U.S. and UAE Partner on Massive AI Data Center Campus

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White House Announces U.S.-UAE AI Data Center Partnership

The U.S. and the United Arab Emirates have unveiled plans to build one of the world’s largest artificial intelligence (AI) data center campuses, set to be located in Abu Dhabi. The partnership was announced Thursday by the White House, marking a significant milestone in the collaboration between the two nations in AI and cloud computing infrastructure.

The data center, a project led by the Emirati firm G42, will cover 10 square miles and boast a massive 5-gigawatt capacity. U.S. companies will operate the facilities and provide American-managed cloud services across the region, according to a release from the Department of Commerce. The names of the American companies involved were not disclosed at this time.

This announcement coincides with President Donald Trump’s visit to the UAE, where he met with regional leaders and discussed several high-profile deals. The first phase of the project includes the construction of a 1-gigawatt AI data center, which is expected to serve as a critical hub for AI development and research in the Middle East.

Nvidia’s Jensen Huang, OpenAI’s Sam Altman, SoftBank’s Masayoshi Son, and Cisco President Jeetu Patel were all in the UAE for the visit, further highlighting the significance of the partnership. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnik emphasized that the deal includes strong security guarantees to protect U.S. technology, ensuring that the infrastructure will be managed and operated with American oversight.

UAE President Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, who joined Trump at the unveiling, stated that the collaboration would bolster the region’s role as a leader in cutting-edge research and sustainable development, solidifying its position as a global AI hub.