February 2025 marks 80 years since King Abdulaziz al-Saud met President Franklin D. Roosevelt aboard the USS Quincy in the Great Bitter Lake in the Suez Canal. That meeting laid the foundation for a relationship defined by strategic alignment, mutual respect, and shared interests. But the Saudi-U.S. story predates 1945 – it began 12 years earlier, in the heat and dust of the Arabian desert.

In 1933, as the world navigated the uncertainties of the interwar years, Standard Oil of California secured a concession to search for oil in Saudi Arabia’s Eastern Province. The young kingdom was looking for economic lifelines, while the United States, still grappling with the Great Depression, sought new energy sources. In 1938, Dammam No. 7 struck oil and “black gold” was finally discovered. This was the start of an Arabian-American partnership that would help shape the modern world.

That discovery wasn’t just technical; it was a human one, in the partnership between American geologist Max Steineke and Saudi desert navigator Khamis bin Rimthan. These two men, from vastly different worlds, built a bridge of trust through expertise and perseverance. They embodied the essence of the Saudi-U.S. story: a relationship not only between governments but between people that went beyond oil and security.

Saudi-U.S. Cultural Diplomacy: A New Era of Exchange and Influence

Cultural exchange has long been an unspoken force binding these two countries. With Vision 2030, Saudi Arabia’s bold blueprint for the future, culture is being elevated as a fundamental pillar of this alliance.

American culture has long found a welcoming audience in Saudi Arabia. Hollywood films, bestselling novels, and global music icons have shaped Saudi perspectives on the world. Yet, culture is not a one-way street. Over the past few years, Saudi Arabia has emerged not just as a consumer of culture but as a global cultural contributor.

This shift is evident in the unprecedented international presence of Saudi creatives. Solo U.S. exhibitions, such as Ahmed Mater’s “Symbolic Cities” and Abdulnasser Gharem’s “Hospitable Thoughts,” have challenged outdated narratives and placed Saudi contemporary art at the heart of the global artistic conversation. Meanwhile, Saudi cinema is undergoing a renaissance, led by studios such as Telfaz11, whose productions capture authentic Saudi stories that have long been absent from the international screen. With Saudi Arabia now boasting the world’s fastest-growing box office, it is on a path to become a powerhouse in the global film industry. Saudi music, too, is making its mark. The Saudi National Orchestra and Choir’s historic performance at the Metropolitan Opera House in September 2023 introduced New York audiences to the kingdom’s rich and multifaceted musical traditions and showcased its deep connections with the global music scene.

The 2024 Riyadh International Book Fair stands as a testament to this new era of cultural exchange. In a program organized through a Saudi-U.S. partnership, leading American intellectuals, including Fareed Zakaria, Walter Isaacson, Jonathan Franzen, and Kwame Alexander, engaged with Saudi audiences in unfiltered, thought-provoking discussions. After delivering a talk on his latest book, “Age of Revolutions,” to an audience of some 350 people, Zakaria said, “There’s a cultural renaissance where people are willing to embrace and connect with outside culture.” Isaacson echoed this sentiment, noting, “There’s more books in this book festival than at any book festival in the world. I realize how vibrant the next decades are going to be in Saudi Arabia.”

These moments allow Saudis to reclaim their own story, moving beyond outdated stereotypes to engage the world and present their culture and aspirations on their own terms. Such exchanges exemplify the power of cultural diplomacy to challenge assumptions, build bridges, and create new pathways for collaboration. They also highlight a broader lens for the Saudi-U.S. relationship, one that places cultural exchange at the heart of the partnership, especially as Saudi Arabia is actively shaping its cultural renaissance.

Vision 2030’s Cultural Renaissance: It’s the (Creative) Economy!

The National Culture Strategy, launched in 2019, serves as the foundation for the kingdom’s creative transformation, establishing a comprehensive ecosystem across 16 cultural subsectors overseen by dedicated commissions and supported by various other key institutions. These sectors include museums, heritage, film, music, literature, performing arts, fashion, and design, among others. Over the next few years, the strategy aims to generate more than 100,000 jobs and increase culture’s contribution to the economy up to 3% of gross domestic product. This ambitious growth is being driven by a portfolio of over 500 initiatives, alongside an accelerating wave of investment activity, with 2.5 billion riyals (approximately $666.6 million) in opportunities identified to drive the sector’s growth.

Yet beyond these numbers lies a deeper transformation – one that is intellectual, cultural, and creative, shaping not just an economy but a new Saudi narrative. Saudi Arabia’s cultural renaissance is deeply rooted in its pre-Islamic poetry, Islamic intellectual traditions, Bedouin heritage, and the diverse cultural expressions of its many regions. At the same time, its modern cultural identity has been shaped by a dynamic engagement with global influences. A prime example of this intellectual engagement is the Riyadh Philosophy Conference, which fosters dialogues on identity, ethics, and aesthetics. It reflects a national conversation that is as much about reclaiming cultural confidence as it is about engaging with global ideas.

This transformation is also reshaping the very idea of Saudi-ness. Through the National Culture Strategy, Saudi Arabia is shaping a national identity that remains deeply connected to tradition while embracing the future. This is reflected in the Cultural Year initiative, which annually highlights a different aspect of Saudi heritage – celebrating Saudi coffee in 2022, Arabic poetry in 2023, and handicrafts in 2025. The recognition of these themes of cultural heritage and the reinvigoration of once-marginalized art forms signal a shift toward a more inclusive, multidimensional cultural narrative. It is a moment of self-definition, in which Saudi Arabia is opening itself to the world and also reintroducing itself on its own terms.

The National Culture Strategy aims to position Saudi Arabia as a global leader in culture and the creative industries. Today, the Diriyah Contemporary Art Biennale, Islamic Art Biennale, and Red Sea International Film Festival are a few examples of initiatives advancing Saudi Arabia’s role as a global cultural hub. By 2030, 28 new museums (including the Black Gold Museum) will have been opened, 153 public libraries (called cultural houses) established, and over 100 international film productions hosted. Landmark projects such as Al-Ula, the world’s largest living museum; Diriyah, the restored birthplace of the Saudi state; Neom, a future culture and media capital; and Qiddiya, a hub for entertainment and the performing arts, reflect the kingdom’s ambition to shape the global cultural landscape.

This transformation extends far beyond Saudi Arabia’s borders. The kingdom is actively engaging with strategic partners to expand its cultural ecosystem. From major cultural organizations, ranging from the Smithsonian Institution to Hollywood studios and arts management academies, there is significant potential for joint ventures that drive cultural exchange, innovation, and economic growth. A key priority is capacity building: developing talent to meet the demands of a rapidly growing creative economy while strengthening Saudi Arabia’s influence on the global stage.

The momentum behind this Saudi cultural drive is already visible on the global stage. At the 2020 G20 Summit, Saudi Arabia led efforts to integrate culture into the global economic agenda, aiming to position itself as a pillar of sustainable development. The kingdom also took a leadership role in the 2022 UNESCO MONDIACULT, the world’s biggest cultural policy conference, reinforcing its commitment to fostering international cultural dialogue. With Riyadh Expo 2030 and the FIFA World Cup 2034 on the horizon, Saudi Arabia’s position as a global hub for culture, diplomacy, and innovation is poised to grow.

Culture and Its Synergies: The Next Big Opportunity

As the creative economy expands, its synergies with other key sectors are becoming more pronounced. Culture, tourism, entertainment, and sports are all core pillars of Vision 2030’s Quality of Life program, which aims to enhance livability, enrich cultural experiences, and drive economic diversification. With nearly 30 million international visitors in 2024, cultural tourism is accelerating, while Saudi leaders are attracting large-scale investments in entertainment and sports in efforts to position Saudi Arabia as a premier global destination. To sustain this momentum, demand is rising for international expertise across hospitality, destination branding, customer experience, content production, event management, and audience engagement, among other fields. At the same time, special educational programs are preparing a new Saudi generation to lead these industries.

Education has long been a cornerstone of Saudi-U.S. people-to-people ties, and, as the kingdom undergoes a cultural transformation, this connection is becoming more significant. Today, approximately 16,000 Saudi students are enrolled in U.S. institutions across various disciplines, reinforcing decades of academic exchange. In addition, the Cultural Scholarship Program, run by the Ministry of Culture, is supporting specialized training for future leaders in the creative and cultural industries. Meanwhile, Saudi Arabia is rapidly expanding its own higher education sector, encouraging a two-way educational exchange by creating new collaboration opportunities for U.S. universities, with initiatives to establish partnerships in faculty exchanges, joint research projects, and joint degree programs.

With billions of dollars in investment, a rapidly growing creative sector, and a vast reservoir of untapped stories, traditions, and human capital, Saudi Arabia is experiencing an unprecedented cultural awakening. After decades of being framed through reductionist narratives, there is a deep hunger among Saudi creators to share their perspectives with the world – to reclaim their narratives, celebrate their heritage, and contribute to the global creative conversation.

U.S. institutions, firms, and policymakers have a unique opportunity to take part in shaping this new era of cultural exchange and creative collaboration, one that ventures into the deeper, more enduring connections built through culture, education, and shared human experiences. The decades of people-to-people ties between Saudis and Americans provide a strong foundation for meaningful engagement. This foundation allows both sides to navigate the evolving landscape with trust and clarity, translating opportunities into lasting partnerships.

Bridging Two Worlds

For the younger generation of Saudis, Vision 2030 was a turning point. It reshaped Saudis’ sense of purpose – to reimagine what it means to be Saudi and build, innovate, and redefine the country’s place in the world.

Today, as Saudi Arabia redefines its future and deepens its global engagement, the kingdom and the United States are at a new crossroads – one as pivotal, perhaps, as the Quincy meeting 80 years ago. What new “gold” can the two countries discover together in the 21st century? The most valuable discoveries are no longer beneath the ground; they lie in the exchange of ideas and the forging of deeper human and cultural connections.

Now, a new chapter is unfolding – one driven by those who dare to create, reimagine, and push boundaries – or, as the visionary Saudi poet Muhammad al-Thubaiti wrote, “Those who reveal what lies hidden, and those who look ahead.”