OpenAI’s $7 trillion AI chip plan is expected to welcome Middle Eastern capital.

According to reports, Abu Dhabi investment company MGX is negotiating with OpenAI for early financing, which may become a key step for OpenAI to realize its "chip empire" ambitions.

Sam Altman wants to raise up to US$7 trillion in funds to promote global chip manufacturing capabilities and reshape the global semiconductor industry pattern.

Because the scale of financing is very large (global chip sales in 2023 will be less than one-tenth of that), sovereign wealth funds are more likely to become OpenAI's main fundraising target than traditional venture capital. Media sources revealed that last week, OpenAI also held financing negotiations with Singapore’s sovereign fund investment company Temasek.

An insider familiar with the negotiations told the media:

“They (OpenAI) are looking at building an organizational structure that puts Abu Dhabi at the center of this AI strategy, along with global partners around the world.”

The “AI ambitions” of Middle Eastern tycoons

The UAE has already shown ambition in promoting the deployment of AI.

According to a compilation of media reports, the UAE appointed the world’s first Minister of Artificial Intelligence, Omar Sultan Al Olama, in 2017 and adopted the National Artificial Intelligence Strategy 2031 in the same year, stating that it will become a world leader in the field of AI by 2031. one.

In October 2023, the UAE technology giant G42 (sovereign wealth fund Mubadala took a stake in the company in 2020) announced a partnership with OpenAI to provide advanced AI solutions to the UAE and wider regional markets. In addition to OpenAI, G42 has also established cooperative relationships with Microsoft and Cerebras.

In January 2024, the UAE announced the establishment of the Artificial Intelligence and Advanced Technology Council (AIATC). The committee established a technology investment company MGX this week to promote the deployment of cutting-edge technologies. MGX’s investment strategy mainly focuses on the fields of artificial intelligence and semiconductors. Target assets under management exceed US$100 billion.

The UAE Minister of Artificial Intelligence told the media that the country has "backlogged" a large number of Nvidia GPUs and "will continue to invest in this field." He also said that Musk's xAI also intends to establish a cooperative relationship with the country.

Olama said:

"The UAE does not have a clear policy of only cooperating with one partner. Economic factors have the final say."