Google and YouTube to train the next generation of gaming talent in Saudi Arabia

Riyadh: Gulf Tech News

Google announced new capacity building programs for game developers, students, content creators and Esports players in Saudi Arabia. The trainings will be held in partnership with local entities such as the Ministry of Communication and Information Technology’s Center for Digital Entrepreneurship (CODE) through the  Game Founders program and IGNITE! Initiative as well as the Saudi Esports Federation.

According to Saudi Arabia’s National Gaming and Esports strategy, the Kingdom aims to create over 39,000 jobs in game development, publishing, infrastructure and other professions by 2030, an objective Google is committed to supporting through upskilling programs with local partne

Google’s training programs will support gaming talent in Saudi Arabia  across development, publishing, distribution and monetization, focusing on five main areas:

Google Days for university students: Google Days for university students: Google gaming experts and partners from the industry will run training programs for over 250 university students across Ahsa, Abha, Jeddah, Riyadh and Dammam from September 2023 with the Ministry of Communications and Information Technology’s Centre of Digital Entrepreneurship (CODE) Through Game Founders Program.  The program will cover entrepreneurship strategies, gaming career opportunities, monetization through Google Ads solutions such as PerformanceMax and AdMob, distribution best practices on Play, Cloud and YouTube  and programs that support the gaming industry.

Training and mentorship for Saudi game developers: Google will offer workshops on Play’s pre-registration process that allows developers to understand demand as a result of pre-launch marketing efforts  for a more impactful launch and on setting up  benchmarks based on game genres, audience among other areas, Ads best practices in topics including brand performance and creative campaigns to 100 Saudi game developers in partnership with the Ministry of Communications and Information Technology’s  IGNITE! Initiative and the Game Founders program.  Participants will also receive one to one mentorship with  experts on entrepreneurship, fundraising, game development and design, monetization and marketing through Google for Startup’s Global Mentors community, which connects startups to Google’s global network of experts.

Content creators and Esports players: YouTube will offer a workshop at the Saudi Esports Federation’s Gamers8 conference, for 50 Saudi-based creators & Esports players focusing on gaming content and channel optimization, audience development and engagement with the gaming community on YouTube.

Women in Gaming:  YouTube will host a special “Ana Batala” session, which is part of the YouTube Batala program to empower female creators, for  women in Esports and content creators at Gamers8.  Google is also collaborating with stc Play, stc’s gaming arm and a platform for gamers,  on a campaign to promote inclusivity and show the diversity of Saudi Arabia’s gaming industry that will be released later in the year.

Google MENA Gaming Summit: Google will host the first Google MENA Gaming Summit in Riyadh by the end of this year to bring together leading Google experts, gaming veterans, investors and top regional talent. It will focus on industry trends,  updates and best practices across Google Play, Ads, YouTube and Cloud, and help build the ecosystem.

Commenting on the announcement, Anthony Nakache, Google’s Managing Director for the Middle East & North Africa said “There’s great momentum in building the local gaming ecosystem in Saudi Arabia, and we’re pleased to play our part in making this happen.  Our programs will focus on building the skills of gaming talent across the board- from  students,  developers, Esports players to content creators, focusing on app development, publishing and distribution on YouTube and Play  and monetization. We’re pleased to be partnering with the Ministry of Communication and Information Technology and the Saudi Esports Federation and look forward to doing more together.”

Mr. Abdullah Alshamrani, General Manager of CODE Centers said “The gaming industry in Saudi Arabia has tremendous potential for growth, and we are committed to supporting its development. We at CODE believe that the gaming industry can help to create new jobs, promote innovation and creativity, and contribute to the country’s economic diversification efforts.”

In Saudi Arabia, Google is supporting Sandsoft, Savvy Games Studios and Nine66 by offering gaming-related insights across Google’s products and services such as trending queries related to gaming, popular games on Google’s platforms, to support their game publishing efforts and marketing campaigns.

Commenting on the announcement, David Fernandez, CEO at Sandsoft said “We’re delighted that Google is joining our efforts to build a highly-skilled, inclusive gaming ecosystem in Saudi Arabia. For the diverse gaming talent here, Google’s investment in them will provide an immeasurable boost not only in terms of their technical skillsets, but also to their self-belief and confidence.”

Likewise, Yannick Theler, CEO at Savvy Games Studios, said “ Savvy Games Studios is delighted to be working with Google to train the next generation of games entrepreneurs and stars. Important initiatives such as this underline our commitment to making Saudi Arabia a global hub for games development, helping leading businesses such as Savvy Games Studios hire, train, and retain the brightest talent. Finally, to deliver the aims of the national strategy and creating opportunities for young talent.”

Google offers a range of products and services such as Google Ads, Play, Cloud and YouTube  that can  help gaming companies around the world to create, connect and scale their businesses. Moreover, gaming companies have access to world-class technology, performance and scale with Google Cloud, that helps companies serve players reliably and create and react fast.

Spoilz’s CEO, Musaab AlMalki said “With Google Cloud, we have been able to leverage data analytics more efficiently, resulting in the successful launch of many of our games, specially our latest game, Last Letter, which reached the top charts within a week. Google’s comprehensive suite of products and services has been invaluable to the Saudi gaming industry, empowering the industry in the MENA with gaming-related insights.”

Google Cloud also provides open source solutions powered by AI and machine learning to run and develop games that reach a global audience, and create positive experiences for players. Businesses such as Spoilz turn to Google Cloud to drive unique gaming experiences with the help of AI and data analytics for players in Saudi Arabia and the Middle East.