Overview

• The U.S. and UAE will build a 5-gigawatt AI data center in Abu Dhabi, the largest of its kind outside the U.S., with a matching investment provision for U.S. infrastructure.
• President Trump reversed Biden-era restrictions on exporting advanced AI chips to Saudi Arabia and the UAE to support these projects.
• Major U.S. tech firms, including Nvidia and Amazon, announced multibillion-dollar AI deals with Gulf states during Trump’s visit to the region.
• Critics in Congress warn that expanded chip sales could risk U.S. technology falling into the hands of adversaries like China and Russia.
• Gulf states leverage abundant energy resources to position themselves as global hubs for AI compute infrastructure, with U.S. partnerships aiming to counter Chinese influence.