Microsoft plans to invest over $10bn in the Gulf

DUBAI: Microsoft plans to invest more than $10 billion in the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and Kuwait between now and 2030, including in cloud services infrastructure and artificial intelligence, a senior Microsoft executive has said

The American technology giant is making digital resilience a key part of its Middle East strategy as the Iran war intensifies.

Brad Smith, vice chairman and president of Microsoft, told Reuters that the company’s investments reflect “the continued building of infrastructure as well as the expansion of operations in the region.”

Gulf countries are pouring billions of dollars into AI as part of their drive to transform into global hubs that contribute to diversifying their economies away from reliance on oil and gas, counting on abundant land and access to low-cost energy to attract major cloud computing companies, including Microsoft.

Despite this, challenges remain, including access to advanced electronic chips, as well as the uncertainty created by…