What I’ll be watching at LEAP 2026 — beyond billions and big announcements

An article by Abdullah Al Jaafari, CEO and Founder of Resquad AI At the end of this month, Riyadh will host the fifth edition of LEAP. It is easy to forget how unlikely the first one felt back in 2022. A brand-new technology conference drew more than 100,000 registered attendees from over 80 countries to Saudi Arabia. Nobody is asking whether LEAP can attract an audience now. Last year’s edition drew more than 200,000 attendees and opened with $14.9 billion in AI investment announcements o