Like a friend who shares the news over tea — no jargon, no fluff, just what matters across the Gulf.
ISSUE 08, 13 July 2026
Ai MAJLiS
- UAE
- SAUDI ARABIA
- QATAR
- KUWAIT
- BAHRAIN
- OMAN
Ahlan wa sahlan — welcome to Issue #008 of Ai MAJLiS. This week delivered one of the biggest AI hardware stories in Gulf history: the US has formally reclassified the UAE to its most privileged export tier, unlocking licence-free access to Nvidia, AMD, Google, Microsoft, Meta, OpenAI, Apple, Oracle, and Amazon AI infrastructure for G42, Core42, and UAE sovereign entities. IBM just published its most comprehensive Gulf AI productivity data yet — 77% of UAE leaders are already reporting significant AI gains, and 92% expect agentic AI to deliver measurable ROI within two years. Qatar quietly landed a sovereign quantum computing partnership that could define the next frontier of Gulf AI. And Kuwait, Bahrain, and Oman each took meaningful steps forward on their distinct AI trajectories. The khawa is on. Let’s go.
01
UAE - AI Chips · US Partnership · Breaking
The US Just Gave the UAE the Most Significant AI Hardware Deal in the Gulf's History
On July 10, 2026, the US Department of Commerce’s Bureau of Industry and Security made an announcement that will reshape the Gulf’s AI infrastructure landscape: the UAE has been reclassified to Country Group A:5 — placing it in the same privileged tier as America’s closest allies for the purposes of technology exports.
What this means in practice is sweeping. G42, Core42, MGX — the UAE’s sovereign AI champions — can now receive Nvidia AI chips, AMD processors, and advanced AI servers without individual export licences. And so can every major US tech company operating in the UAE: Amazon, Apple, Google, Meta, Microsoft, OpenAI, Oracle, and xAI are all now cleared for license-free AI hardware imports into the country.
The Commerce Department was explicit about the reasoning: the reclassification reflects the UAE’s steps to safeguard sensitive American technology, alongside G42’s earlier divestment of its Chinese holdings and implementation of stringent end-use technology safeguards — demonstrating the depth of the US-UAE technology partnership.
A:5
UAE's new US export control tier — same as closest allies
9+
US tech giants cleared for licence-free UAE AI imports
5 GW
Stargate UAE campus capacity now fully unlocked
The commercial implications are immediate. Emirati entities like G42 had been gearing up for large-scale data center projects that required precisely this kind of hardware — previously locked behind export licence requirements. Nvidia stock rose 4.03% on the announcement. AMD climbed 2.04%.
The deal is not without controversy inside Washington. Critics warn it opens a backdoor for China to access cutting-edge AI technology via the UAE, citing G42’s previous ties to Huawei. Chris McGuire of the Council on Foreign Relations described it as posing “an enormous national security risk.” The administration has defended the move as strategically necessary — and the UAE’s track record of compliance since its G42 restructuring is cited as the evidence.
The UAE now qualifies for easier treatment under US export control laws, citing steps taken by the Emirates to safeguard sensitive American technology."
— US Department of Commerce, Bureau of Industry and Security, Federal Register, July 10, 2026
Why it matters: This is the single most consequential AI infrastructure development in the GCC’s history. The hardware bottleneck that constrained the UAE’s AI ambitions — even with sovereign wealth and political will — has been formally removed. For AI companies, cloud providers, and data center operators, the UAE just became the most permissive large AI market outside the United States. The Stargate UAE 5 GW campus, ADNOC’s AI programmes, and every G42-adjacent project can now accelerate without licence friction.
02
GCC WIDE - Enterprise AI · Research
77% of UAE Leaders Report AI Productivity Gains — IBM's New GCC Research Reframes the AI ROI Question
IBM’s EMEA Productivity Study 2026 — surveying more than 3,500 senior business leaders across ten markets including the UAE and Saudi Arabia — has landed with one of the most concrete enterprise AI performance datasets yet seen for the Gulf. The headline finding: 77% of UAE senior leaders reported significant productivity improvements from AI deployment — well above the EMEA average of 66%.
IBM frames this as evidence of a meaningful regional shift: GCC organisations that are achieving the most durable AI results are not simply deploying AI tools — they are redesigning how they operate with AI at the centre. The concept IBM calls “Operational Alpha” describes this state: automating high-value workflows, eliminating structural cost inefficiencies, and building systems that scale revenue without proportionally scaling headcount or fixed costs.
The most forward-looking finding: 92% of GCC leaders surveyed expected agentic AI specifically to deliver measurable ROI within two years — a striking alignment with the UAE government’s own agentic AI deployment targets. IBM draws a critical distinction between generative AI (which assists humans in completing tasks) and agentic AI (which orchestrates decisions and actions autonomously). Gulf organisations that understand this distinction are the ones moving from pilot to production.
77%
UAE leaders reporting significant AI productivity gains
92%
GCC leaders expect agentic AI ROI within 2 years
66%
EMEA average AI productivity improvement rate
IBM’s GCC research also identifies the key enablers of Operational Alpha: data readiness (the biggest practical bottleneck across the region), workflow redesign (84% of Gulf organisations still haven’t done this, per earlier Deloitte data), and governance maturity (only 21% have mature models for autonomous AI). The organisations that address all three simultaneously are the ones showing the 163% productivity growth that PwC identified in last week’s AI Jobs Barometer.
Why it matters: IBM’s research gives Gulf businesses a concrete benchmark to measure against. If you are a UAE leader and your AI deployment has not yet delivered significant productivity improvements — you are in the 23% lagging the regional average. The Operational Alpha framework is a practical diagnostic: are you using AI to assist humans, or have you redesigned the workflow itself? The gap between those two approaches is where competitive advantage is being created right now.
03
UAE - AI in Travel · Biometrics
9 Million Travellers, Zero Passports: The UAE's AI-Powered Biometric Border Is Live
Amid the geopolitical turbulence, a quieter but transformative story is unfolding at UAE airports. More than 9 million travellers have now passed through the UAE’s AI-powered biometric border system — completing border crossings without producing a physical passport, using facial recognition and iris scanning integrated directly into the immigration infrastructure.
Dubai International has expanded its contactless biometric hotel check-in system across participating hospitality properties in 2026 — meaning for an increasing number of visitors, the entire arrival-to-accommodation journey can now be completed without presenting physical documentation at any stage.
The UAE’s Inception42 company also announced this week a strategic collaboration with NXT Holding to accelerate enterprise AI adoption across the country — covering AI consulting, training and upskilling, enterprise AI solutions, product distribution, and joint business development. The partnership reflects the commercial ecosystem emerging around the UAE’s AI infrastructure investments: sovereign-scale hardware decisions at the top, and a growing layer of implementation and advisory businesses at the enterprise level.
9M+
Travellers through UAE biometric border system
100%
UAE Govt AI strategy target by 2031
Zero
Passports required for enrolled travellers
Why it matters: The UAE’s biometric border is the most visible consumer-facing deployment of AI at national scale anywhere in the GCC. For businesses in travel tech, hospitality, and identity verification, the UAE is writing the playbook that other GCC countries will likely replicate. The 9 million travellers figure is a proof point — not a pilot.
04
QATAR - Quantum Computing · GCC Innovation
Qatar Lands a Sovereign Quantum Computing Partnership — While the UN Warns AI Governance Is Falling Behind
A story that deserves more attention than it got this week: Quandela and Mekdam Holding Group have partnered to deploy advanced quantum computing solutions across the GCC region, directly aligning with national AI mandates. The collaboration integrates Quandela’s photonic quantum systems — among the most advanced in Europe — with Mekdam’s regional market presence, targeting commercialisation of quantum applications in energy, cybersecurity, and healthcare.
Most significantly for Qatar’s long-term AI ambitions: the partnership includes establishing a Quantum Center of Excellence in Doha — providing cloud-based access to quantum processors and fostering local quantum talent. This places Qatar at the frontier of what many analysts describe as the next major technology wave after generative AI — quantum-classical hybrid systems that could dramatically accelerate AI model training and optimisation for energy-intensive applications like reservoir modelling and drug discovery.
This builds on Qatar’s existing AI infrastructure: Qai (the QIA-backed sovereign AI entity), the QDB’s projection of a QR56.3bn GCC AI market by 2030, and Qatar’s Oxford Insights AI readiness score of 63.59 — third in the GCC. The Franco-Qatari quantum collaboration is exactly the kind of differentiated, technology-stack positioning that could help Qatar compete with UAE and Saudi Arabia on a dimension where neither has yet established a clear lead.
- Why Quantum Matters for Gulf AI
Quantum computing is not a replacement for AI — it is an accelerator. For the GCC’s energy sector specifically, quantum-classical hybrid systems could dramatically improve reservoir simulation, materials discovery for clean energy, and logistics optimisation. Qatar, with its LNG infrastructure and energy-sector focus, is well-placed to be the Gulf’s first sovereign quantum-AI integration story.
Meanwhile, the UN Global Dialogue on AI Governance in Geneva on July 6–7, 2026 concluded with a sobering observation: AI is being adopted by millions of children globally for learning and personal advice, while safeguards are failing to keep pace. The UN’s AI governance panel, which feeds into international frameworks, specifically cited the Gulf region’s rapid AI adoption in government and education as a case study requiring dedicated governance attention.
Why it matters: Qatar’s quantum bet is the most strategically interesting GCC AI story of the month — not the loudest, but potentially the most consequential. For businesses in energy, healthcare, and cybersecurity with GCC operations, tracking Qatar’s Quantum Center of Excellence as it develops could provide early access to capabilities that will only become more valuable as the Gulf’s AI stack matures.
05
KUWAIT / BAHRAIN / OMAN - AI Practitioners — Weekly Check-In
Kuwait's Infrastructure Moment, Bahrain's Governance Edge, and Oman's Quiet Execution
Three of the GCC’s smaller AI markets continue making measured progress this week — each on a distinct trajectory that reflects their individual strengths and constraints.
Kuwait faces the GCC’s most acute infrastructure gap: five data centers against the UAE’s 57 and Saudi Arabia’s 51. But the demand side is fully present — this week’s IBM data shows UAE and Saudi leaders reporting AI productivity gains at rates well above the EMEA average, and Kuwait’s business community is just as eager to access those gains. The Middle East Institute’s recommendation remains the most useful strategic lens: if Kuwait launches a national AI infrastructure company — similar to G42, HUMAIN, or Qai — to coordinate capital, energy, and compute at scale, it could move from participant to shaper. That window remains open but is narrowing as neighbours accelerate. Kuwait’s Microsoft digital skills programme under New Kuwait 2035 continues, and its Oxford Insights AI readiness score of 49.86 — while the lowest in the GCC — reflects a starting point, not a ceiling.
Bahrain made tangible governance progress this week, with its standalone AI law continuing its passage through the Shura Council. When passed, it will be the GCC’s most binding AI legislative framework — creating the legal certainty that enterprise AI deployments require. Bahrain’s Central Bank sandbox remains the most active in the region for fintech and AI financial products. IBM’s research specifically identifies governance maturity as a key enabler of AI ROI — which means Bahrain’s regulatory-first approach may prove commercially wise over a two-to-three year horizon. Oxford Insights scores Bahrain at 56.13.
Oman continues executing on its differentiated strategy. The Undersecretary of Communications confirmed earlier this month that AI pilots in health, education, justice, and procurement have all moved into real-world implementation. Oman’s semiconductor supply-chain focus — a deliberate bet on the hardware foundations of the AI stack rather than gigawatt-scale data centers — remains the most contrarian and potentially most resilient positioning in the GCC. Oxford Insights scores Oman at 58.94. Its Gulf of Oman terminal infrastructure continues to provide an alternative trade route that adds strategic value to its AI buildout narrative.
GCC AI SNAPSHOT
Where Each Country Stands This Week
Eight editions in, and the Ai MAJLiS thesis keeps strengthening. This week’s US-UAE chip deal is not an incremental update — it is a structural shift. The hardware bottleneck that constrained the UAE’s AI ambitions has been formally removed. G42, Core42, and every major US tech company operating in the UAE can now move at full speed.
IBM’s data tells us the productivity gains are already real — 77% of UAE leaders report significant improvements, well above the EMEA average. Qatar’s quantum partnership is the most forward-looking Gulf AI story of the month. And Kuwait, Bahrain, and Oman are each finding their own path through a landscape that rewards those who play to their strengths.
That’s our majlis for this week. Share it with someone building in the Gulf — and we’ll see you next Sunday, inshallah. 🫖
