United Arab Emirates (UAE) President Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan’s first official visit to the United States centers on advancing cooperation in artificial intelligence (AI) and strengthening UAE-U.S. relations.
During the meeting with US President Joe Biden, AI partnership is anticipated to be a vital factor as both countries aim to increase technological access to embrace the advanced sectors. The visit also brings into focus the strategic shift in the economy of the UAE from being dependent on oil and defense sectors.
Anwar Gargash, the advisor to the UAE president, in a press briefing on Thursday said that Abu Dhabi’s main goal is long-term economic return. “We are more in a geo-economic phase,” Gargash noted, highlighting the country’s shift toward sectors such as AI, renewable energy, and climate solutions.
US restrictions on AI chip sales may hinder partnership efforts
However, security in the region is still an issue of concern. Economic cooperation is a key area of UAE-U.S. relations. The United Arab Emirates is one of the key allies of the USA, supports the US forces in Afghanistan and Iraq, and hosts the US air base in Al Dhafra. However, the conversation is slowly shifting towards the diversification of the economy.
One possible limitation to building up AI partnerships could be the U.S. ban on the sale of AI chips to the UAE. Last year, the US put the UAE on a list of countries that need special permission to import American AI chips due to the potential transfer of technology to China. This issue is expected to be one of the main subjects discussed by these two leaders as they work out the terms of future collaboration in AI. Apart from meeting with President Biden, Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed will also meet with Vice President Kamala Harris.
Major US tech companies invest in UAE’s AI infrastructure
In February, Sam Altman, the CEO of OpenAI, said that the UAE is very well positioned to become the global ‘regulatory sandbox’ for AI technology. This was followed by Microsoft’s major investment of $1.5 billion in G42, the leading AI company in the UAE announced in April.
This was followed by BlackRock, Global Infrastructure Partners, Microsoft, and the Mubadala-backed MGX investment company to launch the Global AI Infrastructure Investment Partnership. The US tech giant also recently announced that it is establishing two centers in Abu Dhabi for the advancement of Responsible AI.
Bilateral trade and investment flows between the two countries have been increasing since the establishment of diplomatic relations more than 50 years ago. According to the UAE Embassy in Washington D.C., by 2023, the two countries’ trade has hit $31.4 billion with the US exports to UAE standing at $24.8 billion. The UAE, which accounts for nearly 4% of the world’s oil production has also invested a whopping $1 trillion in the US.
