You’ve probably seen the photos. That striking woman with the flowing hair, often appearing without a veil, standing next to world leaders or sitting across from Oprah. She looked like a real-life Cinderella, but honestly, her story is way more complicated than a Disney movie. For a few years, Princess Ameerah of Saudi Arabia (now Ameera al-Taweel) was the face of a "new" Middle East. She was young, she was outspoken, and she was married to one of the richest men on the planet, Prince Alwaleed bin Talal.
Then, things got quiet.
People always ask: where did she go? Did she get silenced? Is she even still a princess? To understand the current reality of Ameera al-Taweel, you have to look past the glitz of the Paris weddings and the $1 million jewelry heists and see the woman who basically tried to "evolve" a kingdom before it was ready.
The Interview That Changed Everything
Most people don't know that Ameerah wasn't born into the royal inner circle. She came from a middle-class background, raised by a divorced mother and her grandparents. Her life took a sharp turn when she was just 18. She was doing a school paper and managed to land an interview with Prince Alwaleed.
It was supposed to be 10 minutes. It lasted hours.
They married in 2008. Suddenly, this girl from Riyadh was the Vice Chairperson of the Alwaleed bin Talal Foundation. She wasn't just a trophy wife; she was a workhorse. She visited over 70 countries. She opened orphanages in Burkina Faso and led relief missions to Pakistan and Somalia. While other royals were shopping in Knightsbridge, she was accepting medals from Prince Philip at Cambridge.
📖 Related: Erik Menendez Height: What Most People Get Wrong
She was also doing something dangerous at the time: talking.
She told CNN and NPR that Saudi women should drive. She refused to wear the abaya in public during her travels. In a country where the "male guardianship" system was absolute law, she was a walking, talking contradiction. She called her approach "evolution, not revolution," but in the early 2010s, even evolution felt like a threat to the status quo.
Life After the Palace Walls
The marriage ended in 2013. It was a "civilized" divorce, according to the tabloids. They stayed friends. But when you divorce a Saudi prince, you technically lose the title. She became "Ex-Princess" Ameerah, though the world (and Google) never really stopped calling her by her royal name.
Leaving the royal bubble allowed her to reinvent herself, but it also took her out of the constant media spotlight. She didn't stop working, though. She pivoted to business, becoming the CEO of TimeAgency and co-founding Tasamy, which helps young Saudis start social enterprises.
Honestly, her second act is almost more impressive because she did it without the "HRH" prefix.
👉 See also: Old pics of Lady Gaga: Why we’re still obsessed with Stefani Germanotta
The Secret Paris Wedding and the $1 Million Mystery
In 2018, she made headlines again. This wasn't about activism; it was pure glamour. She married Khalifa bin Butti al-Muhairi, an Emirati billionaire, in a discreet but incredibly lavish ceremony at a 17th-century chateau outside Paris. Oprah was there. Gayle King was there.
It was the kind of event that defines "high society."
But the weekend was clouded by a bizarre mystery. Reports broke that a "Saudi princess" staying at the Ritz in Paris had $1 million worth of jewelry stolen from her suite. There were no signs of a break-in. The safe hadn't been used. While it was never "officially" confirmed to be her, the timing and the location made it the talk of the town. It was a reminder that even when she tried to stay private, the drama of the "princess" life followed her.
What Most People Get Wrong About Her "Disappearance"
There’s a lot of clickbait out there. If you search for her today, you’ll see wild YouTube thumbnails claiming she’s "broken in tears" or "jailed for her faith." Let’s be real: most of that is total fiction or confusion with other Saudi princesses (like Princess Basmah, who actually was detained for a period).
Ameera is very much active, just more selective. She’s a mother now—her son, Zayed, was born in 2019. She sits on the board of Silatech, a youth employment NGO in Qatar. She still tweets to her millions of followers, though her tone is now more focused on social entrepreneurship than the high-octane political activism of her 20s.
✨ Don't miss: Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie: What Really Happened Behind the Scenes in 2026
Why She Still Matters in 2026
You have to remember what Saudi Arabia looked like in 2010. Women couldn't drive. Women couldn't travel without a man's permission. The "Vision 2030" reforms we see today—concerts in Riyadh, women behind the wheel, the stripping of power from the religious police—those were things Ameerah was advocating for when it was still "improper" to do so.
She was a scout. She took the arrows so that the current generation could have the path.
A lot of the changes she dreamed of have actually happened. It’s a weird irony: she was the face of the struggle, but now that the reforms are here, she has moved into a more private, maternal, and business-oriented phase of life. She isn't the one cutting the ribbons on the new projects in Neom, but her fingerprints are all over the cultural shift that made those projects possible.
How to Follow Her Journey Today
If you’re looking to keep up with the real Ameera al-Taweel, skip the gossip vlogs. Here is how you can actually see what she’s up to:
- Check Silatech’s Board Updates: She remains involved in Arab youth employment initiatives.
- Follow Social Entrepreneurship Circles: Her work with Tasamy is where she puts most of her "boots on the ground" energy these days.
- Watch the Business Moves: As the wife of a major Emirati investor and a CEO in her own right, her influence has shifted from the royal court to the boardroom.
She proved that you don't need a crown to have a voice, but you do need a lot of grit to keep using it once the cameras move on to the next big story. She’s no longer the "Cinderella of Riyadh," and honestly? She seems perfectly fine with that.
To understand the broader context of the changes she helped spark, look into the specific legal reforms regarding women's employment in the Gulf over the last five years; it's the best way to see the "evolution" she always talked about in action.