Riyadh – Sharikat Mubasher: Saudi Arabia has expanded its use of artificial intelligence and digital platforms during the 2026 Hajj season, deploying more than 15 interconnected smart systems compared to around 8 to 12 technologies used last year.

According to specialists speaking to Al Eqtisadiah, Saudi authorities are transforming digital tools from support systems into a fully integrated operational network capable of managing crowd movement and logistics in real time. The technologies include computer vision, biometric verification, predictive analytics, drones, and unified communication networks.

The Kingdom has also strengthened its digital government infrastructure through platforms such as Absher, which provides more than 450 services and processes nearly 430 million transactions annually. Around 80% of businesses in Saudi Arabia reportedly use AI-powered tools for government-related transactions.

Saeed Al-Sulian, a researcher specializing in Hajj economics, said the 2026 season marks a major shift in AI adoption, with systems now handling crowd management, biometric verification, multilingual assistance robots, and predictive analytics to improve service distribution and reduce congestion.

Authorities have also expanded the use of drone monitoring systems and upgraded platforms such as Nusuk as part of the Kingdom’s broader Vision 2030 digital transformation efforts.

Meanwhile, Rayan Alsaggaf‏, IT Consultant at Purevision, said platforms such as Tawakkalna and Absher have helped reduce bureaucracy and speed up government services, transforming processes that once took days into transactions completed within minutes through smartphones. He added that AI is increasingly being used for data verification, user behavior analysis, fraud detection, and service automation.