This page is a reference. It gives you, in one place, a sober overview of what each Gulf state is doing in AI. Three reading notes:
- Announced is not the same as operating. A target of "1GW" or "200MW by 2026" describes a plan. We label plans as plans.
- Superlatives are attributed. When an organisation calls something "the world's first" or "the largest", we say who made the claim.
- Context matters. The region has been affected by a war since February 2026. See Resilience in 2026.
At a glance
| Strategy | Flagship models | Infrastructure (status) | Governance highlight | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| UAE | National AI Strategy 2031; 50% agentic-AI government target (by ~2028) | Falcon, K2 Think, Jais | 5GW campus (being redesigned); Stargate UAE 200MW (targeted 2026, not confirmed live) | AI Charter (2024); K-12 AI curriculum |
| Saudi Arabia | National Strategy for Data & AI (2020) | ALLaM / HUMAIN Chat | HUMAIN–NVIDIA, xAI and AWS plans (announced) | Personal Data Protection Law (enforced 2024) |
| Qatar | National AI Strategy (2019) | Fanar | Qai–Brookfield $20bn JV (announced) | Inter-ministerial AI committee (2021) |
| Bahrain | Government AI policy (2025) | — | AWS region damaged in 2026 | GCC AI ethics manual adopted |
| Kuwait | National AI Strategy 2025–28 (reported) | — | — | (not yet confirmed) |
| Oman | National AI Programme 2024–26 | (not yet confirmed) | AI Special Zone, Muscat (2026 decree) | Programme under Vision 2040 |
United Arab Emirates
Strategy and government. The UAE appointed Omar Sultan Al Olama as Minister of State for Artificial Intelligence in October 2017, described by the World Governments Summit and WEF as the first such post in the world. Its National AI Strategy 2031 aims for global leadership in AI by 2031. Abu Dhabi is investing AED 13bn in its 2025–27 digital strategy, which aims for "the world's first fully AI-native government across all digital services by 2027" (the government's own target) (DGE). On 23 April 2026 the federal government announced a framework to move 50% of government sectors, services and operations to agentic AI within two years. It will be phased across ministries with continuous performance and impact assessment, and every federal employee will be trained. The UAE describes it as a world first (Dubai Media Office). The UAE Charter for the Development and Use of AI, approved in June 2024, sets out 12 principles, including safety, privacy, avoiding algorithmic bias, and human oversight (u.ae).
People. AI has been a formal school subject from kindergarten to Grade 12 since 2025–26 (Gulf News). MBZUAI, which describes itself as the first graduate-level, research-based AI university, took its first students in 2021. Microsoft's data puts UAE generative-AI use at 73.3% of the working-age population in June 2026, the highest it measured (Microsoft).
Models. TII's Falcon family (most recently Falcon H1R 7B, January 2026) (TII). MBZUAI and G42's fully open K2 Think (September 2025) (G42). The Arabic-centric Jais (2023).
Infrastructure and capital. The 5GW UAE–US AI Campus was unveiled in May 2025 (US Embassy). Reuters reported in September 2026 that it is being redesigned as dispersed, hardened sites. Stargate UAE's first 200MW was targeted for 2026, and we have found no official confirmation that it is operating. The US authorised G42 to buy the equivalent of up to 35,000 GB300 chips in November 2025. Microsoft is investing $15.2bn in the UAE over 2023–29 (Microsoft). MGX closed its first fund at $49bn in July 2026 (MGX). The Barakah nuclear plant supplies up to 25% of the UAE's electricity, according to its operator ENEC (ENEC).
Everyday use. Commercial robotaxi services began in parts of Dubai on 30 March 2026 (WAM). The Emirati Genome Programme has collected hundreds of thousands of samples since 2019.
Saudi Arabia
Strategy. King Salman approved the National Strategy for Data & AI, developed by SDAIA, in 2020. Its goals include placing the Kingdom among the top 15 AI nations by 2030 and training up to 20,000 data and AI specialists (The National).
HUMAIN. The Crown Prince launched HUMAIN, owned by the Public Investment Fund, in May 2025 to work across the AI value chain. In November 2025 it announced plans for up to 600,000 NVIDIA GPUs over three years, a data-centre network with xAI anchored by a 500MW+ facility, and an AWS "AI Zone" in Riyadh with up to 150,000 GPUs. These are announced plans (HUMAIN release). The US authorised HUMAIN to buy the equivalent of up to 35,000 GB300 chips.
Models. HUMAIN Chat launched in August 2025, powered by the Arabic-first ALLaM 34B model.
Services and governance. The Seha Virtual Hospital connects specialists with more than 240 hospitals (MoH). The Personal Data Protection Law has been fully enforced since September 2024. SDAIA published voluntary AI Ethics Principles in 2023. In Microsoft's Q2 2026 report, Saudi Arabia rose from 30th to 25th in AI adoption, the largest climb of any country.
Qatar
Strategy. Qatar's National AI Strategy was published in 2019, drafted by the Qatar Center for AI at QCRI. An inter-ministerial AI committee was set up in 2021.
Models. Fanar, inaugurated on 10 December 2024 by the Prime Minister, is an Arabic-centric AI platform developed at Hamad Bin Khalifa University with national cultural and media institutions (HBKU).
Infrastructure. Qai, Qatar's AI company owned by the Qatar Investment Authority, announced a $20bn joint venture with Brookfield for AI infrastructure in December 2025 (QIA). Qatar signed the US-led Pax Silica declaration on secure technology supply chains in January 2026.
Bahrain
Governance. On 27 July 2025, Bahrain's Information & eGovernment Authority launched a national policy for AI use by government entities, built on compliance, adoption, awareness and cooperation. At the same time Bahrain adopted the GCC Guiding Manual on the Ethics of AI Use (policy tracker). A standalone national AI strategy is reported to be in development (not yet confirmed).
Infrastructure. The AWS Bahrain region was damaged in March 2026. AWS said in September that some data hosted only there cannot be restored (CNBC).
Kuwait
Policy trackers report a National AI Strategy for 2025–2028 led by the Central Agency for Information Technology (CAIT), and CAIT's website hosts a supporting framework (CAIT). Formal adoption and major partnerships are still to verify, and we will expand this section when we have primary sources.
Oman
Oman's National Programme for AI and Advanced Digital Technologies (2024–2026) sits within Oman Vision 2040 (MTCIT). Royal Decree 50/2026, issued on 30 April 2026, established an Artificial Intelligence Special Zone in Muscat Governorate (decree.om). Officials describe a second phase for 2026–2030 focused on developing and localising AI.
Across the GCC
- Shared ethics. A GCC Guiding Manual on the Ethics of AI Use exists, and Bahrain formally adopted it in 2025.
- Close ties to US technology. Chip exports require US approval. The UAE and Qatar have both signed the Pax Silica declaration.
- Arabic at the centre. Three GCC states (the UAE, Saudi Arabia and Qatar) have produced Arabic-first models, and Oman is reported to be developing one (not yet confirmed).
What we'll be watching
- Whether Stargate UAE's first phase is confirmed as operating.
- Progress toward the UAE's 50% agentic-government target, and how human oversight and appeal routes are built into it.
- Progress of the redesigned UAE campus and of HUMAIN's announced capacity.
- Primary-source confirmation for Kuwait, Bahrain's strategy and Oman's language model.
- Independent evaluations of Gulf-built models.
Every fact on this page appears in the platform's fact base with a date and verification level. Targets and forecasts are logged in the claims register.