Status: Under Construction | Location: Abu Dhabi
Unveiled in the presence of global leaders, Stargate UAE represents a cornerstone project within the U.S.–UAE AI Acceleration Partnership and signals the country’s ambition to become a global hub for sovereign artificial intelligence infrastructure. The $30 billion+ megacampus is being developed by G42 in collaboration with a powerful “Global Tech Alliance” that includes OpenAI, Oracle, NVIDIA, SoftBank, and Cisco. The initiative is designed to create a next-generation AI computing environment capable of supporting hyperscale model training, large-scale inference, and advanced data processing across the Middle East and beyond.
A key objective of Stargate UAE is to enable “Sovereign AI” capabilities, allowing the UAE and regional partners to develop and operate advanced AI models locally while maintaining full control over data governance, cybersecurity, and regulatory compliance. This infrastructure will support major regional AI models such as Jais, one of the world’s leading Arabic large language models, as well as next-generation systems like K2 Think, designed for high-performance reasoning and enterprise AI workloads.
The first phase of the project includes a 200-megawatt AI compute cluster scheduled to become operational in September 2026. The campus is engineered with a highly resilient “Tri-Fuel” power architecture combining dedicated nuclear energy from the Barakah Nuclear Energy Plant, utility-scale solar generation, and natural gas backup systems to guarantee uninterrupted 24/7 AI operations.
In March 2026, South Korea officially joined the initiative as a strategic technology partner, further expanding the project’s international collaboration and strengthening its role as one of the world’s most ambitious AI infrastructure developments.
| Field | Value |
|---|---|
| Project Name | Stargate UAE | $30B 5GW G42 & OpenAI AI Campus Abu Dhabi |
| Location | Abu Dhabi |
| Status | Under Construction |
| Commissioning | Phase 1 (200MW): Q3 2026; Full 5GW target: 2030+ |
| Total IT Load | 5,000 MW (5 GW) |
| Total Capacity | 1.0 GW Initial Cluster; Scaling to 5.0 GW Campus |
| Tier Level | Tier IV (Sovereign AI Infrastructure) |
| Project Type | Nation-Scale AI Training & Sovereign Cloud Hub |
| Header | Details |
|---|---|
| City Name | Abu Dhabi |
| Population | ~1.6 Million (City) |
| Urban Agglomeration | ~3.8 Million (Emirate) |
| City GDP | ~$310 Billion USD (Emirate) |
| Per Capita Income | ~$82,000 USD |
| City Tier | Tier 1 Global Hub |
| Key Strengths | Nuclear Power, Sovereign Funding, Strategic Neutrality |
| Header | Details |
|---|---|
| Developer / Operator | Khazna Data Centers |
| Strategic Infrastructure Partner | Abu Dhabi AI & Advanced Technology Council (AIATC) / Mubadala. |
| Construction Contractor | G42 Infrastructure Division / Local & International EPC Partners. |
| MEP Engineering | Integrated G42/Khazna Engineering + Oracle Cloud Design. |
| Network Connectivity | Cisco-powered |
| Power Infrastructure | 5 GW Total: Nuclear (Barakah), Solar, and Natural Gas backup. |
| Header | Details |
|---|---|
| Power Capacity | 5,000 MW (5 GW) |
| UPS Redundancy | Fault-tolerant design with integrated industrial-scale battery storage. |
| Cooling System | Advanced liquid cooling and adiabatic free-cooling for high-density GPU racks. |
| Connectivity | Global low-latency backbone designed for |
| PUE Target | < 1.15 (Targeted average for extreme desert environment) |
| Energy Mix | 100% Carbon-Neutral goal via Nuclear and Solar integration. |
| Header | Details |
|---|---|
| Announcement | May 22, 2025 (Formalized May 2025, Expanded Jan 2026) |
| Construction Start | Late 2025 |
| Phase 1 Go-Live | Q3 2026 (200MW Cluster) |
| Full Buildout | 2030-2032 |
| Header | Details |
|---|---|
| Total Investment | $30 Billion+ |
| Funding | Mubadala, MGX, Microsoft ($1.5B equity), and G42 Group resources. |
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