1001, a GCC- and London-based company building sovereign AI systems for critical infrastructure, announced a $30 million Series A round led by Lux Capital. PIF-owned Sanabil Investments, 9Yards and Hanabi joined as new investors, while existing backers General Catalyst, CIV and Stanford researcher Chris Ré increased their commitments. Several angel investors also participated, including Karim Atiyeh of Ramp, Kareem Amin of Clay, and Russell Kaplanof Cognition.
Founded in 2025 by Bilal Abu-Ghazaleh, 1001 builds AI systems that sit above an operator’s existing infrastructure, modeling every asset, process and dependency in real time. Rather than simply monitoring operations, the platform is designed to anticipate failures and recommend or execute corrective action, with systems built, owned and governed locally so clients retain control of infrastructure they cannot afford to have disrupted. Abu-Ghazaleh said the GCC’s business leaders want sovereign AI systems capable of trusted, real-time decision-making rather than pilots.
Deena Shakir, Partner at Lux Capital, said the firm was proud to back 1001 as it helps prove that frontier AI for critical infrastructure can be built and governed locally rather than imported. A spokesperson from Sanabil Investments added that 1001 is well positioned as a sovereign AI partner across the region’s infrastructure sectors.
The new funding will expand 1001’s engineering team and its commercial presence across GCC markets. McKinsey estimates AI adoption could add up to $150 billion to GCC economies.
