# G42's Stargate UAE nears first Nvidia chip shipments
> Abu Dhabi's AI campus moves from US approval to deployment — up to 35,000 GB300 systems licensed, a 1GW first cluster, and a 5GW build at the centre of MBZ's bet on Washington

**Meta:** type: story · date: 2026-06-24 · heads: اللعبة الطويلة, من يقرّر · 7 takes · 1 lenses · 3 regions

## Summary

[United Arab Emirates](/ar/entity/united-arab-emirates) AI champion G42 is nearing its first Nvidia chip shipments for
Stargate UAE, the Abu Dhabi AI campus at the centre of [Mohammed Bin Zayed](/ar/entity/mohammed-bin-zayed)'s wager on
the US relationship. In November 2025 the White House authorised advanced AI chip exports
to G42, with licences for up to 35,000 Nvidia GB300 systems or equivalent, plus AMD and
Cerebras. CEO Peng Xiao says first shipments are due "within months," enabling the initial
200MW of a planned 1GW cluster, with the wider UAE-US AI campus targeting 5GW across a
10-square-mile Abu Dhabi site. Operated by G42 with OpenAI, Oracle, Cisco, Nvidia and
SoftBank, the first 200MW is expected live in 2026. The build sits inside MBZ's AI strategy
under Khaldoon Al Mubarak, even as US security analysts question exporting frontier compute
to the Gulf.

## By the numbers

- 35,000 — Nvidia GB300 systems (or equivalent) licensed for export to G42.
- 200MW → 1GW → 5GW — initial cluster, planned cluster, full campus target.
- 10 sq mi — footprint of the UAE-US AI campus in Abu Dhabi.
- Nov 2025 — US authorisation of the chip exports.

## Why it matters

Frontier compute is the hard currency of MBZ's US alignment — the dividend of the same
relationship behind the Iran ceasefire and arms ties. It also makes the UAE a test case for
how far Washington will let strategic chips flow to a partner with deep China links, the
question Congress and security analysts keep pressing.

## What to watch

- Whether the first GB300 shipments and the 200MW cluster go live on schedule.
- US oversight conditions on diversion and China exposure.
- How the AI build is weighed against the UAE's Sudan and human-rights files.

## Regional takes (batched by bias / lens)

### unlabelled
- **G42** (United Arab Emirates, en) — G42's own announcement that it received US approval for advanced AI chip exports — licences for up to 35,000 Nvidia GB300 systems or equivalent — enabling full-scale deployment of the Stargate UAE infrastructure.
  Source: https://www.g42.ai/resources/news/g42-receives-us-approval-advanced-ai-chip-exports-enabling-full-scale-deployment-trusted-ai-infrastructure
- **OpenAI** (United States, en) — OpenAI's introduction of Stargate UAE, the partner consortium (with Oracle, Cisco, Nvidia, SoftBank, G42) and the campus's scale and purpose — the record from the lead AI partner.
  Source: https://openai.com/index/introducing-stargate-uae/
- **DataCenterDynamics** (United Kingdom, en) — Infrastructure trade press reports CEO Peng Xiao's 'within months' timeline for first chip shipments and the build pace toward the initial 200MW, the operational detail behind the announcements.
  > "G42's CEO says the company will receive its first AI chip shipments 'within months' for the initial 200MW."
  Source: https://www.datacenterdynamics.com/en/news/g42-ceo-says-company-will-receive-first-ai-chip-shipments-within-months-to-support-initial-200mw-of-capacity-for-planned-stargate-cluster/
- **Just Security** (United States, en) — Legal-and-security outlet probes the national-security stakes of exporting frontier compute to the Gulf — diversion risk, China exposure and oversight gaps — the critical counterweight to the deal's boosters.
  > "What comes next after Trump's AI deals in the Gulf — and the national-security questions they raise."
  Source: https://www.justsecurity.org/113944/what-comes-next-after-trumps-ai-deals-in-the-gulf/
- **CNBC** (United States, en) — 
  Source: https://www.cnbc.com/2025/05/22/stargate-uae-openai-nvidia-oracle.html
- **G42 (Stargate launch)** (United Arab Emirates, en) — 
  Source: https://www.g42.ai/resources/news/global-tech-alliance-launches-stargate-uae
- **IntuitionLabs** (United States, en) — 
  Source: https://intuitionlabs.ai/articles/openai-stargate-datacenter-details

## Across the graph
- Related: [[mbz-iran-ceasefire-hormuz]], [[abu-dhabi-sovereign-funds-q1]]
- Entities: Mohammed Bin Zayed, United Arab Emirates, United States

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Canonical: https://rbtfl.xyz/ar/n/uae-g42-stargate-nvidia