President Trump continues his winning streak for America—and this time, he’s not just thinking big, he’s thinking historically big. In a landmark deal announced on Thursday, President Trump and the United Arab Emirates agreed to build the largest artificial intelligence campus outside the United States. This isn’t just a deal, folks—it’s a powerful statement about America’s technological leadership and the strength of our alliances abroad.
The campus, spanning a massive 10 square miles in Abu Dhabi, will boast an astonishing 5 gigawatts of power capacity specifically dedicated to AI data centers. Rand Corporation analyst Lennart Heim highlighted just how monumental this is, stating, “That’s bigger than all other major AI infrastructure announcements we’ve seen so far.” He estimated this facility could support 2.5 million of Nvidia’s top-line B200 chips. Make no mistake, America is back to taking bold and decisive action in the global tech arena.
President Trump negotiated this groundbreaking deal during his recent visit to Abu Dhabi, joined by Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang and UAE President Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan. It comes with critical security assurances, ensuring American technology stays secure. Unlike the Biden administration’s weak-kneed approach, Trump’s team secured significant commitments from the UAE to align national security regulations with ours, explicitly designed to protect against any diversion of advanced American technology, particularly to adversaries like China.
Under President Biden’s watch, American innovation and global leadership stagnated. The previous administration’s concerns about China’s influence meant America missed out on strategic partnerships while China expanded its global footprint unchecked. The UAE, a critical ally in the Gulf region, found itself limited in accessing advanced US chips due to Biden’s overly cautious policies. Trump’s deal not only corrects that mistake—it positions America and its allies to dominate the future of AI development.
Already, American businesses are stepping up to seize this enormous opportunity. Qualcomm is developing an AI-related engineering center, and Amazon Web Services will collaborate with local partners to boost cybersecurity and cloud adoption. Moreover, the UAE has committed to investing in building or financing US data centers that match the size and power of those in Abu Dhabi. This is precisely the kind of reciprocal partnership that puts America first, driving both job creation and technological advancement here at home.
Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick underscored the significance of this arrangement: “American companies will operate the data centers and offer American-managed cloud services throughout the region.” This ensures that, while global cooperation occurs, American standards and protocols remain paramount, safeguarding our national security interests and economic dominance.
This deal marks a major turnaround from the restrictive policies Biden imposed, which limited American innovation and global reach. Trump’s AI czar David Sacks clarified the strategy shift, stating Biden’s export controls were “never intended to capture friends, allies, strategic partners.” Trump’s pragmatic approach now realigns policy with reality, fostering stronger alliances and boosting the American economy.
Mohammed Soliman, a senior fellow at the Middle East Institute, emphasized that the UAE’s recalibration on tech strategy means aligning with “US standards and protocols where it matters most: compute, cloud, and chip supply chains.” Trump’s leadership has set a clear standard—nations must choose carefully between American innovation and Chinese subversion.
The UAE previously faced scrutiny for its close ties to Chinese firms like Huawei and Alibaba. Under pressure from the Trump administration, G42, the Emirati state-backed firm leading the project, began removing Chinese hardware and investments from its infrastructure. This realignment away from China and toward America is a testament to the persuasive power and strategic clarity of Trump’s America First agenda.
In short, Trump’s historic AI deal with the UAE is a clear victory for American innovation, national security, and industrial strength. It reinvigorates our alliances, checks China’s influence, and boldly positions America to lead the next great technological revolution. This is what decisive leadership looks like. This is how we put America first.