and self-heal dynamically.
Autopilot & rApps Ecosystems: Deploying intelligent micro-applications to optimize radio frequency performance and curb infrastructure energy consumption.
AI-Native 6G Research: Exploring foundational machine learning frameworks for emerging 6G wireless communication standards.
Nokia confirmed that engineering teams based at the Riyadh centre will build "Made in Saudi" software solutions engineered for export across the vendor’s global telecommunications client base.
The establishment of the centre delivers on an agreement signed earlier this year between H.E. Eng. Abdullah Amer Alswaha, Saudi Minister of Communications and Information Technology, and Nokia President and CEO Justin Hotard. The initiative directly supports the goals of Saudi Vision 2030 by cultivating domestic digital intellectual property, creating high-value engineering roles, and delivering specialized AI certifications and technical boot camps.
Mikko Lavanti, President of Nokia Middle East and Africa (MEA), noted that AI is reshaping every sector and that telecommunications networks serve as the critical foundation for that transition. He affirmed that the facility combines Nokia’s global engineering scale with Saudi technical talent to create autonomous, responsive networks.
Eng. Abdulrahman AlMufadda, Deputy Minister for Telecom and Infrastructure at the Ministry of Communications and Information Technology (MCIT), highlighted the centre as a strategic milestone that localizes advanced R&D capabilities and reinforces the Kingdom's standing as a global leader in intelligent network technologies.
