RIYADH: Waed Ventures, the $500 million venture capital arm of Saudi Aramco, announced a strategic investment in California-based Resemble AI, which specializes in artificial intelligence voice generation and real-time multimodal deepfake detection.
The move follows Resemble AI’s $13 million strategic funding round closed in December, which included support from Google’s AI Future Fund, Sony Innovation Fund, Javelin, and Ubiquity.
The investment comes amid growing global concerns about AI fraud, with losses from deepfake-related fraud expected to reach more than $25 billion in 2024 and $40 billion by 2027.
Saudi Arabia is pursuing regulatory measures to counter these risks, including the Cybercrime Prevention Act, which criminalizes the spread of misinformation that threatens public security and national interests.
“At Wa’ed Ventures, our role goes beyond raising capital. We work closely with founders to help them scale technology that is globally competitive while remaining rooted in Saudi Arabia’s priorities,” said Anas Al Gahtani, CEO of Wa’ed Ventures.
“As Saudi Arabia tightens regulations around AI governance, digital trust, and content authenticity, Resemble AI’s solutions such as deepfake detection and synthetic media safeguards directly support efforts to ensure safe and ethical AI adoption across the public and private sectors,” he added.
Wa’ed Ventures has invested in companies such as Cognite, Foodics, and Lean Technologies, as well as Rebellions, aiXplain, Pasqal, Terra Drone, and Zid, building a diverse portfolio across AI, fintech, and deep technology.
The fund has supported both international companies and local startups expanding into the Kingdom, reflecting its focus on expanding advanced technologies and strengthening the country’s innovation ecosystem.
Resemble AI highlighted the sharp rise in AI threats regionally. “The Middle East is facing an unprecedented surge in AI-generated fraud, with deepfake incidents increasing by 600% in Saudi Arabia alone last year,” said Zohaib Ahmed, co-founder and CEO of Resemble AI.
“Organizations across the Gulf need detection capabilities that can be deployed on their own infrastructure, with the speed and accuracy to capture threats in real time. Waed understands this urgency, and their support will accelerate our ability to bring that protection to the region,” Ahmed added.
The company’s platform supports both cloud and on-premises deployments, allowing government and regulatory departments to process sensitive voice data without relying on external servers.
