The Trump Administration Throws Gulf AI a Lifeline

At the start of the summer, the United Arab Emirates’ dream of serving as the world’s AI hub was in trouble. Iranian drones and missiles were making data center construction difficult and dangerous. Bureaucratic fights within the Trump administration had stalled progress on long-promised chip exports. Emirati leaders were expressing growing frustrations with the United States. But earlier this month, the administration threw them a lifeline. In a rule published on July 14, the U.S. Department of Commerce lifted restrictions on the export of advanced AI computer chips and a range of other civilian and military technology to the UAE. The change, which vaults the UAE into the same favored category as longstanding NATO allies, offers the Emirati government and its state-run AI company G42 near-unfettered access to the most advanced U.S. AI technology. Trump administration officials likely view the move as a way to get U.S.-UAE AI investments back on track, while also rewarding a close and vocal supporter in the Iran war. It may also have helped that Trump’s family has financial ties to G42’s royal owner through the cryptocurrency firm of Eric Trump, Donald Trump, Jr, and the son of Trump’s Middle East envoy, Steve Witkoff. But…