Thuwal, Saudi Arabia, February 4, 2024 – King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST) is proud to host the inaugural KAUST Future Forum in Riyadh on February 12-13, 2024. The event aims to bring together government, industry, investors and academia to a showcase of KAUST's 15 years of achievements in research and innovation through panel discussions and an interactive exhibition.  

The forum is under the patronage of H. E. Eng Abdullah Alswaha, Minister of Communications and Information Technology and Chairman of the Board of Directors of King Abdulaziz City for Science and Technology (KACST). It is scheduled to take place in Riyadh's startup district, "The Garage," with Saudi Press Agency as media partner.  

It includes 47 speakers, seven panel discussions and an exhibition of 20 projects highlighting how KAUST is accelerating impact in the Kingdom.  

A key focus of the event is to showcase how KAUST is aligning to Saudi Arabia’s new Research, Development and Innovation (RDI) agenda. Launched in 2022 by His Royal Highness Mohammed Bin Salman, Crown Prince, Prime Minister and Chairman of the KAUST Board of Trustees, the new priorities aim to increase Saudi Arabia’s RDI investment to 2.5% of GDP and create high value science and technology jobs. Among the projects showcased are coral reef restoration, solar cell technology and AI-based diagnostics.  

Also on display are several startups from the University, including Red Sea, a sustainable agriculture company that is enabling food security, and Wayakit, showcasing biotechnology that is providing more sustainable products for cleaning and disinfection.  

The panels will consider scientific topics, including energy, health and the environment as well as investments in academia, including the attraction of top talent, promotion of women in science and development of strategic partnerships. 

“Our unrelenting pursuit of excellence in research, innovation and talent has enabled KAUST to establish a robust foundation for a world-class university,” KAUST President Tony Chan remarked. “This excellence also underpins our new strategy for accelerating impact, which will align our thematic focus to the priorities of the Kingdom, accelerate commercialization and societal benefits, and refocus our partnerships in a manner that supports both. This event highlights our past achievements but also underscores our commitment to our new strategy.” 

The exhibition is open to the public through advance registration.