News

UAE Lets Talented Coders Apply For 100,000 Golden Visas

If the initiative turns out to be successful, other forward-thinking countries could decide to attract talent using similar methods.

Published

4 years ago

July 17, 2021

Joanna Melki

uae lets talented coders apply for 100,000 golden visas

Unsplash

The UAE would like to become the region’s dominant tech hub, and that’s possible only if the country itself is home to successful tech businesses contributing to its digital economy. To achieve its goal, the country has just launched an ambitious initiative that lets talented coders from around the world apply for 100,000 golden visas.

Called the National Programme for Coders, the new initiative was launched by His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum in cooperation with Google, Microsoft, Amazon, Cisco, IBM, HPE, LinkedIn, Nvidia, and Facebook.

“The goal is to train and attract 100,000 programmers and create 1,000 major digital companies within five years,” said Sheikh Mohammed. “The National Programme for Programmers is a new step to build our digital economy,” he added.

To be eligible, applicants must be:

Distinguished experts and talents who achieved success in various areas of coding.
Those who work for pioneering international technological firms.
Graduates of software engineering, computer sciences, hardware engineering, information technology, artificial intelligence, data science, big data, and electrical engineering.

The National Programme for Coders is available to both residents and non-residents of the UAE. All coders who meet the above-listed criteria can apply through The Office of Artificial Intelligence in the UAE government or the Federal Authority for Identity and Citizenship.

Also Read: Amazon Web Services Announces Plans To Open Data Center In UAE

It will certainly be interesting to see how many talented coders will be attracted by the opportunity to get one of thousands of UAE golden visas considering that we’re in the middle of not only a major global tech talent shortage, but also a pandemic.

If the initiative turns out to be successful, then other forward-thinking countries could decide to attract talent using similar methods, knowing that digital transformation is essential for shaping the future we seek for the next generations.

News

Saudi EV Adoption Accelerates With BYD Expansion & Tesla Launch

Saudi Arabia’s EV market is gaining momentum as BYD plans major showroom growth and Tesla establishes a foothold in Riyadh.

Published

2 days ago

July 16, 2025

Nour Nasir

saudi ev adoption accelerates with byd expansion and tesla launch

Saudi Arabia’s ambitions to become a regional hub for electric mobility are drawing greater investment from global automakers. As part of Vision 2030, the Kingdom is targeting 30% electric vehicle (EV) adoption in the capital, Riyadh, by the end of the decade — an objective that’s now shaping the strategic interests of international EV brands.

Chinese manufacturer BYD is planning a substantial thrust into the Saudi market, building on its current footprint of three showrooms. According to Jerome Saigot, BYD’s managing director in the Kingdom, the company aims to open 10 showrooms by the end of 2026.

“Saudi Arabia is a complex market. You need to go fast. You need to think big,” Saigot recently told reporters. “We are not here to stay at 5,000 or 10,000 cars a year”.

The announcement follows Tesla’s entry into the Saudi EV space, with the US automaker opening its first showroom in Riyadh in April. Tesla joins early players like BYD and Geely in what remains a nascent but strategically important segment for the Kingdom.

The Saudi Public Investment Fund (PIF) has also ramped up its electric mobility agenda. Its efforts include major investments in Lucid Motors, the creation of local EV brand Ceer, and support for the rollout of national charging infrastructure.

Also Read: Twitch Launches Arabic Right-To-Left Interface For Web & Mobile

However, electric vehicles still only account for just over 1% of total car sales in Saudi Arabia, according to data from PwC cited by Bloomberg. Key challenges include high upfront costs, limited public charging access, and the added complexity of operating in extreme heat conditions.

In spite of those hurdles, Saigot views Tesla’s entry as a net positive. “The more Tesla communicates on marketing, the better it is for us,” he said. Saigot joined BYD in April, having previously held executive roles at Nissan and Great Wall Motor.

With multiple brands scaling up activity in parallel — and government-backed infrastructure investment underway — Saudi Arabia’s EV sector appears set for rapid acceleration over the next few years.