Amid DeepSeek competition, Altman visits UAE seeking OpenAI investment
Gulf investors are betting big on AI, with sovereign wealth funds in the UAE and Saudi Arabia making the booming tech sector a core component of their portfolios.
WASHINGTON/DUBAI — After China’s DeepSeek went viral with its promise of vastly cheaper AI that could reshape global tech competition, OpenAI — the maker of ChatGPT — is courting the United Arab Emirates for new investments.
Sam Altman, CEO of OpenAI, is set to visit the UAE this week, according to a report in Reuters that cited anonymous sources. OpenAI was not available for comment when reached by Al-Monitor. His trip will focus on raising funds with MGX, an Abu Dhabi-based AI investor.
Altman’s reception in Abu Dhabi could be telling amid a potentially game-changing moment for Gulf investors who have been big on America’s AI dominance.
Gulf investors are betting big on AI, with sovereign wealth funds in the UAE and Saudi Arabia making the booming tech sector a core component of their portfolios. Emirati officials have privately expressed confidence the momentum for AI that the United States and the UAE witnessed during the Joe Biden administration will likely continue under President Donald Trump.
