The United Arab Emirates is rethinking the blueprint for a massive US-backed artificial intelligence data centre project as the risk of Iranian missile and drone attacks prompts authorities to reassess the security of critical infrastructure, Reuters reported, citing six people familiar with the matter.
The 5-gigawatt project, initially planned as a 10-square-mile campus in Abu Dhabi, is now likely to be developed as a network of data centres spread across the UAE, four of the sources told Reuters.
Authorities are also considering additional security measures, including air defence systems, underground construction and other ways to protect facilities from potential aerial attacks, according to the sources.
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The project, led by UAE-based AI firm G42, is central to Abu Dhabi's ambition to emerge as a global AI hub and diversify its economy beyond oil. It is being developed in partnership with US technology companies including Nvidia, OpenAI, Oracle and Cisco.
The UAE began reviewing its AI infrastructure plans after Iran launched missile and drone attacks against Gulf states hosting US forces, Reuters reported.
Two Amazon Web Services data centres in the UAE were damaged in the attacks in March, while another facility in Bahrain was also hit.
Iran's armed forces also warned in April that Stargate UAE could be a potential target and released a video showing what it claimed was the location of the complex.
Two people familiar with the matter told Reuters that the project is being built near Al Dhafra Air Base, which hosts US troops and has itself been targeted during the conflict.
The proposed redesign could include drone and missile interceptors, electronic jamming equipment, blast-resistant concrete and additional backup power and cooling systems, according to the sources.
Officials are also considering placing facilities handling highly sensitive data, including military information, underground or inside mountains, Reuters reported. The UAE is largely flat, although mountain ranges run through parts of Ras Al Khaimah and Fujairah.
Despite the security review, construction of the project's first phase is expected to continue.
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The first phase is a $30 billion, 1-gigawatt compute cluster known as Stargate UAE, with the first 200 megawatts expected to come online this year.
G42 told Reuters that work on the AI campus was progressing as planned, while acknowledging that project specifics are being continuously reviewed against security, resilience and operational requirements.
OpenAI said it was working with the UAE to achieve its AI ambitions and was making progress on the infrastructure and adoption priorities required to deliver the project.
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