The Saudi empire is built on oil, which won’t last forever. They are desperately trying to diversify by throwing money at bad ideas in a way that makes VCs look like toddlers playing with Monopoly money.
Eventually, a lot of those fail and the Saudis want their money back.
> Eventually, a lot of those fail and the Saudis want their money back
I'd wager that in 20 years the Saudi regime doesn't exist anymore, Softbank/Vision Fund or not. They're going to crash hard, the youth worldwide does not want dictatorships and theocracies any more and the old guards are literally dying off.
Besides, the Saudis (and other Gulf states) have lost more money to way stupider efforts than wework, for their scale wework is chump change.
Eventually, a lot of those fail and the Saudis want their money back.