Negotiations are under way between the UAE and OpenAI that may make the company’s ChatGPT Plus artificial intelligence chatbot available to all residents free of charge, though a final deal has not been reached.
An agreement involving ChatGPT Plus would be part of the recently announced Stargate UAE infrastructure plan to create an AI hub in Abu Dhabi, according to a source familiar with the country’s AI strategy.
Abu Dhabi’s AI company G42 has partnered with OpenAI, Oracle and Nvidia to set up Stargate UAE, a 1-gigawatt computing cluster that will operate in the newly established 5GW UAE – US AI Campus.
In 2024, OpenAI chief executive Sam Altman addresses the World Governments Summit in the UAE. Antonie Robertson/The National
The establishment of the 5GW campus came after months of intense negotiations involving US technology companies and UAE officials to make sure the Emirates has enough chips and graphics processing units for its AI aspirations.
If a deal guaranteeing access to ChatGPT Plus to UAE residents comes to fruition, it would be unprecedented in the relatively young AI sector, giving perhaps more than 10 million people in the country the ability to use one of the world’s most powerful AI services.
OpenAI declined to comment on the prospect of the service being made freely available in the Emirates when contacted by The National.
A recent blog post on OpenAI's site, however, does mention ChatGPT in the context of the overall Stargate UAE plan.
"Under the partnership, the UAE will become the first country in the world to enable ChatGPT nationwide – giving people across the country the ability to access OpenAI's technology,” reads a portion of the post.
Typically for $20 per month, the ChatGPT Plus subscription plan provides what OpenAI describes as “enhanced access”. Unlike the ChatGPT version that is free of charge, the subscription service gives priority access during peak usage times, accepts large file uploads for analysis, has wider image generation features, provides access to OpenAI’s Deep Research tools and includes expanded voice features.
But ChatGPT Plus is not the highest tier service offered by OpenAI. There is also OpenAI Pro, which is available to customers for $200 a month, and the company also offers enterprise plans.
President Sheikh Mohamed was at the launch of Stargate UAE attended by senior officials including Sheikh Khaled bin Mohamed, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi; Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed, Crown Prince of Dubai, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Defence; Sheikh Tahnoon bin Zayed, Deputy Ruler of Abu Dhabi and National Security Adviser; Khaldoon Al Mubarak, Managing Director of Mubadala Investment Company. Also present were Martin Edelman, general counsel of G42; Peng Xiao, chief executive of G42; Jensen Huang, chief executive of Nvidia; Sam Altman, chief executive of OpenAI; Masayoshi Son, chief executive of SoftBank Group; Jay Patel of Cisco and Mike Sicilia executive vice president of Oracle. Photo: G42
Although AI research stretches back to the 1960s, recent advances in computer-processing power, coupled with iterations of AI solutions such as ChatGPT in 2022, led to an explosion of interest, investment and start-ups.
“The ChatGPT launch 26 months ago was one of the craziest viral moments I'd ever seen, and we added one million users in five days,” OpenAI chief executive and founder Sam Altman wrote at the time. “We added one million users in the last hour.”
Last week, Mr Altman announced that former Apple design master Jony Ive, who played a leading role in the creation of the iMac, iPod and iPhone, will be merging his company io with OpenAI.
The UAE is aiming to become a front-runner in the AI industry as it diversifies its economy away from oil. Its efforts have resulted in the establishment of numerous start-ups and partnerships as well as investments from industry leaders.
In recent years, UAE-based companies and institutions have also created several large language models, which are viewed as the backbone of AI implementations.
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
At one point, two feature films were in the works, but only German director Werner Herzog’s project starring Nicole Kidman would be made. While there were high hopes he would do a worthy job of directing the biopic, when Queen of the Desert arrived in 2015 it was a disappointment. Critics panned the film, in which Herzog largely glossed over Bell’s political work in favour of her ill-fated romances.
A documentary
A project that did do justice to Bell arrived the next year: Sabine Krayenbuhl and Zeva Oelbaum’s Letters from Baghdad: The Extraordinary Life and Times of Gertrude Bell. Drawing on more than 1,000 pieces of archival footage, 1,700 documents and 1,600 letters, the filmmakers painstakingly pieced together a compelling narrative that managed to convey both the depth of Bell’s experience and her tortured love life.
Books, letters and archives
Two biographies have been written about Bell, and both are worth reading: Georgina Howell’s 2006 book Queen of the Desert and Janet Wallach’s 1996 effort Desert Queen. Bell published several books documenting her travels and there are also several volumes of her letters, although they are hard to find in print. Original documents are housed at the Gertrude Bell Archive at the University of Newcastle, which has an online catalogue.
8.50pm Al Maktoum Challenge Round-2 Group Two $450,000 (D) 1,900m
9.25pm Handicap $135,000 (T) 1,800m
10pm Handicap $135,000 (T) 1,400m
The National selections
6.30pm Well Of Wisdom
7.05pm Summrghand
7.40pm Laser Show
8.15pm Angel Alexander
8.50pm Benbatl
9.25pm Art Du Val
10pm: Beyond Reason
Trump v Khan
2016: Feud begins after Khan criticised Trump’s proposed Muslim travel ban to US
2017: Trump criticises Khan’s ‘no reason to be alarmed’ response to London Bridge terror attacks
2019: Trump calls Khan a “stone cold loser” before first state visit
2019: Trump tweets about “Khan’s Londonistan”, calling him “a national disgrace”
2022: Khan’s office attributes rise in Islamophobic abuse against the major to hostility stoked during Trump’s presidency
July 2025 During a golfing trip to Scotland, Trump calls Khan “a nasty person”
Sept 2025 Trump blames Khan for London’s “stabbings and the dirt and the filth”.
Dec 2025 Trump suggests migrants got Khan elected, calls him a “horrible, vicious, disgusting mayor”
The details
Heard It in a Past Life
Maggie Rogers
(Capital Records)
3/5
Adele: The Stories Behind The Songs
Caroline Sullivan
Carlton Books
The biog
Favourite books: 'Ruth Bader Ginsburg: A Life' by Jane D. Mathews and ‘The Moment of Lift’ by Melinda Gates
Favourite travel destination: Greece, a blend of ancient history and captivating nature. It always has given me a sense of joy, endless possibilities, positive energy and wonderful people that make you feel at home.
Favourite pastime: travelling and experiencing different cultures across the globe.
Favourite quote: “In the future, there will be no female leaders. There will just be leaders” - Sheryl Sandberg, COO of Facebook.
White hydrogen: Naturally occurring hydrogen Chromite: Hard, metallic mineral containing iron oxide and chromium oxide Ultramafic rocks: Dark-coloured rocks rich in magnesium or iron with very low silica content Ophiolite: A section of the earth’s crust, which is oceanic in nature that has since been uplifted and exposed on land Olivine: A commonly occurring magnesium iron silicate mineral that derives its name for its olive-green yellow-green colour
1. Lewis Hamilton, Mercedes - 263
2. Sebastian Vettel, Ferrari - 235
3. Valtteri Bottas, Mercedes - 212
4. Daniel Ricciardo, Red Bull - 162
5. Kimi Raikkonen, Ferrari - 138
6. Sergio Perez, Force India - 68
What is safeguarding?
“Safeguarding, not just in sport, but in all walks of life, is making sure that policies are put in place that make sure your child is safe; when they attend a football club, a tennis club, that there are welfare officers at clubs who are qualified to a standard to make sure your child is safe in that environment,” Derek Bell explains.
