UAE’s Stargate AI project takes shape in partnership with U.S.

Construction of the multibillion-dollar Stargate UAE AI project is progressing at a pace that might be considered impossible outside of the Gulf region and is surprising even for the Emirates’ warp-speed developers.

Abu Dhabi’s G42 tech company shared a time-lapse video on Thursday of the construction site for the initial 1GW infrastructure cluster, which will be a cornerstone of the 5GW UAE-U.S. AI Campus. The clip shows huge concrete foundations, more than half a dozen cranes and some of the 3,500 workers who have been deployed to the site. The full build-out of the 1GW cluster, overseen by G42 subsidiary Khazna Data Centers, is expected to take three years.

Stargate UAE is being built by G42 in partnership with Nvidia, OpenAI, Cisco, Oracle and SoftBank, following a deal made during U.S. President Donald Trump’s visit to the Emirates in May.

Just three months ago, the entire site was covered in a 40-foot-high sand dune, Khazna Data Centers Vice President for Special Projects Gareth Dennison said during a panel discussion at Gitex Global 2025. “It’s a huge achievement,” he said, “If it could happen, it could only happen in the UAE.

”Also speaking at Gitex, Khazna CEO Hassan Al Naqbi said the company was working on the first phase of a five-phase cluster. “Just to give you a sense of size – this project spans about 10 square miles of land dedicated entirely to building not just a data centre, but an entire AI ecosystem,” he said.