‘Stargate UAE’ AI datacenter to begin operation in 2026

The first phase of a massive new artificial data center in the United Arab Emirates will come online in 2026, likely with 100,000 Nvidia chips.

The “Stargate UAE” project is part of a deal brokered last week by US President Donald Trump to build the world’s largest set of AI data centers outside the United States, despite previous US restrictions on sending advanced technology to the UAE because of its close ties to China.

The 10-square-mile (26-sq-km) site in Abu Dhabi will eventually host 5 gigawatts’ worth of data centers.

The first phase of that project will be the 1-gigawatt Stargate UAE project, built by state-backed UAE firm G42 in partnership with US firms OpenAI, Oracle, Nvidia and Cisco Systems, as well as Japan’s SoftBank Group.

The companies say that the Stargate UAE project will use Nvidia’s Grace Blackwell GB300 systems, currently the most advanced AI server that Nvidia offers.

The first 200 megawatts of capacity will go live in 2026, the companies said. The group did not give a number of servers, but analyst firm TrendForce estimates that GB300 servers with 72 chips each consume about 140 kilowatts of power, which equates to about 1,400 servers or 100,000 Nvidia chips.