UAE's AI chip ambitions clouded by fears in Washington | AGBI

The US Trump administration removed export controls on advanced semiconductors to the UAE, granting G42 and other Emirati entities licence-free access to US chips. Washington officials worry about technology diversion to China and the creation of a competing AI power, but removed the restriction anyway in exchange for the UAE's geopolitical alignment and role as a major US investor. If you're selling compute infrastructure, storage, or tooling to US AI companies, the UAE just became a competing customer for the same chips you depend on—and G42 will move faster than you can. The window for the next administration to reverse this stays open for two years; anything you sell into Emirates infrastructure needs to be defensible as non-strategic the moment political wind shifts.