Saudi Arabia's Seha Virtual Hospital completed 11 consecutive remote robotic surgeries, including the second remote lobectomy and fifth remote pneumonectomy performed anywhere in the world, with surgeons in Riyadh operating on patients in Hail and other regions.
A surgeon in Riyadh successfully performed surgery on a patient in Hail without either of them needing to travel. This occurred eleven times in a row, proving that distance is no longer an obstacle to effective medical care.
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Derivatives wake up
Derivatives trading on Saudi Exchange rose to about SAR 1.157 billion in September 2026, from SAR 404.9 million in August and SAR 280,000 in July, after no trading at all in H1 2026. Contracts traded rose to 26,510 from 9,725, and transactions to 5,526 from about 1,990. Analysts surveyed by Argaam linked the surge to regulatory enhancements that took effect on 19 August, which cut trading costs and improved capital efficiency.
Analysts link the increase to the changes made on 19 August and believe that growth will require support from more institutions. So a fund manager's risk committee should set a derivatives policy now, instead of waiting for liquidity to stabilize.
Sixteen countries become twenty-four
The Riyadh-based Digital Cooperation Organization approved 8 countries as membership candidates — Albania, Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Kenya, Lebanon, Palestine, Syria and Zambia — with Tajikistan approved as an associate member, taking the organization from 16 members to 24 on accession and covering roughly 980 million people, about 12% of the global population. The DCO launched in 2020 with 5 founding countries and is working to a 2025–2028 agenda.
The expansion from 5 founding countries in 2020 to 24, now representing approximately 12% of the global population, demonstrates that standards are being set collectively. The rules on data and cross-border digital trade are determined by those who participate.
A film slate for Rotana
The Cultural Development Fund signed a financing agreement with Rotana Media Group to support films and TV series worth more than SAR39 million. The productions are expected to add more than SAR72 million to GDP, create 68 jobs and draw over SAR12 million in private-sector contributions. Saudi box-office revenue passed SAR920 million in 2025, and Saudi films took about 13% of it, over SAR122 million, from 11 of the 538 films released.
The fund evaluates this deal based on the expected SAR72 million GDP contribution and SAR12 million in private investment. Studio heads should highlight these figures when pitching, rather than focusing on the creative brief.
