Microsoft’s $15.2bn funding within the UAE: A strategic guess on AI, expertise and belief
Because the United Arab Emirates (UAE) hosts its annual power and know-how conferences at ADNEC, Microsoft has unveiled a US$15.2bn funding within the nation. The announcement, made by Brad Smith, Microsoft’s vice-chair and president, marks a milestone within the firm’s strategic partnership with G42, the UAE’s sovereign synthetic intelligence (AI) agency, and displays a broader ambition to place the UAE as a world chief in AI.
“This isn’t cash raised within the UAE. It’s cash we’re spending within the UAE,” mentioned Smith. “And as we do all over the place on the planet, we’re targeted not simply on rising our enterprise, but additionally on contributing to the native economic system.”
Amr Kamel, common supervisor of Microsoft UAE, mirrored on the importance of the partnership: “Microsoft’s US$15.2bn funding from 2023 by 2029 represents a deep dedication to the UAE’s digital future. This collaboration really touches each a part of the UAE’s economic system, empowering innovators, strengthening native industries and constructing a basis of belief for sustainable progress. It’s an funding made for the UAE.”
The funding, which started in 2023 and can proceed by 2029, is structured in two phases. By the tip of 2025, Microsoft can have spent $7.3bn within the UAE. This features a $1.5bn fairness funding in G42, $4.6bn in capital bills for superior AI and cloud datacentres, and $1.2bn in native working bills and value of products offered. From 2026 to 2029, the corporate plans to take a position a further $7.9bn, with $5.5bn allotted to additional infrastructure enlargement and $2.4bn to working prices.
Central to this funding, the corporate has secured uncommon export licences from the US Commerce Division to ship high-performance graphics processing models (GPUs) to the UAE, a course of that required assembly stringent cyber safety and nationwide safety requirements. The corporate has already deployed the equal of 21,500 Nvidia A100 GPUs, and in September 2025, obtained approval to ship a further 60,400 chips, together with Nvidia’s superior GB300 fashions.
These chips are powering AI fashions from OpenAI, Anthropic and Microsoft itself, enabling purposes resembling Copilot and supporting innovation throughout each private and non-private sectors. “Whereas the chips are highly effective and the numbers are giant, extra necessary is their optimistic impression throughout the UAE,” famous Smith. “We’re utilizing these GPUs to offer entry to superior AI fashions and help AI-enabled purposes from all kinds of suppliers.”
The UAE’s speedy adoption of AI is mirrored within the Microsoft AI diffusion report, which ranks the nation first globally in per capita generative AI (GenAI) utilization. With 59.4% of the inhabitants participating with GenAI instruments, the UAE surpasses even tech-savvy nations resembling Singapore. “The infrastructure problem within the UAE shouldn’t be a danger of getting forward of demand however preserving tempo with it,” mentioned Smith.
Funding in expertise
However Microsoft’s dedication to the UAE goes past {hardware}. The corporate is investing closely in expertise growth, aiming to ability a million individuals within the nation by the tip of 2027. This contains upskilling 120,000 authorities workers throughout federal and native entities, and coaching 175,000 college students and 39,000 academics by partnerships with GEMS Schooling, the Abu Dhabi Division of Schooling and Data (ADEK) and the Data and Human Improvement Authority (KHDA).
“Expertise is the engine of AI management,” mentioned Smith. “Attracting, nurturing and constructing AI expertise and know-how is crucial to the UAE turning its imaginative and prescient of changing into a world chief right into a actuality.”
In February 2025, Microsoft, G42 and Mohamed bin Zayed College of Synthetic Intelligence (MBZUAI) based the Accountable AI Future Basis (RAIFF) in Abu Dhabi. The muse promotes moral AI requirements throughout the Center East and World South, advancing analysis and frameworks that replicate cultural range.
Microsoft’s funding within the UAE is greater than a enterprise resolution – it’s a blueprint for the way world tech firms can companion with nations to drive inclusive, accountable and sustainable innovation. Because the UAE continues its ascent as a world AI chief, Microsoft’s dedication to know-how, expertise and belief will play a defining position in shaping the area’s digital future.
