{"slug": "us-eases-uae-access-to-coveted-ai-chips-after-gulf-nation-provided-help-in-iran", "title": "US eases UAE access to coveted AI chips after Gulf nation provided help in Iran war", "summary": "The United States eased export restrictions on advanced AI chips to the United Arab Emirates after the Gulf nation provided military support during the conflict with Iran. The rule change places the UAE in the same export category as European nations, South Korea and India, enabling its flagship AI company G42 to buy Nvidia chips without restriction. Critics have raised concerns about potential conflicts of interest involving Trump family business ties with UAE officials.", "body_md": "# US eases UAE access to coveted AI chips after Gulf nation provided help in Iran war\n\nSee more of our coverage in your search results.\n\n[Add The New York Post on Google](https://www.google.com/preferences/source?q=nypost.com)\n\nThe United Arab Emirates is getting broader access to prized US artificial intelligence chips after becoming a key military partner during the conflict with Iran – the latest instance of AI chips becoming a powerful bargaining chip in international diplomacy.\n\nThe UAE has carried out dozens of airstrikes, intercepted hundreds of missiles and [helped keep oil flowing through the Strait of Hormuz.](https://nypost.com/2026/07/14/world-news/middle-east-allies-rushing-new-pipelines-port-to-bypass-irans-grip-on-strait-of-hormuz/)\n\nUnder a Trump administration rule [announced Friday](https://www.bis.gov/press-release/department-commerce-eases-export-controls-uae), the UAE is being placed in the same export category as European nations, South Korea and India for purchases of technology, military equipment and energy infrastructure with potential military uses.\n\nAdvertisement\n\nThe UAE was previously in the same category as countries including China and Yemen.\n\nPresident Trump praised UAE President Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan during a recent Group of Seven summit in France.\n\n“His Highness is a warrior,” he said. “They’ve been with the United States for a long time, but I would say much more so since I came on board.”\n\nAdvertisement\n\nThe Gulf nation has tried for years to secure cutting-edge American technology as it works to diversify its economy.\n\nThe decision is likely to face political scrutiny because it benefits a country whose national security adviser became a major business partner of the Trump family last year. The White House has denied any conflicts of interest.\n\n“It smells like it could be an illegal pay-to-play scheme,” Rep. Sydney Kamlager-Dove (D-Calif.) said Tuesday during a House committee hearing.\n\nAdvertisement\n\nCommerce Department official Jeffrey Kessler, whose office oversees export controls, said he never discussed AI chip exports to the UAE with Trump family members or executives at their World Liberty Financial, the crypto company founded by Trump, special envoy Steve Witkoff and their sons.\n\n“It is one of the most significant achievements of the administration,” Kessler said of the UAE announcement.\n\nThe move will enable G42, the UAE’s flagship AI company, to buy Nvidia chips without restriction for at least the next nine months.\n\nAdvertisement\n\nThe rule change also lifts export hurdles for Microsoft and [OpenAI](https://nypost.com/2026/07/10/business/apple-sues-openai-for-trade-theft-sending-shock-waves-through-silicon-valley/), both of which have announced plans for data centers in the UAE.\n\n“The U.A.E. has been a great partner with Iran, but that doesn’t necessarily mean they’ve demonstrated the capability to keep a data center secure,” Hudson Institute senior fellow Michael Sobolik [told the Wall Street Journal.](https://www.wsj.com/world/middle-east/uae-ai-chips-iran-war-26c10d77)\n\nUnder the previous status quo, UAE companies had to obtain Commerce Department licenses before shipping the advanced chips needed to run AI models, a process that often stretched for months.\n\nIndustry analysts said the expanded access could be worth billions of dollars.\n\nEmirati officials recently indicated that G42 could eventually become a US company with a majority of its ownership held by American investors, according to the Journal. The company is controlled by Sheikh Tahnoon bin Zayed Al Nahyan, the UAE’s national security adviser and the brother of the president.\n\nTahnoon has spearheaded the country’s push for AI chips since the Biden administration.\n\nAfter the war with Iran began, Emirati officials renewed their lobbying campaign with the White House, urging officials to upgrade the country’s export status, the Journal reported.\n\nAdvertisement\n\nThe UAE strengthened ties with Israel and several Arab nations by signing the Abraham Accords in 2020 before joining the US in military action against Iran.\n\nOne American official reportedly said that support convinced the White House and senior administration officials that the UAE had proven itself to be a dependable ally.\n\nDays before Trump’s second inauguration, Tahnoon and other investors agreed to pay $500 million for a 49% stake in World Liberty Financial, drawing howls from Dems. Separately, the UAE pledged to invest $1.4 trillion in the United States.\n\nUAE officials originally urged Washington not to launch a war against Iran. But after the Gulf nation [absorbed major retaliatory drone attacks from Iran](https://nypost.com/2026/05/05/world-news/iran-hits-uae-with-drones-and-missile-attacks-as-trump-tries-to-reopen-strait-of-hormuz/), officials shifted course and coordinated military strikes alongside the US and Israel.", "url": "https://wpnews.pro/news/us-eases-uae-access-to-coveted-ai-chips-after-gulf-nation-provided-help-in-iran", "canonical_source": "https://nypost.com/2026/07/15/business/us-eases-uae-access-to-ai-chips-after-providing-help-in-iran-war/", "published_at": "2026-07-15 16:14:28+00:00", "updated_at": "2026-07-15 16:33:38.762483+00:00", "lang": "en", "topics": ["ai-chips", "ai-policy", "artificial-intelligence"], "entities": ["United Arab Emirates", "United States", "G42", "Nvidia", "Microsoft", "OpenAI", "Donald Trump", "Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan"], "alternates": {"html": "https://wpnews.pro/news/us-eases-uae-access-to-coveted-ai-chips-after-gulf-nation-provided-help-in-iran", "markdown": "https://wpnews.pro/news/us-eases-uae-access-to-coveted-ai-chips-after-gulf-nation-provided-help-in-iran.md", "text": "https://wpnews.pro/news/us-eases-uae-access-to-coveted-ai-chips-after-gulf-nation-provided-help-in-iran.txt", "jsonld": "https://wpnews.pro/news/us-eases-uae-access-to-coveted-ai-chips-after-gulf-nation-provided-help-in-iran.jsonld"}}