By Rest of World
Publication Date: 2025-11-21 14:34:00
The Middle East has just become the latest battleground in the artificial intelligence war between the US and China.
The Commerce Department’s approval of 70,000 advanced AI chips for the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia marks a turning point in technology competition between the US and China.
United Arab Emirates AI company G42 and Saudi Arabia’s Humain each receive approval to purchase semiconductors with processing power equivalent to 35,000 of Nvidia’s most powerful Blackwell GB300 processors. The approvals follow G42’s previous split from Chinese tech giant Huawei and divestment from ByteDance, as well as Humain’s commitment not to buy Huawei equipment.
Today, our technology ecosystem is firmly anchored in partnerships with U.S. and allied companies.”
The deal underscores how Gulf states have used the US-China rivalry as leverage for their own AI ambitions. In return for breaking off Chinese relations, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates now have access to an exclusive…
