Washington — The United States government has approved several billion dollars worth of Nvidia chip exports to the United Arab Emirates, according to a report by Bloomberg News on Wednesday.
The export licenses, issued by the Commerce Department’s Bureau of Industry and Security, were granted under the terms of a bilateral artificial intelligence agreement finalized in May.
The move is seen as a major step toward strengthening US And UAE cooperation in building next generation AI data centers.
The approvals come after months of negotiations that began earlier this year. Under the US/UAE AI partnership, the Emirates will be allowed to import up to 500,000 of Nvidia’s most advanced AI chips annually beginning in 2025.
The deal is expected to run through 2027, with the potential to extend until 2030. In exchange, the UAE has agreed to invest a reciprocal amount in technology and infrastructure projects within the United States.
A Commerce Department spokesperson confirmed the government’s commitment to what was described as a “transformational” partnership.
Nvidia declined to comment on the report. Representatives for the White House and the UAE were not immediately available for further remarks.
The AI deal aligns with President Donald Trump’s broader push to strengthen relations with Gulf nations.
During his May visit to the region, Trump announced $600 billion in trade and technology commitments from Saudi Arabia, including major semiconductor purchases from Nvidia, Advanced Micro Devices, and Qualcomm.
Experts say the approval reflects a strategic balancing act between maintaining US technology leadership and fostering trusted global partnerships.
“This deal is more than an export license it’s a symbol of AI diplomacy,” said Dr. Karen Liu, a senior researcher at the Washington Institute for Tech Policy.
“The US wants to ensure that allies like the UAE have access to cutting edge AI infrastructure, but under controlled conditions that prevent misuse or unauthorized transfer.”
However, some analysts remain cautious. Michael Hart, a former Commerce Department export official, said the US must monitor compliance closely.
Once chips leave US borders, tracking how they are used becomes significantly harder, he said. Washington must ensure that these components don’t end up integrated into systems that could compromise national security.
The approved shipment marks one of the largest AI related export authorizations to a Gulf nation. The 500,000 chip quota dwarfs earlier export limits imposed on several countries during the previous administration, where US officials had capped advanced chip deliveries at far lower levels.
According to trade analysts, these chips primarily Nvidia’s H100 and GH200 models are critical for training large AI models used in applications from autonomous systems to cloud based analytics.
Building sufficient data center capacity to host them could position the UAE as a regional hub for AI innovation, competing with centers in Singapore and London.
In Abu Dhabi, the news was met with optimism among technology professionals. Fatima Al Mansoori, an engineer at a UAE government AI lab, said the deal was “a long awaited green light” for local projects.
“We’ve been preparing infrastructure for months,” she said. “With these approvals, we can finally scale up research that relies on high performance computing.”
Back in Washington, some lawmakers have urged vigilance. “Partnerships with strategic allies must come with oversight,” said Sen. James Whitman (R-IN). “We support innovation, but we also need to protect the integrity of US technology.”
Analysts expect the US/UAE AI partnership to expand further over the next five years, potentially including joint research programs and co-developed AI frameworks.
The agreement could serve as a blueprint for future technology sharing deals between the United States and other Gulf nations.
However, continued scrutiny from US regulators is expected. The Commerce Department is likely to conduct periodic reviews to ensure compliance with export laws and to evaluate whether additional safeguards are needed.
The approval of Nvidia chip exports to the UAE underscores the United States’ effort to balance technological leadership with global cooperation.
As Washington deepens its AI partnerships in the Gulf region, both sides stand to benefit the US from new investments and influence, and the UAE from accelerated access to AI hardware essential for its digital transformation.