Saudi artificial intelligence firm Humain is planning to raise an initial $2.5 billion from global and domestic investors for a fund to invest in data centers in Saudi Arabia, according to people familiar with the matter. The fund will help finance data center capacity of 250 megawatt, which Humain is building in partnership with Al Moammar Information Systems Co., the people said, declining to be named discussing private information. That could eventually grow to as much as 1 gigwatt, they said.

It will be managed by BSF Capital, according to the people. The Saudi investment bank will target investors after getting approval from the Capital Market Authority, which could take between two to three months. Financing will be a mix of debt and equity, the people said.

Humain Chief Executive Officer Tareq Amin announced plans to establish a fund earlier this week, but did not provide details on its size. Representatives for Humain, Al Moammar Information Systems and BSF Capital declined to comment. The Public Investment Fund-backed firm separately said it has built a national AI platform based on an open model from China’s Mini Max Group Inc., joining a growing list of countries seeking tighter control of the increasingly important technology.

And oil giant Saudi Aramco, which agreed to buy a minority stake in Humain last year, signed a memorandum of understanding with Quantinuum to explore use cases for quantum computing. The plans are the latest indication of Saudi Arabia’s ambitions in the world of AI, which are largely being led by Humain. The moves are minting billion-dollar fortunes for people, including the two brothers that control Al Moammar Information Systems.

Several of the Gulf’s wealthy oil and gas producers have sought to make AI a core part of their diversification efforts, investing billions in related infrastructure and technology. Abu Dhabi-based G42 has also held exploratory talks with potential investors to raise billions of dollars, Bloomberg News reported this week. Humain has been on a dealmaking spree to build the infrastructure and computing capacity needed to train and run AI models since it was set up in 2025.

The same year, it announced plans for a $10 billion venture capital fund to invest in global startups.