Microsoft to invest $1.5 bn in UAE-based G42

Microsoft has announced an investment of $1.5 billion in UAE-based AI company G42. As part of the partnership, Microsoft will take its AI technologies and skilling initiatives to UAE, and make Brad Smith, vice chair and president of Microsoft part of the G42 Board of Directors. The G42-Microsoft partnership will invest $1 billion in the development of developers in the UAE and broader region.

G42 will run its AI applications and services on Microsoft Azure. The two companies will also work together to bring advanced AI and digital infrastructure to countries in the Middle East, Central Asia, and Africa.

“Through Microsoft’s strategic investment, we are advancing our mission to deliver cutting-edge AI technologies at scale. This partnership significantly enhances our international market presence, combining G42’s unique AI capabilities with Microsoft’s robust global infrastructure. Together, we are not only expanding our operational horizons but also setting new industry standards for innovation,” said Peng Xiao, Group Chief Executive Officer of G42.

Microsoft and G42 will also work on the security and compliance framework of their joint international infrastructure. Both companies will move forward with a commitment to comply with US and international trade, security, responsible AI, and business integrity laws and regulations. The work on these topics is governed by a detailed Intergovernmental Assurance Agreement (IGAA) between G42 and Microsoft that was developed in close consultation with the UAE and US governments.

The association between Microsoft and G42 is not new. Earlier in April 2023, they jointly announced a plan to develop AI solutions tailored for the public sector and industry, leveraging Microsoft’s extensive partner ecosystem and cloud capabilities. In September, the companies signed an agreement to introduce sovereign cloud offerings and collaborate on unlocking the potential of advanced AI capabilities on the Azure public cloud platform. Lastly, in November 2023, Microsoft announced the availability of G42’s Jais Arabic Large Language Model on the new Azure AI Cloud Model-as-a-Service offering.