From AI literacy, to football & educational platforms; curiosity defines the year 2025

Dubai, UAE, December 4, 2025 – Google releases the top trending searches for users in the Middle East and North Africa for the year 2025. The lists reflect a massive surge in AI literacy, a continued devotion to football, and a deep engagement with educational platforms and local drama hits. 

Leading this technological wave, Google Gemini topped AI and technology lists across the board, showcasing a huge interest in Generative AI—from general models to specific creative tools like Nano Banana for editing images and Veo for generating videos from text or images.

🇦🇪United Arab Emirates

The UAE continues to stand out as a global hub for diverse interests. While cricket fever remained high with the IPL 2025 and the Asia Cup dominating sports searches, the year was truly defined by a tech-savvy population. Google Gemini, DeepSeek, and ChatGPT were among the most searched terms, signaling a society fully embracing the AI revolution. Entertainment also played a huge role, with blockbusters like Coolie and War 2 capturing the nation’s attention.

🇸🇦Saudi Arabia

In the Kingdom, digital transformation was the headline. Saudis turned to Google Search to navigate an increasingly digitized lifestyle, with top searches for platforms like Qobool (https://www.uap.sa/), the National Guard registration, and the National Center for Assessment (Qiyas). Entertainment remained a staple of Saudi evenings, with the enduring popularity of Shabab Al Bomb 13 and the new hit Fahd Al Batal. Similar to its neighbors, Saudi Arabia showed a thirst for future-tech, with high interest in AI tools like Google Gemini and Hailuo AI.

What other countries searched for! 

  • 🇵🇸Palestine: Amidst challenges and the ongoing war, the focus on education and resilience shone through. Top searches included University portals (Al-Aqsa, Al-Azhar, Islamic University) and High School results, alongside a shared regional passion for Real Madrid matches.
  • 🇮🇶Iraq: A blend of tech enthusiasm and sports passion defined the year, with the Iraq vs. Jordan and Iraq vs. Kuwait matches gripping the nation. Personalities like the YouTuber Nour Stars, the media personality Ramez Jalal, and footballer Omar Marmoush also captured the public imagination.
  • 🇯🇴Jordan: Education and public services were a priority, with Jordanians seeking the Ajyal platform, Tawjihi results, and the Unified Admission Coordination Unit. However, the love for football remained strong with high searches for matches including Iraq vs. Jordan.
  • 🇸🇾Syria: Drama, AI & football led the conversation. Series like Nasamat Ayloul, Salma, and Al Batal were major talking points. In sports, the rivalry between Real Madrid and Barcelona continued to dominate search bars. In terms of tech tools, Google Gemini, followed by ChatGPT amongst others were top searched in Syria.
  • 🇲🇦Morocco: Football fever is undying here, with the FIFA Club World Cup and the AFCON topping the charts. Interestingly, Morocco showed a sophisticated interest in a wide variety of AI tools, including BlackBox AI, Claude, and Manus.
  • 🇩🇿Algeria: Similar to its neighbor, Algeria’s focus was split between the pitch and the screen. Matches involving the national team (against Uganda and Niger) were top trends, alongside drama series like Layla and global hits like Squid Game.

More details are found on https://trends.google.com/trends/