A Strategic AI Safety Imperative: Towards a UAE Artificial Intelligence Safety Institute

Abstract

The United Arab Emirates (UAE) stands at a transformative inflection point in its artificial intelligence development journey. While the nation has made significant strides in AI innovation, deployment, solidified by strategic partnerships, a critical gap persists in translating these advancements into global AI security leadership. This policy brief builds the case for establishing a UAE Artificial Intelligence Safety Institute (AISI), both as an urgent national priority and a strategic complement to the Emirates’ newly cemented role as the Middle East’s AI infrastructure hub.

The UAE’s strategic investment in AI was further amplified in mid 2025 by landmark agreements with the United States that position the UAE as a global AI infrastructure leader. The two countries agreed to an investment of $150 billion on AI infrastructure, which includes access to cutting-edge semiconductors and binding security commitments to prevent technology diversion, creates both new opportunities and responsibilities. With Abu Dhabi positioned to host hyperscale AI compute infrastructure capable of serving nearly half the world’s population within a 2,000-mile radius, the Emirates now faces imperative to pioneer security frameworks that protect not just national interests but the integrity of global AI ecosystems.The proposed AISI would leverage three strategic advantages: 1) The UAE’s established cybersecurity leadership, demonstrated through its world-class threat detection and mitigation capabilities; 2) its unique geopolitical position as a trusted partner to competing AI powers; and 3) The unprecedented scale of sovereign investments in AI infrastructure through vehicles like MGX and G42.

By focusing on advanced AI security research, verification mechanisms, and international coordination, the AISI would address critical gaps in the global AI safety landscape while protecting the UAE’s $1 trillion investments in next-generation technologies. Such step would align with the security obligations of the US-UAE AI Acceleration Partnership, which mandates robust safeguards for Americansourced technologies while enabling the UAE to emerge as a global hub for developing transnational AI safety standards. As frontier AI capabilities advance exponentially, the window for establishing governance frameworks that keep pace with infrastructure growth is closing rapidly. The AISI represents not just a strategic necessity for securing the UAE’s AI ambitions, but an opportunity to redefine global norms for safe, beneficial AI development in an era of intensifying technological competition.