Washington bets on UAE as its advanced AI outpost in the Middle East

The United States has approved Emirati group G42 to import the most advanced artificial intelligence chips, positioning the United Arab Emirates as a strategic AI hub in the Middle East and a trusted partner in countering Chinese technological dominance.

The approval allows G42 to operate the Stargate UAE project, a 1-gigawatt computing complex for OpenAI in partnership with Oracle, Cisco, NVIDIA, and SoftBank, and supports a 5-gigawatt U.S.-UAE AI campus.

The facilities will provide low-latency computing and AI inference across the region.

Bing Xiao, CEO of G42, said, “This announcement represents a pivotal moment. Today, we move from planning to execution with strength, setting a new global standard for secure, high-performance computing. What we build in the UAE will be fully mirrored in the United States, ensuring performance and trust remain identical at every location.”

The chips will operate under the Regulated Technology Environment framework approved by the U.S. Department of Commerce, making the UAE the only country in the region to meet U.S. export control compliance for this class of AI technology.

Khaldoon Khalifa Al Mubarak, Chairman of the UAE Artificial Intelligence and Advanced Technology Council, observed, “This decision confirms the depth of the strategic partnership between the two countries. Technology is not just a tool for progress; it is a platform for economic stability, regional security, and long-term cooperation.”

The move signals a shift in global AI strategy, where trusted allies like the UAE are emerging as key nodes in U.S. technological planning. G42 already operates three of the world’s 500 most powerful supercomputers and has expanded operations to Abu Dhabi, France, and U.S. states, including California, Minnesota, Texas, and New York.