Demand for high-capacity AI network services is set to become a primary revenue driver for Gulf telecommunications operators over the next three to five years, according to research released by Ciena. The survey indicates that 96% of service providers in the United Arab Emirates and 90% in Saudi Arabia anticipate new income streams from connectivity infrastructure built for enterprise artificial intelligence.
Conducted in collaboration with Censuswide, the research polled 100 service provider experts in each market as part of a global study across 12 countries. Service providers in both nations expressed strong confidence in managed optical fiber networks, with 97% of UAE and 96% of Saudi respondents expecting these architectures to generate revenue by linking distributed compute clusters.
Urgency in Optical Network Upgrades
Network modernization has emerged as a pressing requirement across the region. In the UAE, 97% of survey respondents noted that upgrades to optical infrastructure are urgently needed to support enterprise service level agreements, with 56% describing the situation as critically urgent. Meanwhile, 86% of Saudi respondents identified a need for network modernization, including 51% who called for immediate implementation.
The data reveals differing priorities across specific infrastructure segments. In Saudi Arabia, 58% of respondents expect the growth of inference data centers to boost demand for data center interconnect solutions, exceeding the global average of 49%. In contrast, 37% of UAE respondents cited inference facilities as a primary driver, reflecting different stages of local cloud deployment.
Monetizing AI Network Services in Regional Markets
Operators are exploring various commercial models around advanced connectivity. Strategic partnerships with telecom and cloud providers are viewed as essential for GPU-as-a-service offerings by 96% of UAE and 91% of Saudi respondents. Furthermore, physical artificial intelligence workloads, such as industrial robotics, are projected to contribute over 15% of enterprise revenue within five years by 52% of UAE firms and 37% of Saudi operators.
Regional operators also show distinct approaches to cloud connectivity. In Saudi Arabia, multi-cloud connectivity management represents the leading revenue driver at 64%, surpassing the global average of 56%. Conversely, UAE operators currently rely on traditional fixed-capacity connectivity at 57%, while advancing faster in quantum-safe encryption deployments.
Executive Perspectives on Regional Infrastructure
“Globally, service providers are balancing optimism with urgency about AI-driven revenue opportunities. The survey findings for UAE and Saudi Arabia showed the same optimism, but urgency sits at the center of the conversation. In the UAE, service providers are treating network upgrades and automation as something to act on now, not plan for later. In Saudi Arabia, service providers are also focused on AI inference, service reliability, and sovereign infrastructure requirements.”
Pete Hall, Regional Managing Director for Middle East and Africa at Ciena
Future Outlook for Gulf Telecommunications
As power constraints force hyperscalers to distribute computing power across multiple sites, wholesale transmission requirements continue to expand. Overall, 99% of UAE operators and 91% of Saudi operators expect distributed computing capacity to expand wholesale revenues. Consequently, investments in resilient artificial intelligence infrastructure and reliable AI network services will shape regional telecommunications capital expenditures in the coming years.
