UAE's big bet on AI

In Abu Dhabi, the largest emirate in the United Arab Emirates, AI is as much a part of daily life as reporting a pothole or making a doctor's appointment or paying a parking ticket — because AI does all that for you.

Abu Dhabi, the capital of one of the world's wealthiest and most globalized business hubs, has near-universal adoption of an app that knows when you need to renew your national ID or health insurance or vehicle registration.

The app's "AutoGov" feature goes a step further: It handles the paperwork and pays what's owed without being asked.

Why it matters: The UAE made a massive bet on AI, spending billions on infrastructure and research, backed by long-term thinking and alignment from top leaders. Before the war with Iran, the bet was paying off massively. "People make money here and bring money here," a UAE resident told Jim VandeHei and me when we visited just before the war.

The war rattled the UAE's AI ambitions and stirred fears about visiting, given the constant threat of Iranian attack. UAE leaders tell us they remain all-in on AI: They're willing to work with both the U.S. and China, and see the technology as the key to their future beyond oil.

The big picture: Yousef Al Otaiba, the UAE's longtime ambassador to Washington, told me his country "recognized early that data is destiny — and our leaders didn't wait for AI to arrive before preparing for it."

The UAE appointed an AI minister (said to be the world's first) nearly a decade ago, in 2017. Two years later, it opened what's billed as the world's first graduate-level university dedicated to AI, Mohamed bin Zayed University of Artificial Intelligence (MBZUAI) in Masdar City, Abu Dhabi.

The UAE was built on oil. But leaders aggressively diversified into what The New York Times recently called "the ultimate globalized city — a Switzerland on the Persian Gulf."

Dubai, the UAE's biggest city, is rollicking, wealthy and Western-friendly. It's one of the world's top business hubs, and is home to the world's tallest building and the world's busiest international airport.

That prosperity is being tested by war in the Middle East. But business leaders tell us AI investments from around the world have kept the UAE powerful amid the danger and disruption plaguing the Persian Gulf.

On Tuesday night, The Wall Street Journal reported that the Trump administration is rewarding the UAE for its help with the Iran war by expanding access to coveted AI chips, capping "a yearslong push by the Gulf state to obtain American technology to diversify its economy."

Reality check: This is as much opportunism as strategic vision. The UAE has an all-powerful royal family that controls government and business, allowing wholesale societal changes that couldn't be replicated in a democracy.

Zoom in: His Excellency Dr. Mohamed Al Askar, director general of TAMM, as the app is called, took me behind the scenes of Abu Dhabi's "AI-native government" in two lengthy interviews. He and the emirate's Department of Government Enablement host a parade of ministers from other governments who dream of replicating TAMM.

"If you look at the UAE as a whole, this is rooted in our leadership vision," said Al Askar, a leader in digital strategy and technological innovation.

"This has become part of our DNA. ... This is why I believe the UAE can be a haven for any entrepreneur who wants to test and experiment with AI."

How it works: TAMM is Arabic for "Consider it done."

The app has a "Snap & Report" section where you can take a photo of a streetlight that doesn't work and submit it to the government. "AI will analyze that photo," the director general said. "We'll route it to the concerned entity. And the entity will fix it. And listen to this: The entity doesn't have the right to close your request until you confirm. So you as a customer have the power."

If you take a photo of your food, the app will give you a letter grade for healthiness.

When I asked what's next, Al Askar said: "We're actually cooking a lot of things. I wish I could share what we're cooking. But we will surprise you."

What we're watching: The UAE's national AI strategy vows that by 2031, the country will have a "reputation as an AI destination ... a magnet that attracts the best talents from the globe to conduct their experiments on AI solutions in the UAE."

PwC says that by 2030, AI could contribute 11% of the country's GDP, adding $320 billion to the Middle East economy.

Go deeper: UAE wants to disrupt the AI superpowers. ...