Microsoft is significantly expanding its presence in the United Arab Emirates (UAE). The company is investing up to $15.2 billion in the country.
Microsoft confirmed to Reuters that it has received permission from the US government to export advanced Nvidia chips.
According to Microsoft President Brad Smith, the expansion of AI data centers accounts for the largest part of the investment. He cited the growing demand for artificial intelligence in the region as the main reason for the substantial expenditure. The UAE itself is investing billions to develop into a global center for AI. In doing so, the country is leveraging its close relations with Washington to gain access to American technology.
Last year, Microsoft acquired a $1.5 billion stake in the Abu Dhabi-based company G42, which is active in artificial intelligence. This also gave Microsoft a seat on the board. Previous concerns in Washington about G42’s ties to China led to additional oversight of the export of advanced chips. According to Smith, G42 has made significant progress in complying with US regulations and standards.
Smith wrote in a blog post that previously approved export licenses allowed Microsoft to build up a computing power in the UAE equivalent to 21,500 Nvidia A100 GPUs. In September, the White House then gave the green light for the export of another 60,400 A100 equivalents. These are based on Nvidia’s newer GB300 chips. The chips will be delivered in the coming months and deployed in Microsoft’s own data centers in the UAE.
Between 2023 and the end of this year, Microsoft will invest $7.3 billion in the region. Another $7.9 billion is planned for the period up to 2029, focused on expanding AI and cloud infrastructure.
GB300 superchips from Nvidia
According to SiliconANGLE, this new investment will nearly quadruple Microsoft’s data center capacity in the UAE to the equivalent of 81,900 Nvidia H100 chips. This will involve the use of Nvidia’s latest GB300 superchips, which consist of a central processor and two Blackwell Ultra GPUs. According to the media outlet, these deliver up to 50 percent more performance than the standard Blackwell B200 and approximately 30 times more computing power than the older H100 generation in AI applications.
SiliconANGLE also reported that, in addition to G42, Microsoft is entering into a new infrastructure partnership with Lambda Labs, a US cloud provider specializing in AI workloads. Lambda will build several billion dollars worth of AI infrastructure for Microsoft, including systems with Nvidia GB300 chips. The company itself has more than a quarter of a million GPUs and is partly supported by Nvidia.
Microsoft expects to obtain new export licenses in the next 12 months to further expand its GPU capacity. The company also anticipates approximately $2.4 billion in additional operating expenses in the UAE.
The total investment of $15.2 billion does not include Stargate UAE, a separate mega-project in Abu Dhabi that was announced earlier this year during a visit by US President Donald Trump to the Gulf region.