For the Middle East, data is the new oil, according to UAE Ambassador to Washington Yousef Al Otaiba.

Hailing the $1.5 billion AI deal Microsoft signed this month to invest in artificial intelligence with Abu Dhabi’s G42 company, Al Otaiba writes in a Bloomberg opinion piece that “governments must race to realize the technology’s potential – and limit its harm.”

The UAE, U.S. and other partners are working together on new regulatory frameworks to facilitate public-private sector collaboration on AI and ensure its ethical use, Al Otaiba writes, pledging hundreds of billions of dollars from his country for the effort.

At the same time, the world must not allow the massive amounts of energy needed for AI data centers to compromise climate priorities and the shift to renewable power, according to the ambassador.

“AI will be the lifeblood of future societies,” Al Otaiba writes. “To ensure that data is truly destiny in the new age, we must join together to promote AI’s ethical and equitable benefits for all.”