The US Commerce Department’s Bureau of Industry and Security approved billions of dollars in Nvidia AI chip exports to the United Arab Emirates, Bloomberg News reported. The licenses, part of a May 2025 bilateral AI agreement, enable the UAE to import up to 500,000 advanced chips annually through 2027, with the potential for an extension to 2030.
The deal supports the UAE’s push to become a global AI hub by powering data centres for advanced models. A Commerce spokesperson told Bloomberg, “We’re committed to the transformative US-UAE AI partnership.” Nvidia declined to comment, and officials from the White House and the UAE were unavailable for Reuters’ inquiries.
Exclusive: The US has approved several billion dollars worth of Nvidia AI chip exports to the UAE under a controversial deal https://t.co/WhQ0gKPxKg
— Bloomberg (@business) October 9, 2025President Donald Trump, prioritising Gulf ties, announced $600 billion in Saudi commitments during a May 2025 tour, including chip deals with Nvidia, AMD, and Qualcomm. The UAE agreement aligns with this, striking a balance between economic goals and security. Safeguards aim to prevent chip diversion to adversaries like China.
🚨 BREAKING: The U.S. has approved export licenses for NVIDIA to sell several billion dollars of AI chips to the UAE.
Framework targets up to 500k chips/year through 2027. pic.twitter.com/AxVZBTMdi8
— Ask Perplexity (@AskPerplexity) October 9, 2025This approval strengthens US-UAE tech collaboration, positioning the Gulf as an AI powerhouse. It supports Trump’s economic agenda while navigating the risks associated with export controls.
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