Saudi Arabia just made its most aggressive move yet in that generational project. The kingdom announced a new $40 billion technology investment fund, developed in partnership with American venture capital heavyweight Andreessen Horowitz (a16z), aimed at positioning Saudi Arabia as a global hub for artificial intelligence, cloud infrastructure, and advanced computing.
The haul represents over 18% of all venture capital dollars allocated in the United States in 2025, according to firm co-founder Ben Horowitz, but even more jaw-dropping is that it brings the organization to more than $90 billion in assets under management, putting it neck-and-neck with Sequoia Capital as among the largest venture firms in the world. Which is fitting, since a16z appears to be very friendly with actual sovereign wealth funds, including at least one from Saudi Arabia.
"With two strong competitors vying to secure the future of this unique American asset, Affinity has decided no longer to pursue the opportunity," an Affinity spokesperson said. "The dynamics of the investment have changed significantly since we initially became involved in October. We continue to believe there is a strong strategic rationale for Paramount's offer."
The publication said the company formed an investment consortium with the sovereign wealth funds of Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Abu Dhabi to submit a $71bn bid for Warner Bros Discovery. The report said Paramount Skydance would contribute about $50bn towards the proposed acquisition with the remainder coming from the wealth funds. Paramount Skydance has described the involvement of the sovereign wealth funds as categorically inaccurate.
