Saudi Arabia marks founding day with ‘Cultural Universe’ metaverse

Saudi Arabia’s Ministry of Culture has launched a metaverse platform to commemorate the country’s founding day.

Celebrated on February 22 each year, the founding day is a celebration of Saudi Arabia’s historical and cultural roots from the creation of the First Saudi State in 1727 by Imam Mohammed bin Saud.

The metaverse, built with Oracle’s Hyperledger Fabric 2.5, allows users to explore key historical events since the First Saudi State in a first-person view. Dubbed the Cultural Universe, Saudi’s metaverse platform provides users with concise information about key events in the country’s history by simply approaching landmarks in the virtual world.

Outside of historical events, the virtual world provides visitors with detailed information on Saudi music, art, cuisine, and culture. The Ministry’s statement confirms the inclusion of gamified content to engage users with the platform, supporting access via virtual reality (VR) headsets, PCs, and mobile devices.

“This cross-platform compatibility embodies the Ministry of Culture’s commitment to inclusivity, enabling a diverse global audience to explore and engage with the rich history of Saudi Culture,” read an official statement from the government.

Despite plans to reach a global audience, audio and text from Saudi’s virtual world appear to be only in Arabic, with no provision for English language support.

However, Saudi authorities are pitching their tents with the metaverse initiative as a key strategy to improve the nation’s digital economy. The official announcement describes the offering as a “transformative moment” as the country pivots from an “era of hype” to real-world use cases.

Saudi Arabia has previously embraced blockchain, with Animoca Brands pledging to inject funds into the local ecosystem to support companies dabbling in metaverse offerings. In late 2022, Saudi-based SAIC Motor and Tajeer Group turned to blockchain to finance a multi-million dollar deal described as an “important milestone in the Middle East’s automotive sector.”

Saudi’s tango with emerging technologies

Apart from blockchain, Saudi Arabia is keen on integrating artificial intelligence (AI) into key sectors of its economy as it competes with United Arab Emirates for the top spot in the Middle East for AI dominance, with both countries spending millions of dollars to purchase Nvidia’s (NASDAQ: NV) AI chips.

To edge its regional competition, Saudi Arabia is doubling down on a national AI sensitization plan that experts say will deepen its talent pool for emerging firms. Saudi-based researchers have since rolled out a native AI model dubbed AceGPT to capture the cultural nuances and achieve an “alignment with local values.”

Watch: Unravelling the Metaverse at the CES Tech Las Vegas 2022