The United Arab Emirates announces alignment with the United States on artificial intelligence development, moving away from Chinese partnerships. Minister of State for Artificial Intelligence confirms shift following a major investment and highlights UAE’s ambition to be a global player in the AI sector.
UAE Aligns with US on AI, Shifts Focus from China
The United Arab Emirates (UAE) is in “complete alignment” with the United States regarding artificial intelligence (AI) development, signaling a move away from Chinese partnerships. This shift was confirmed by Omar Al Olama, the UAE’s Minister of State for Artificial Intelligence, during an interview on Tuesday. This announcement follows a significant investment from Microsoft into a state-linked Emirati AI firm, G42, which reportedly divested Chinese interests as part of the deal.
G42, chaired by Sheikh Tahnoon bin Zayed Al Nahyan, received a $1.5 billion strategic investment from Microsoft in April. These developments come after discussions between the US and UAE governments, where a mutual agreement was reached to prioritize American technology over Chinese.
Olama, who became the world’s first AI minister in 2017, stated that AI is a top priority for UAE investments and focus as the country aims to pivot its economy away from oil dependency. Speaking at an AI industry event at Dubai’s Museum of the Future, Olama emphasized the UAE’s ambition to be a global player in the AI sector.
G42 recently unveiled Falcon 2, an open-source generative model, and subsidiary Inception, along with the Mohamed bin Zayed University of Artificial Intelligence, introduced Jais, a high-quality Arabic large-language model. Both models aim to compete with American products like OpenAI’s ChatGPT.
Olama expressed confidence that these models would meet regulatory requirements in regions like the European Union, which has introduced new AI laws with stringent data collection standards. He highlighted the UAE’s willingness to facilitate European companies’ operations within the country.
Discussing future plans, the UAE is also focused on developing a semiconductor industry to meet the rising demand for AI chips. Olama indicated openness to partnerships with suitable entities from Europe or the US, and expressed optimism about finding solutions that would satisfy all parties involved.
