Trump plans deals: AI chips and raw materials for the Middle East!

Trump plans deals: AI chips and raw materials for the Middle East!

The Trump administration has ambitious plans for the Middle East technology market, aimed at strengthening the US presence in artificial intelligence (AI) and curbing China's influence. A key part of this strategy includes selling hundreds of thousands of AI chips to two government-affiliated companies in the region, such as merkur.de reported. These agreements could be finalized during Trump's upcoming trip to the Arab world.

The first company, G42, is considered the national AI champion of the United Arab Emirates (UAE). The second, Humain, also has close ties to the Saudi government. Both companies are expected to have access to US-made AI chips, with G42 potentially providing chips through a partnership with OpenAI. These measures are part of a larger plan to develop the region into an AI superpower.

Critical Minerals and Trading Strategies

Another aspect of Trump's initiative is the approval of a $9 billion memorandum of understanding for the mining and processing of critical minerals. This includes the search for lithium, cobalt and rare earths by the Saudi company Grand Mines Mining LLC in both Saudi Arabia and Africa. The approval to export high-performance semiconductor chips represents a significant break with previous US foreign policy, in which the Biden administration had restricted the sale of such technologies to the UAE and Saudi Arabia.

Trump and his advisers believe faster chip sales will serve U.S. interests by boosting American companies and spurring U.S. AI development. However, this strategy is accompanied by concerns about its long-term impact, particularly given geopolitical tensions with China.

Production offensive for high-tech chips

In addition to export strategies, Trump is pursuing a comprehensive chip strategy designed to boost semiconductor production in the United States. The goal is for 50 percent of modern high-tech chips to be produced in the United States. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick emphasizes that this measure is intended to give the US “firepower” for the development of artificial intelligence. To date, the majority of chips, especially the most advanced semiconductors, are manufactured in Asia, particularly in Taiwan. Experts warn that China could cut off supplies at any time, making the concern all the more relevant.

Although Joe Biden has also tried to bring production back to the USA - including with subsidies of around $39 billion - Trump is relying on other means. He criticized Biden's aid as a waste of money and plans to ease export hurdles for US chips. Under the Biden administration, export restrictions on AI technology were lifted, which Lutnick sharply criticized as cutting off allies like Poland from modern US technology.

If the Trump administration approves chip shipments, it will be within the framework of U.S. operator data centers connected to trusted cloud infrastructure. This indicates a strategic transition in US technology policy that is intended to put the US in a stronger position in global technology competition in the long term.