Muscat – Oman Investment Authority (OIA) has invested in Salience Labs – an Oxford-based company developing next-generation optical chips – through its Future Generations Fund. 

The move reflects OIA’s strategy to expand across the artificial intelligence (AI) value chain and support advanced solutions to enhance global digital infrastructure.

The investment is backed by OIA’s existing partnerships with Oxford Science Enterprises and Cambridge Innovation Capital, in which it also holds active stakes.

Salience Labs is developing optical chips that transmit data using light rather than converting it into electrical signals. This technology enables faster data transfer, boosts data centre performance, accelerates AI model training and reduces operational costs. The company also offers software tools to monitor power consumption and thermal levels, addressing modern data centre requirements.

OIA stated that the investment strengthens its global partnerships in AI while positioning Oman as an emerging player in international AI value chains. It also aligns with the authority’s broader ambition to localise advanced technologies and support the development of digital and AI infrastructure projects in the sultanate.

The authority has steadily expanded its portfolio in AI and advanced technologies. Existing investments include ‘xAI’, focused on foundational AI models; ‘Sense’, which develops smart energy management solutions; ‘Gradiant/Turing’, which uses AI to enhance water desalination and data management processes; and ‘Crusoe Energy’, which builds clean energy powered data centres for AI model training.

OIA stated that its investments are strategically positioned to create a comprehensive ecosystem spanning software, infrastructure and emerging technologies. The authority underlined the fact that such initiatives support Oman’s vision to become a leading regional hub for AI, while advancing national goals in innovation and economic diversification.

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