– Saudi Arabia’s Prosperity7 Ventures, a subsidiary of Saudi Aramco, participated in the latest financing round for Zhipu AI, valuing the Beijing-based startup at about $3 billion.

– Amid rising tensions with the US and Europe, China and Saudi Arabia have strengthened their ties, highlighted by a $7 billion local-currency swap agreement and Saudi investments in China’s tech and energy sectors.

– Founded in 2019, Zhipu AI is a leading Chinese generative AI startup, with backing from major firms like Alibaba and Tencent, and aims to rival global players like OpenAI and Google.

Saudi Arabia’s Prosperity7 Ventures, LLC has participated in the latest financing round for Zhipu AI, marking the first known foreign investment in a major Chinese generative AI firm.

Prosperity7, a subsidiary of Saudi Aramco, joined this round, which valued the Beijing-based startup at approximately $3 billion.

China is supporting efforts by companies like Zhipu and Baidu Inc. to create domestic alternatives to ChatGPT, recognizing AI’s crucial role in future economic growth.

Amid escalating tensions with the US and Europe, China has been strengthening its ties with Saudi Arabia. In November, China and Saudi Arabia signed a local-currency swap agreement valued at around $7 billion.

Saudi Aramco, through Prosperity7, has invested billions in Chinas energy sector while the kingdom seeks to attract Chinese tech companies.

Founded in 2019, Zhipu AI is a prominent startup in China’s generative AI sector, aiming to compete with firms like Microsoft Corp.-backed OpenAI and Google. It was among the first Chinese firms to receive government approval for a public rollout.

Zhipu AI has released a chatbot and a visual language foundation model, with additional backing from Alibaba Group Holding Ltd. and Tencent Holdings Ltd. Other notable Chinese AI startups that have raised substantial investment include Moonshot AI and MiniMax.