ROX, the Chinese premium SUV brand that moved its global headquarters to Abu Dhabi, has delivered its first 100 cars built in the UAE and is now taking its flagship ADAMAS to Saudi Arabia. Less than two months after the first car rolled out of its Abu Dhabi factory, the “Made in the Emirates” SUV was on show at the Jeddah International Motor Show.
The first 100 “Made in the Emirates” cars
At the end of October, ROX announced the first batch of 100 vehicles from its AI Manufacturing Centre in Khalifa Economic Zones Abu Dhabi (KEZAD). The cars are part of a numbered UAE Signature Edition of the ADAMAS, and each carries the “Made in the Emirates” mark on its bodywork, the UAE’s national badge for locally made products.
ROX then handed the first ten cars to customers at a ceremony at the KEZAD plant, The National reported on 5 November, less than 60 days after the first Emirati-built car rolled out in early September.
“The delivery of our first UAE-manufactured vehicles is an important milestone,” said Jarvis, ROX’s founder and chief executive.
Government backing
The project sits inside the UAE’s push to grow its industrial base under the “Make it in the Emirates” initiative and the National Strategy for Industry and Advanced Technology, known as Operation 300bn.
“The UAE continues to develop an integrated industrial and investment ecosystem that attracts investment,” said Hasan Jasem Al Nowais, Undersecretary at the Ministry of Industry and Advanced Technology, adding that the Made in the Emirates mark “has earned credibility in global markets”.
Mohammad Ali Al Kamali, Chief Trade and Industry Officer at the Abu Dhabi Investment Office (ADIO), which partnered with ROX to set up in the emirate, said the project shows how “investment can translate into tangible industrial capabilities and opportunities for global growth”.
Inside the KEZAD plant
ROX built the 10,000-square-metre site in six months. It combines a manufacturing centre, an AI lab and a design studio, and opened on 6 September 2026. According to YallaMotor, the plant sub-assembles more than 80 types of components before final assembly, testing and inspection on site.
Local suppliers are part of the plan. ROX runs a joint materials research lab with Abu Dhabi’s Borouge, and Jarvis told The National that the ADAMAS already uses 17 Borouge parts. “We want to show what it means to be ‘Made in the UAE and Proud of the UAE’,” he said.
The ambitions are large. ROX is targeting 20,000 vehicles in 2027, according to YallaMotor, and a long-term goal of 300,000 vehicles a year in the UAE by 2030. Those are targets, not confirmed output, and the brand has not published current production volumes. Jarvis estimates ROX could contribute about 10% of the Operation 300bn industrial target by 2030.
The ADAMAS lands in Saudi Arabia
The next step is the region’s biggest market. ROX’s Saudi agent, Al-Laith Al-Lami’ Group, which also sells JAC and Forthing in the Kingdom, put the ADAMAS on its stand at the 20th Jeddah International Motor Show, held from 4 to 7 November at the Jeddah Center for Forums and Events under the patronage of Prince Khalid bin Sultan Al-Abdullah Al-Faisal, chairman of the Saudi Automobile and Motorcycle Federation.
The show, spread over more than 16,000 square metres, billed itself as the first in the region to put every powertrain under one roof, with Tesla, BYD, JAC, Forthing, iCar and ROX among the exhibitors. For many Saudi buyers, it was the first chance to see the ADAMAS in person.
What the ADAMAS is
The ADAMAS is a seven-seat luxury SUV with a range-extended electric powertrain:
- Power: 475 hp from two electric motors, with all-wheel drive.
- Battery: 56 kWh, charged on the move by a 1.5-litre turbo petrol engine that never drives the wheels.
- Fuel tank: 70 litres.
- Total range: 1,226 km (claimed).
- Top speed: 190 km/h.
YallaMotor lists the 2026 ADAMAS 1.5T Luxury at SAR 320,000 in Saudi Arabia, while new cars are advertised in Riyadh at between SAR 260,000 and SAR 298,000. Buyers should check what each price includes, especially the warranty, which is only guaranteed through the official agent.
Why it matters
ROX is a Chinese brand building its flagship in the UAE for Gulf buyers, and that fits a wider trend. Chinese carmakers now hold more than a quarter of the Saudi and UAE markets, and several are looking beyond exports to local assembly. Saudi Arabia is building its own industry around Lucid, Ceer and Hyundai in King Abdullah Economic City; the UAE now has ROX in Abu Dhabi.
The test for ROX will be volume. A hundred numbered Signature Edition cars is a symbolic start. Turning KEZAD into a plant that serves the whole Gulf, starting with Saudi buyers, is the real goal. According to YallaMotor, an ADAMAS Abu Dhabi Edition, the first ROX designed in the UAE, is planned for March 2027.
Sources: Gulf Today, Khaleej Times (partner content), The National (in partnership with ROX), YallaMotor: ROX ADAMAS in Saudi Arabia, YallaMotor: Jeddah International Motor Show 2026.