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Influencer Growth Fuels Saudi Creator Economy Surge
The Kingdom’s creator economy grew over 32% in Q1 2025, fueled by TikTok, UGC, and cost-per-action (CPA) influencer models.
Saudi Arabia’s creator economy saw a significant 32.37% growth in the first quarter of 2025, driven by an uptick in influencer marketing, content-driven e-commerce, and the increasing influence of user-generated content (UGC). These insights come from a recent study by Admitad and the Stllr Network.
Much of this momentum is coming from video-based platforms, where brands are leaning on creators who feel more relatable than polished ad campaigns. The trend shows a clear preference for authenticity, as audiences gravitate toward content that feels real and personal.
Mohannad Alzahrani, Co-founder and VP KSA of Stllr Network, highlighted the shift: “The rise of user-generated content (UGC) is changing the way brands engage with consumers. Audiences trust real creators more than traditional advertising, making UGC a key driver of authenticity and sales”.
TikTok remains the dominant platform in this space, reportedly reaching 88% of the Saudi population. It also showed the sharpest rise in influencer-led transactions. Other platforms followed with solid, if less dramatic, growth: X was up 17%, Instagram increased by 12%, and Telegram by 10%.
In terms of content niches, beauty led the pack with a 56% growth rate, followed by lifestyle at 45.8% and fashion at 18.2%. Tech content also showed healthy traction at 10.6%, while entertainment, food, fitness, parenting, and gaming posted smaller — but still positive — gains.
Also Read: Top E-Commerce Websites In The Middle East In 2025
The report analyzed more than 300,000 influencer-driven purchases. These efforts translated into a 15% year-on-year jump in Gross Merchandise Value (GMV) and a 5% increase in the number of orders in 2024. Influencers themselves are seeing the benefit, with average order values hitting $54 and creator earnings rising by 14%.
A noticeable trend is the move away from fixed-rate deals. More influencers in Saudi Arabia are embracing hybrid compensation models — especially cost-per-action (CPA) setups that tie their earnings directly to performance.
As Anna Gidirim, CEO of Admitad, explains, “The CPA model brings much-needed transparency to influencer marketing. Brands only pay for actual results, and influencers benefit by securing long-term partnerships while offering their audiences exclusive promo codes and special discounts”.
However, the ecosystem still shows a gender imbalance. The data indicates that 63% of creators in Saudi Arabia are men, while women account for just 37%.
News
Noon And Yango Switch On Robot Deliveries In Dubai
The rollout folds autonomous couriers into noon’s rapid-delivery network as the UAE tests everyday autonomy.
Noon and Yango Group have signed an agreement to put autonomous robot deliveries into commercial use in Dubai, turning Yango’s earlier pilots into a daily service for noon Minutes orders. The launch in Sobha Hartland is the first full integration of Yango Autonomy’s electric robots with a major e-commerce network in the region, with wider deployment planned across Dubai and, later, other GCC markets.
Residents can choose a robot at checkout, track it in the app and unlock its compartment once it arrives. The hardware runs on Yango’s AI navigation and routing stack, which plans paths, avoids obstacles and yields to pedestrians. The units had already covered more than 1,500 kilometers during previous Dubai pilots, a test bed that demonstrated their ability to operate in mixed pedestrian environments and dense residential streets.
The rollout adds a contactless option to noon’s last-mile network and is positioned as extra capacity during peak periods. “Partnering with Yango Group lets us bring a future-ready delivery option straight to our customers,” said Ali Kafil-Hussain, noon’s Chief Business Officer. Noon has used Minutes to set rapid-delivery expectations in UAE cities; autonomous units now slot into that same high-frequency model.
Regulatory clearance from Dubai’s Roads and Transport Authority underpins the move. The RTA authorized Yango’s robots to operate on public walkways and in neighborhoods, smoothing the shift from controlled trials to commercial work. Dubai has framed autonomous mobility as part of its smart-city buildout, and the partners lean on that agenda to accelerate integration.
Also Read: Uber And WeRide Roll Out Driverless Robotaxis In Abu Dhabi
For Yango, the partnership is an anchor for its autonomy platform in the Gulf. Islam Abdul Karim, Yango’s Middle East regional head, said the aim is to make autonomous delivery an “everyday, reliable service” for UAE communities. The company views operational data from early districts as the basis for scaling into more communities and, eventually, cross-border rollouts.
The move lands as Gulf retailers search for faster fulfilment and lower-emission logistics. Autonomous couriers remain a small share of last-mile delivery, but Dubai’s approvals and early usage data give the partners a clearer path to turn pilots into durable infrastructure.
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