Strategy& projects Qatar’s AI market above $2 billion, urges export-focused development

Qatar’s domestic AI market could exceed US$2 billion by 2030, according to Strategy& Middle East’s November 2026 analysis. The consultancy argues that government and industry demand can do more than support technology purchases: it can help local companies develop software, expertise and intellectual property they can sell to customers across the region.

The forecast covers four markets, which Strategy& projects will grow at a compound annual rate of more than 25% between 2025 and 2030. Its approximate segment estimates put platforms first, followed by products, with professional services and infrastructure accounting for smaller, equal shares. These are projections of the domestic market’s potential, not revenues already achieved.

• AI platforms: about US$700 million.
• AI products: about US$500 million.
• AI professional services: about US$400 million.
• AI infrastructure: about US$400 million.

The export decision starts with procurement

Strategy& sees Qatar’s relatively small market as a potential advantage. Government customers, regulators, researchers and technology companies could work closely to test and improve solutions. It identifies public services, energy, financial services, healthcare, logistics and industrial operations as areas where local data, regulation and industry knowledge can shape useful products.

The practical recommendation is to choose problems shared by enough customers to justify replication. A system built for one government body or industrial operator should be adaptable for another customer without a complete rebuild. That puts the ability to reuse the technology alongside the immediate needs of the first buyer.

In a press release published by Zawya, the consultancy recommends establishing intellectual-property ownership, reusable technology components and data rights during procurement. Those arrangements would help turn a single deployment into a product that can serve more customers. The recommendation concerns how projects are commissioned, not simply what happens after a successful pilot.

Qatar does not need to own every layer of the AI value chain to compete. The opportunity is to build where it has a genuine advantage, particularly sovereign AI and expertise in priority industries.

Hani Zein, partner, Strategy& Middle East

Capacity needs customers

The analysis also estimates demand for colocation—data-center space and power for customers’ computing equipment. Strategy& projects Qatar will need around 120 megawatts of utilized IT power capacity by 2030. Against publicly announced developments as of July 2026, it estimates a 20% gap between planned supply and projected requirements.

But the consultancy conditions infrastructure investment on customer demand and reusable AI products. It identifies Qai, Ooredoo and Syntys as existing national technology companies whose strengths could be better connected. Doing so would require clear commercial agreements on infrastructure access, product ownership, revenue sharing and intellectual-property rights.

Selling beyond the first customer

For regional sales, Strategy& identifies Arabic-language applications, AI under national control for regulated industries, and specialized technologies for energy, finance and logistics. It recommends involving potential international customers early in development. International partnerships could supply complementary expertise while supporting knowledge transfer, joint development and local ownership of intellectual property.

Existing business networks offer one possible route outward. The analysis points to Ooredoo’s operations across eight markets in the Middle East, North Africa and South Asia as potential channels for testing Qatar-developed solutions abroad. It presents that footprint as an opportunity, rather than an announced export programme or customer agreement.

The proposed scorecard also moves beyond installed capacity, partnerships and pilot projects. Strategy& recommends tracking products reused by multiple customers, intellectual property owned or co-owned in Qatar, the share of domestic AI workloads served locally, regional customers won and export revenues. Those measures would test whether spending creates a durable technology business, not just more deployments.