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UAE revises AI data center plan after Iranian attacks: Reuters
The 5-gigawatt project is shifting to multiple sites with air defenses, underground facilities and other protections after Iran’s strikes raised security concerns.
The United Arab Emirates is quietly revising plans for a 5-gigawatt AI data center project, one of the biggest outside the U.S., after Iran's missile and drone strikes prompted officials to rethink how critical infrastructure should be built.
Emirati officials began reviewing infrastructure plans soon after Tehran started firing missiles and drones at Gulf neighbors hosting United States troops, retaliating for American and Israeli airstrikes against Iran.
Originally envisaged as a 10-square-mile campus in Abu Dhabi, the project will now likely comprise a network of data centers spread across the UAE, with officials considering underground facilities and mountain sites in Ras Al Khaimah and Fujairah emirates.
Daniel Benaim, a fellow at the Middle East Institute, termed the conflict an "economic earthquake" for Gulf states, saying every country in the region will seek to reduce infrastructure risk and reassure international investors.
The $30-billion Stargate UAE project, led by G42, remains central to the UAE's economic shift away from oil, with the first 200 megawatts of capacity involving advanced technology from Nvidia and Oracle partners.