Microsoft President Brad Smith was in Dubai with G42 CEO Peng Xiao on Thursday to roll out plans for expanding the capacity of their joint data centers in the UAE by an additional 200 megawatts.

Completion for upscaling G42’s Khazna Data Centers is targeted for the end of 2026 and the project follows Microsoft’s $1.5 billion investment in G42 earlier this year.

“We can leverage the resources of the UAE to help other nations,” Peng said.

Smith said the UAE’s geographic location bridges Asia and Europe and could enable the Microsoft-G42 partnership to serve 4 billion people.

Abu Dhabi is doubling down on its commitment to invest in the U.K.

Four years ago, the emirate agreed to channel 10 billion pounds ($13 billion) via its Mubadala sovereign fund into British assets, particularly in tech and life-sciences firms and London property developments, signing a deal labeled the Sovereign Investment Partnership.

Since then, spending in the U.K. by Abu Dhabi entities has ballooned to 20 billion pounds, Bloomberg reports.

Among the investments was the $600 million stake Mubadala bought this year in London-based school operator Nord Anglia Education.

Prime Minister Keir Starmer underlined the U.K.’s desire to draw more Gulf investment with a visit to the UAE and Saudi Arabia last December.

Easing tensions in the Red Sea have delivered a boost to Egypt’s Suez Canal, with hundreds of ships returning to ply the global trade route in October.

Canal revenues rose 14% year-on-year between July and October, with 4,405 ships carrying 185 million tons of cargo during the period.

More than 200 ships returned to the canal in October, leading to the highest monthly total since Houthi attacks off Yemen sharply reduced traffic, Reuters reports.

Lieutenant General Osama Rabie, Chairman of the Suez Canal Authority, said that the positive climate following last month’s Sharm el-Sheikh summit on Gaza’s future encouraged many carriers to return.

Yemen’s Iran-aligned Houthis carried out over 100 attacks on ships in the Red Sea, Gulf of Aden, and Bab al-Mandab Strait, during 2023-2024.

Saudi Arabia’s quest to buy as many as 48 F-35 stealth fighter jets from Lockheed Martin is picking up traction amid White House preparations for Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman’s Nov. 18 visit to the White House.

On its way to final approval, the deal cleared a critical hurdle when it recently received a green light from the Pentagon, Reuters reports. U.S. officials noted that the proposed sale still must be fully confirmed by the Trump administration with a formal notification to Congress.

Before delivery of the world’s most advanced fighter jets can be made to the Gulf kingdom, lawmakers have the authority to block or amend the deal, which is expected to draw scrutiny given regional sensitivities and human rights concerns.

Saudi Arabia has sought the F-35s as part of a broader effort to modernize its armed forces and replace aging aircraft. The request comes amid shifting regional alliances and increasing security coordination between Washington and the Gulf states, including the UAE and Qatar.

The F-35 boasts stealth capabilities that reduce radar visibility, though any Gulf sale would likely involve modifications or restrictions because U.S. policy requires that Israel, which first purchased the F35s in 2016, retain a “qualitative military edge” in the region, according to Reuters.

In a powerful bet on the UAE’s digital future, Microsoft is pouring $15.2 billion into the Gulf state and deepening its partnership with Abu Dhabi’s growing artificial intelligence firm G42.

Having already invested $7.3 billion in the UAE since 2023, Microsoft President Brad Smith announced on Monday that the Seattle, Wash., tech giant will spend an additional $7.9 billion through 2029.

The money will fund advanced artificial intelligence, cloud infrastructure, data centers, and local operations aimed at expanding the UAE’s digital economy, Smith told the ADIPEC conference in Abu Dhabi.

“We believe in moving fast while staying grounded and being transparent about our investment details,” Smith said in a Microsoft blog post.

Dr. Sultan Al Jaber, meanwhile, the UAE Minister of Industry and Advanced Technology and ADIPEC’s official host, has been appointed the Chief Executive Officer of XRG, the international investment arm of national energy company ADNOC.

Al Jaber was already XRG’s Executive Chairman before formally taking the CEO title, following the retirement of Khaled Salmeen, XRG’s former Chief Operating Officer, Bloomberg reports.

Al Jaber is also Group CEO of ADNOC, Chairman of renewable energy firm Masdar and he served as President of the U.N.’s COP28 climate conference that was hosted by the UAE two years ago.

French automaker Renault signed an agreement to produce electric vehicles in Morocco starting 2030 as it seeks to expand exports to African markets.

The company, which operates plants in Tangier and near Casablanca, produced 413,000 vehicles in 2024, 90% of which were exported under the “Made in Morocco” label, Arabian Gulf Business Insight reports.

The deal is expected to create about 7,500 jobs and add a new EV line to Renault’s existing models.

Rival Stellantis runs a factory in Kenitra, while China’s Gotion High Tech plans to build a battery plant in the country.

ADIPEC, the UAE’s annual gathering of leaders in the global energy industry, got underway in Abu Dhabi on Monday, with CEOs from BP, Chevron, ExxonMobil and TotalEnergies sharing the stage with Microsoft and other tech giants as artificial intelligence becomes central to the energy transition. 

The conference, which runs through Thursday at the Abu Dhabi National Exhibition Centre, will also spotlight sustainability, hydrogen, carbon capture and geopolitics, reflecting how energy markets are evolving beyond oil and gas production. ADNOC, Masdar and XRG convened 100 global technology, investment and government leaders at the “Enact Majlis” ahead of ADIPEC to emphasize the intersection of energy and AI, The National reports.

Hosting the event is Dr. Sultan Al Jaber, who serves as UAE Minister of Industry and Advanced Technology and also heads ADNOC and Abu Dhabi-owned renewables firm Masdar. Among the top tech executives in attendance is Brad Smith, President of Microsoft, which recently invested $1.5 billion in Abu Dhabi AI firm G42. ADNOC and Microsoft announced a new agreement on Sunday to integrate artificial intelligence throughout the UAE company’s operations and support Microsoft’s global AI and data center expansion. 

Pointing to volatility in the oil market, where prices have plummeted 33% in the past two years, Al Jaber called for massive spending on data centers and artificial intelligence, reckoning that investments from the global energy industry should reach $4 trillion a year. Near-term uncertainty is real, while long-term demand remains strong,” Al Jaber said. “Our response to meet that demand should focus on data, not the drama.”

Also in Abu Dhabi, Amos Hochstein, Managing Partner at TWG Global, and formerly Deputy  Assistant  to  the President and Senior  Advisor for Energy & Investment in the Biden administration, said in an interview with CNBC that the U.S. “needs billions” in power‑infrastructure investment to modernize and secure its energy systems.

UAE President Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed, meanwhile, met on Saturday with Doug Burgum, Secretary of the U.S. Department of the Interior and Chairman of the National Energy Dominance Council, who came to attend ADIPEC 2025. Burgum and Under Secretary of State Jacob Helberg took a tour of the UAE’s Upper Zakum oil field on Sunday.