Wa’ed Ventures, the $500 million venture capital arm of Saudi Aramco, has announced a strategic investment in US-based Resemble AI, a company specializing in AI voice generation and real-time multimodal deepfake detection. This investment comes as Resemble AI, which secured $13 million in a strategic funding round last December, seeks to expand its services into Saudi Arabia and the broader Middle East.
The funding round was supported by notable investors including Google’s AI Future Fund, Sony Innovation Fund, Javelin, and Ubiquity. Wa’ed Ventures’ investment is particularly timely, given the rising global threat posed by AI-generated fraud. In Saudi Arabia, the government is taking proactive steps to combat these risks through robust regulatory frameworks, such as the Anti-Cybercrime Law, which criminalizes the spread of misinformation that could threaten public safety and national interests.
Global losses attributed to deepfake-related scams exceeded $25 billion in 2024, with projections estimating that such incidents will result in damages totaling $40 billion worldwide by 2027. Wa’ed Ventures’ financial backing aims to bolster Resemble AI’s ability to deploy its real-time detection technologies, which are essential for ensuring data sovereignty and security compliance in the region.
“At Wa’ed Ventures, our role goes beyond funding – we work closely with founders to help them scale technologies that can compete globally while being rooted in Saudi Arabia’s priorities,” stated Anas Algahtani, CEO of Wa’ed Ventures. He emphasized that as the Kingdom strengthens AI governance and regulations around digital trust and content authenticity, solutions like Resemble AI’s deepfake detection technologies will play a crucial role in promoting secure and ethical AI adoption across both public and private sectors.
Zohaib Ahmed, Chief Executive Officer and Co-Founder of Resemble AI, highlighted the urgency of addressing AI-generated fraud in the Middle East. “Deepfake incidents in Saudi Arabia alone increased 600% last year,” he noted. “Organizations across the Gulf need detection capabilities they can deploy on their own infrastructure, with the speed and accuracy to catch threats in real time. Wa’ed understands this urgency, and their backing accelerates our ability to bring that protection to the region.”
Resemble AI’s platform offers both cloud and on-premise deployment options, allowing government, defense, and regulated organizations to analyze voice and audio content without transmitting sensitive data to external servers. This capability aligns with the increasing demand for security in handling personal and organizational information across the region.
The strategic investment by Wa’ed Ventures not only enhances Resemble AI’s growth prospects but also signals Saudi Arabia’s commitment to fostering a secure digital environment. As the Kingdom works to establish itself as a hub for technological innovation, the collaboration between Wa’ed Ventures and Resemble AI exemplifies the potential for leveraging advanced technologies to safeguard national interests and enhance public trust.
With AI technologies rapidly evolving, the implications for both regulatory frameworks and corporate strategies are profound. As organizations navigate the complexities of AI adoption, partnerships like this one will be critical in developing solutions that not only address immediate challenges but also pave the way for future advancements in digital security.
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