Former President Donald Trump wrapped up his high-stakes Gulf tour on Friday with a landmark deal enabling the United Arab Emirates to purchase cutting-edge AI semiconductors from U.S. firms—a pivotal step in Abu Dhabi’s campaign to become a global artificial intelligence powerhouse.
Speaking in the UAE capital, Trump announced that both nations had charted a path for the export of advanced AI chips under a framework designed to ensure secure data handling, with U.S. companies overseeing the data infrastructure. “This is a massive deal,” Trump said. “It will bring in billions of dollars in revenue and turbocharge the UAE’s AI ambitions.”
Trump’s final stop in Abu Dhabi capped a whirlwind four-day visit across Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and the UAE, focused on deepening economic partnerships and locking in sizable investment pledges aimed at invigorating the U.S. economy and job market.
One of the major wins from the tour came as Abu Dhabi committed to scaling its U.S. energy investments to $440 billion by 2035—up sharply from the current $70 billion—according to Sultan Al Jaber, CEO of ADNOC and chair of ADNOC’s global investment arm, XRG. “We’re putting real money behind this partnership,” Jaber said during a presentation attended by Trump, citing a $60 billion commitment to new and unconventional energy ventures in the U.S.
Trump emphasized progress on a previously announced $1.4 trillion, 10-year UAE investment initiative across sectors including AI, manufacturing, and energy. “We’re making headway. This is just the beginning,” he said.
Notably absent from much of the public conversation during the tour was the region’s broader security tensions, including the ongoing conflict in Gaza. However, in a significant policy shift, Trump confirmed the U.S. would lift sanctions on Syria at Saudi Arabia’s urging—clearing the way for an $800 million agreement between the Syrian government and Dubai’s DP World to revamp the Port of Tartous.
Asked whether Israel—long hostile to the Syrian regime—had been consulted on the U.S. decision to recognize Syria’s new leadership under Islamist President Sharaa, Trump replied bluntly: “I didn’t ask them. I thought it was the right thing to do. People have praised the decision.”
Trump urged the Syrian government to pursue normalization with Israel through the Abraham Accords, the U.S.-brokered pacts that established formal diplomatic ties between Israel and several Arab states during his first term.
On Iran, Trump said the ball is now in Tehran’s court regarding a revived nuclear agreement. “They’ve got the proposal. They know time is short. If they don’t act fast, there will be consequences—serious ones,” he told reporters aboard Air Force One after departing Abu Dhabi.