How COTI’s Role in Saudi Arabia’s AI and Blockchain Centre Could Shape Web3 and Real-World Assets Why is an Israeli blockchain protocol becoming pivotal in Saudi Arabia’s ambitious AI and blockchain initiatives? COTI’s appointment as a founding member of the Saudi Arabia AI and Blockchain Centre (SAAIBC) highlights the convergence of blockchain, geopolitics, and next-generation infrastructure. It reveals Saudi Arabia’s strategy to spearhead AI and blockchain adoption throughout the Middle East and Africa. Launched at the Real-World-Asset (RWA) Summit in Dubai, SAAIBC is a collaboration among public sector leaders, investment firms, and Web3 companies. COTI’s role indicates a focused move to institutionalize blockchain infrastructure in areas historically underserved by such technologies. What is the Saudi Arabia AI and Blockchain Centre? Introduced at the RWA Summit roundtable at the Burj Al Arab alongside TOKEN2049, SAAIBC gathered 40 leaders from governments, royalty, and investment funds. Its mission is to accelerate AI and blockchain adoption across MENA and Africa, involving countries like the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Nigeria, Sierra Leone, Kazakhstan, France, and the UK. This initiative complements Saudi Arabia’s Vision 2030—a strategic plan to reduce oil dependence and diversify its economy. Vision 2030 includes a $40 billion AI fund managed by the Public Investment Fund and a $100 billion strategy known as Project Transcendence. These programs invest in data centers, AI startups, and public-private partnerships to boost digital infrastructure. Saudi Arabia is thus not only investing in cutting-edge technology but embedding blockchain and AI adoption within national policy and investment frameworks. Why is COTI’s Involvement Important? Originally developed to address scalability and privacy issues, COTI now positions itself at the core of real-world blockchain application. Its inclusion in SAAIBC signals recognition of its privacy-preserving technology, increasingly vital to governments and financial institutions exploring digital assets. Privacy remains a major hurdle for institutional adoption of public blockchains, as public ledgers expose transactional data—a challenge for regulated financial services. COTI’s Layer 1 protocol ensures auditability while protecting user confidentiality, making it especially suitable for tokenizing real-world assets (RWAs) such as land registries, government bonds, and commodities. COTI’s CEO, Shahaf Bar-Geffen, called this a strategic inflection point: “This is a rare opportunity to shape blockchain policy and infrastructure early across Africa and MENA. By uniting infrastructure providers, investors, government officials, and businesses, we can trial meaningful projects with full stakeholder input, maximizing success chances. ” What Are Real-World Assets and Why Do They Matter? Real-world assets are tangible or off-chain assets brought onto blockchains through tokenization—for example, real estate, bonds, oil reserves, carbon credits, and artworks.

Tokenization enables digital trading in fractional units, enhancing liquidity and transparency. A government could tokenize infrastructure bonds, creating digital versions to allow smaller investors to participate in public financing. Similarly, land registries or agricultural commodities could be represented digitally and traded worldwide. The RWA market is valued in the trillions. In MENA, where capital markets and investment infrastructure are still developing, blockchain-based RWA platforms could unlock capital and build investor trust. What Happened at the RWA Summit in Dubai? The RWA Summit launched SAAIBC and tackled challenges in asset tokenization, including regulatory clarity, trust-building between traditional finance and decentralized finance, and operationalizing tokenization at scale. Attendees managed around $500 billion in assets. Though much of the event was under Chatham House Rule, the formation of SAAIBC was a formal announcement signaling a decisive step toward institutional blockchain adoption in regions often excluded from early technology trials. The summit confirmed that governments in MENA and Africa are transitioning from blockchain observers to active architects shaping its future infrastructure. My Opinion and Final Thoughts This development marks a shift in how blockchain and AI will be institutionalized over the coming decade with a pragmatic, goal-aligned approach. Saudi Arabia is designing frameworks that integrate technology with national and regional priorities. COTI’s participation is more than symbolic; it highlights the strategic value of privacy-preserving infrastructure. For the Web3 sector, it signals that major adoption waves might arise from emerging markets through public-private partnerships, not just from Silicon Valley. It also prompts reflection for policymakers and developers: How can infrastructure balance compliance with decentralization?How can collaborations be inclusive rather than extractive? Though answers will emerge over time, the foundation is set and key players are chosen. Early participants stand to influence the trajectory of this evolving future significantly. Don’t forget to like and share this story!