UAE redesigns massive AI data center project after Iranian attacks

The United Arab Emirates is quietly reshaping one of the world's largest AI infrastructure projects after the Iran war exposed the vulnerability of concentrated technology sites in the Gulf, Reuters reported on Friday, citing six people familiar with the matter.reuters

The 5-gigawatt AI data center project, originally envisaged as a single 10-square-mile campus in Abu Dhabi, will now likely be developed as a network of data centers spread across the country. Authorities are also weighing measures to harden the facilities against drone and missile attacks, including air defense systems, underground construction, and blast-resistant concrete.reuters

War Forces a Rethink

The review began after Iran launched missiles and drones at Gulf states hosting American forces in retaliation for U.S. and Israeli airstrikes, according to Reuters. In March, two Amazon Amazon.com, Inc. ↗ 1.94% Web Services data centers in the UAE and one in Bahrain were damaged in the strikes, disrupting cloud computing services across the region. AWS services in the area remain disrupted months later.wtvbam+3

In April, Iran's armed forces released a video warning that the Stargate UAE complex was a potential target, displaying a map that purported to show the facility's location with the caption: "Nothing stays hidden from our sight". Two sources confirmed to Reuters that the site sits near Al Dhafra Air Base on the outskirts of Abu Dhabi, which hosts U.S. troops and has itself been targeted during the conflict.reuters+1

A Pillar of UAE's AI Ambitions

The project is led by G42, the AI firm controlled by Sheikh Tahnoun bin Zayed al Nahyan, the UAE's national security adviser. It was announced during President Donald Trump's visit to the Gulf state last year as part of a broader deal in which the UAE agreed to cut AI ties with China in exchange for access to Nvidia ↘ 0.03% chips and other advanced American technology.wtvbam

Construction on the first phase, a $30 billion, 1-gigawatt compute cluster called Stargate UAE built in partnership with Oracle ↘ 1.74%, began last year, with the first 200 megawatts of capacity due online this year. Oracle chairman Larry Ellison has said the completed facility would have enough capacity to connect every UAE government agency and commercial institution to advanced AI models.wtvbam

Hardening the Infrastructure

The first phase of construction is expected to continue with modifications to protect against aerial threats, while subsequent phases will likely be dispersed across multiple locations. Officials are considering placing facilities handling the most sensitive data, including military information, inside mountains in the UAE's northern emirates of Ras Al Khaimah and Fujairah. Drone and missile interceptors, electronic jamming equipment, and backup power and cooling systems are also part of the redesign, sources told Reuters.reuters+1

G42 said work on the campus was progressing as planned, adding that the project's specifics are "subject to continuous review in line with the security, resilience and operational standards expected of critical infrastructure at this scale". Daniel Benaim, a former U.S. deputy assistant secretary of state for Arabian Peninsula affairs, called the conflict an "economic earthquake" for the Gulf. "Every country in the region is going to look at what they can do to reduce the risk," he said.wtvbam