US gov’t eases AI chip export controls on UAE following country’s support in Iran war

The United Arab Emirates (UAE) has been granted expanded access by the US government to AI chips in return for supporting the country during the Iran War, it is claimed

Reported by Wall Street Journal, the news comes in the wake of the Department of Commerce announcing late last week that the UAE will now be categorized alongside India, South Korea, and countries in Europe when it comes to the purchase of technology, military items, or energy infrastructure that could have military applications, the Commerce Department said.

Previously, the UAE had been in a group that included China and Yemen.

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The change will allow companies such as the UAE’s G42 to have unrestricted access to purchase advanced AI processors from the likes of Nvidia and AMD, while hyperscalers planning to build data centers in the country will no longer need licenses to export chips to there.