AWS’ Tanuja Randery on supporting EMEA’s digital transformation and AI ambition

In an insightful interview, Tanuja Randery, VP and MD EMEA at Amazon Web Services (AWS), shares the company’s dynamic vision for one of the world’s most vibrant and diverse regions. Randery, who met with Gulf Business editor, Neesha Salian on the sidelines of the AWS Summit held last month in Dubai, discusses AWS’s strategic commitment to the Middle East, detailing significant investments in cloud infrastructure, AI development, and talent upskilling that are driving economic transformation across the UAE, Saudi Arabia, and beyond.

Randery also delves into AWS’s global footprint, including the pioneering European Sovereign Cloud, and highlights key partnerships like the transformative collaboration with Saudi Arabia’s AI champion, HUMAIN.

From navigating regulatory challenges and fostering startup ecosystems to championing sustainability and personal leadership values, this conversation offers a comprehensive look at how AWS is empowering businesses and nations to accelerate their digital futures.

To start off, let’s begin with your vision for the regions you oversee — how has it evolved since you took charge around four years ago?

I think this region that I have the privilege of leading across EMEA is probably the most vibrant and diverse I’ve ever been part of — even on a global scale. Despite the complicated situations we face, whether it’s around the energy transition or geopolitical pressures, what I really love about this region is its sheer ability to keep moving forward.

I spend a lot of my time in the Middle East. It’s an incredible place with supportive governments, bold commitments, and clear vision. We always say transformation isn’t possible without top-down commitment, and this region exemplifies that. It’s also about matching that commitment with investments — in technology, infrastructure, sustainability, and people. I see that happening across the Middle East, Sub-Saharan Africa, and even in the mature markets of the UK, Germany, and France.

So, since I joined, I wouldn’t say the strategy has changed, but it’s more about enabling our customers to leverage technology at pace and at scale — to focus not on technology for its own sake, but on technology delivering tangible business outcomes.

Building on that thought — how has your footprint grown, and do you foresee it expanding even further in the next few years?

Absolutely. From an Amazon and AWS perspective, we’re continually growing and building AI and data centre infrastructure globally. That’s because we see it as a fundamental privilege to help customers build with us. Some of the world’s most critical national infrastructures — defence, banking, public services — run on AWS. So, it’s vital we listen closely to market signals and invest accordingly.

In the Middle East, we’ve made some bold moves. Since 2017, we launched our first region in Bahrain. Then in 2022, we opened our UAE region with infrastructure in both Abu Dhabi and Dubai — an investment of over $5bn, which created 6,000 jobs and nearly double that in economic impact.

We’ve recently announced our upcoming region in Saudi Arabia, set to go live in 2026. And just last week, we made additional announcements focused on AI and cloud capabilities. So yes, we’re monitoring the market closely and making long-term commitments.

Beyond infrastructure, we’re deeply invested in training and upskilling as well. We’ve already trained 150,000 people across the Middle East — and that’s just the beginning.

That’s impressive. How is AWS is helping customers in the Middle East become global players?

What’s exciting is that our global infrastructure aligns so well with the Middle East’s ambitions to be a global player. Our customers here don’t just want local capabilities — they want to scale globally with consistency. We enable that by offering the same AWS core fidelity of service worldwide: the same security, scalability, and microservices, no matter where you are.

The UAE’s e&, for instance, recently acquired a Czech-based company (PPF Telecom)  and wants to use AWS to support operations there.

Read: AWS, e& sign over $1bn deal to drive cloud, AI growth in region

We’re making significant investments across my region: GBP8bn in the UK, nearly GBP16bn in Spain, and another GBP8bn for the European sovereign cloud. These are long-term plays, and they’re not just about technology — they’re about job creation and economic value.

Job creation is a topic close to your heart. Tell us more about how AWS is supporting talent and smaller businesses.

Job creation is incredibly important to us. But beyond just the numbers, we’re really passionate about supporting startups and small-to-medium enterprises (SMEs) — they’re the bedrock of innovation and economic resilience.

Our investments and training programmes are designed to empower this ecosystem. We want SMEs to access the same powerful tools and infrastructure as the largest enterprises, and to grow and scale using AWS. It’s what keeps this space exciting and vibrant.

Give us some examples of companies you’re working with globally and regionally, especially when it comes to both large enterprises and startups.

Absolutely. Take CAFU, for example. They’ve built their entire mobile app, data warehouse, and infrastructure on AWS. With cloud, they didn’t need upfront capital for infrastructure — they scaled rapidly and completely changed the way we think about fuel delivery. You don’t need to visit a petrol station anymore.

Then you have more established digital players like Property Finder. While the front-end of their site offers beautiful listings and images, what’s really impressive is their backend use of AI and ML — especially for fraud detection and intelligent chatbots. These tools help reduce anxiety for consumers by ensuring listings are vetted and trustworthy.

Another enterprise example is BT, which is using Amazon QDeveloper to boost coding efficiency, removing up to 12 per cent of tedious tasks and making their development teams more effective.

What sectors are leading in cloud and Gen AI adoption, particularly in the region?

Frankly, there’s no sector today that can ignore Gen AI. It’s transforming customer experience across the board.

In retail, it’s used daily — including by Amazon, which integrates AI in services like Amazon Go using “Just Walk Out” technology. In media, it’s transforming content creation and research. In financial services, we’ve seen tremendous uptake—First Abu Dhabi Bank is a great example. They’re using both our outposts and cloud tech to speed up time-to-market for products and improve productivity by up to 60 per cent.

Sports is another exciting area. We’re involved in projects with F1, where we handle 1.1 million telemetry data points per second. This allows us to deliver fan insights in real time — who was the fastest, tire performance, pit strategy, etc.

We’ve also collaborated with the Bundesliga on “My Dream Pitch”, which uses AI to let fans create their own virtual stadiums.

Tell us about your new partnership with HUMAIN in Saudi Arabia. What makes it special?

I’m really excited about this one. HUMAIN is the national AI champion of Saudi Arabia, and our partnership will enable an AI zone within a HUMAIN-built data centre, paired with our AWS region launching in 2026.

We’re working together to deliver Amazon Bedrock services, Amazon Q, Amazon Connect, and a full suite of microservices. What’s unique is that customers can access multiple models (like Claude, Mistral, DeepSeek) safely and securely in a virtual private cloud — without needing to manage different sign-ups or worrying about data security.

We’ve also just introduced Tranium and Inferentia chips, which offer lower-cost and sustainable options — especially relevant as the Middle East transitions from an oil-based to a knowledge-based economy.

You mentioned public cloud and cybersecurity. Tell us more about your partnership with e& and the UAE Sovereign Launchpad.

Our infrastructure has always been sovereign by design, unlike others that treat it as an add-on. AWS Nitro, for instance, embeds security at every layer.

Now, with our partnership with e& and the endorsement from the UAE Cybersecurity Council, we’ve enhanced our offerings to address workloads that demand higher levels of sovereignty. What’s important here is data never moves unless the customer moves it.

Bringing e&’s cybersecurity capabilities together with AWS’s cloud and security services allows us to support highly regulated industries better than ever before. Having Dr Mohamed Al-Kuwaiti’s (the head of Cyber Security for the UAE Government) endorsement reflects the trust we’ve built in the region.

You’ve talked about e& and HUMAIN. Tell us about other strategic partnerships in the Middle East.

Definitely. One major one is our strategic framework agreement with Aramco in Saudi Arabia. It’s focused on operational efficiency and sustainability using cloud, AI, and ML.

In addition, we work closely with major consulting firms like Deloitte, Accenture, and McKinsey, as part of what we call the Power of Three:

• AWS provides the core cloud and AI/ML infrastructure
• Business consultants help customers align technology with strategy
• System integrators ensure execution at scale

This collaborative model ensures we help customers truly transform.

In terms of cloud adoption in the region, what do you see as the main challenges companies face?

That’s a very timely question. With the massive investments coming into the region, including our own — and the potential impact of cloud and AI being around $733bn for the Middle East alone, the question is: how do we unlock that full potential?

There are three core challenges:

Regulatory environment: We’re fortunate to operate in a region with governments that are supportive of innovation. But it’s crucial to maintain a regulatory environment that allows experimentation while still protecting security and citizen rights. Some businesses find that compliance adds considerable cost.

Skills shortage: This is something we’re incredibly passionate about. According to our research, 43 per cent of businesses in the region report a lack of access to digital skills. You can’t achieve transformation without a digitally skilled workforce. So we’re investing heavily; we are training 150,000 people in MENA and Turkey so far, and 31 million globally. We also run programmes tailored for women, like our 12-week course with Coda Tech to train Emirati women.

Startup funding: For startups to scale globally from here, access to venture and public funding is critical. I’m optimistic, given the number of investment funds available in the region, but it’s something we all need to nurture together.

My advice? Start now. Start small. Scale fast. But not leaning into this technology now is no longer an option.

Tell us about the European Sovereign Cloud that AWS has launched.

The European Sovereign Cloud is something we launched in partnership with the German government. Our first deployment will be in Brandenburg this year. What makes it unique is that it delivers the full range of AWS services while being governed entirely by European (specifically German) law.

It will be run and operated by EU citizens and will have its own management board. It’s operationally sovereign without compromising on innovation — a necessary step in today’s regulatory landscape.

Let’s talk sustainability. What are AWS’s key initiatives, especially with rising concerns around AI and energy consumption?

Sustainability is at the heart of everything we do. As I mentioned earlier, Amazon is the world’s largest corporate purchaser of power purchase agreements (PPAs), and we’re commissioning solar and wind projects — 28 in the region, if I recall correctly. We partner closely with energy providers and governments to make these happen.

Beyond renewable energy, we focus on efficiency. Our data centres are up to 4.5 times more energy efficient than average European data centres — this is backed by Accenture research. Our chips — Graviton, Trainium, Inferentia —are designed for sustainability as well.

Amazon also founded the Climate Pledge, committing us and other signatories to reach net-zero carbon by 2040. So it’s not just about using more energy but using it smarter and more efficiently.

To end on a personal note — what are three values that guide you as a leader?

The first one is ownership. I believe leaders must own the customer problems, the solutions, the employee experience — everything. That sense of responsibility is crucial, and it’s a key Amazon leadership principle.

The second is inclusion. Not just diversity, but true inclusion—creating environments where diverse voices are heard. At Amazon, we have a principle that “leaders are right a lot,” which actually means they seek out perspectives that challenge their assumptions. For example, we write documents that anyone in the organisation, even the most junior member, can comment on. Leaders also speak last in meetings to encourage open dialogue.

The third is vision and boldness. You need to have a North Star and the courage to take risks. But just as importantly, you need to inspire your team and create space for them to come along the journey with you.