The UAE, that has already taken in lead in regulating and supporting the crypto sector, is now shifting focus towards Artificial Intelligence (AI). Over the weekend, OpenAI CEO Sam Altman flew to Abu Dhabi to meet with the President of the UAE — His Highness Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan. The aim of this meeting was to explore collaboration on AI research and exploration.
In an interesting turn of events, Altman was awarded an honorary doctorate to mark his contribution and influence in the AI sector by the Mohamed bin Zayed University of Artificial Intelligence, located in Abu Dhabi itself.
As per official statement from UAE’s media office chairman, this important meeting between Altman, Sheikh Mohamed, and other senior members of UAE’s royal family marked a milestone for UAE’s ambitions of becoming an early adopter and promoter of the AI technology.
“The reception of His Highness the President for Sam Altman, CEO of OpenAI highlights UAE’s pursuit of building an integrated Artificial intelligence ecosystem that supports development plans and strengthens a knowledge-based economy,” media office chairman Abdulla M Alhamed posted on X.
While elaborate details on the discussions remain undisclosed for now, Altman has reportedly lauded the UAE for its futuristic AI vision and commitment to carve international partnerships in the sector.
In March this year, senior UAE officials had met with U.S. President Donald Trump to discuss on collaborations across industries. As a result of this meeting, the UAE committed to invest as much as $1.4 trillion over the next decade to fuel sectors including AI, energy, and semiconductors in the U.S.
President Trump also flew to Abu Dhabi in May this year to finalize a $200 billion deal as part of which, a 5GW AI campus in Abu Dhabi was unveiled, making it the largest outside the United States.
Among other AI-related development, Nvidia has struck a deal with Abu Dhabi to launch a joint AI and robotics lab in the UAE. The UAE is also adding AI as a subject to be taught in schools.
Just las week, a team of 50 AI chiefs was sent from the UAE to the U.S. to visit industry giants like Meta, Google, OpenAI, and Microsoft among others and get exposure to the ongoing developments in the U.S.