OpenAI Regional Policy Chief Says UAE Partnership Grew From 2023 Talks on Chips and Power

In an interview with the state news agency WAM on the sidelines of ADIPEC 2026 in Abu Dhabi, Soleimani said those talks shaped a plan that runs from infrastructure to national skills, and to giving government bodies and companies access to OpenAI's latest tools. He said the work now covers four main areas: energy, government services, investment and practical applications of AI.

Soleimani said four agreements were signed in recent days between OpenAI and Abu Dhabi institutions and companies, covering government work, energy and investment. WAM did not name the counterparties. Separately, Abu Dhabi has said it is piloting OpenAI models to check food import documents as part of a push for machine-readable government services.

He said the partnership also covers making AI tools available to employees in the UAE, so that specialists in one field can pick up engineering skills and engineers can develop as AI specialists. In the energy sector, he said, giving workers advanced tools could cut operating costs and improve efficiency.

Soleimani said OpenAI's presence at ADIPEC reflected how closely energy and AI are now linked. Expanding AI services requires very large computing capacity, which in turn depends on abundant and reliable power. That makes the energy industry what he called an essential partner in AI's future.

He described the UAE relationship as going beyond conventional corporate cooperation, resting on trust and a shared vision, and said OpenAI wanted to keep working with partners that share its ambitions during a period of rapid global change.

The remarks come as the UAE hosts one of OpenAI's largest international infrastructure projects, the Stargate UAE data centre campus in Abu Dhabi. They also come as US scrutiny of Gulf AI deals is likely to increase after Democrats won control of Congress this week.