Khanna Criticises Trump-Backed AI Project to Open Data Center in Dubai, OpenAI Set to Assist

California Democrat Rohit (Ro) Khanna has expressed disapproval of the Trump administration's arrangement with the United Arab Emirates to build a large AI data centre in Dubai, stating that the project should have been based in the United States.

During an interview on ABC News 'This Week,' the Silicon Valley representative asked if the UAE agreement conforms with the president's 'America First' approach.

Speaking about the president's visit, Khanna said, 'I don't like the fact that the biggest AI centre, research centre, is going to be in Dubai.'

Khanna's 'America First' Critique of UAE Data Centre Deal

'I mean, what happened to 'America First?'" he continued. 'Why don't we put that centre in Pennsylvania or in Ohio? Especially western Pennsylvania, that's a place that's looking to get massive data centres, and that would create a lot of jobs.'

'Now, I'm all for collaboration, selling more into our allies in the Middle East, but we should be focused on putting the new technology jobs in the United States,' the 48-year-old Indian-origin Democrat said Sunday.

The Commerce Department revealed on Thursday that the AI campus, introduced during Trump's visit to the UAE, will boast a 5-gigawatt capacity and eventually span 10 square miles. Located at Qasr Al Watan, the data centre will be a regional hub for major US tech firms offering cloud computing and data handling services.

According to the Commerce Department, these firms will gain the ability to provide fast, low-latency services to almost half of the world's population located within 2,000 miles of the UAE. 'In the UAE, American companies will operate the data centres and offer American-managed cloud services throughout the region,' Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick said in a statement Thursday.

'By extending the world's leading American tech stack to an important strategic partner in the region, this agreement is a major milestone in achieving President Trump's vision for U.S. AI dominance,' Lutnick added.

Another layer to this significant AI infrastructure development in the UAE is the reported involvement of OpenAI, the renowned artificial intelligence research and deployment company, in creating this massive new data centre.

OpenAI's Role In UAE's Ambitious Data Centre Project

A Bloomberg report said that OpenAI intends to assist in developing a massive new data centre in the UAE, potentially making it one of the world's largest. This move represents a significant move into the Middle East alongside a major increase in the company's worldwide AI infrastructure goals.

Sources with knowledge of the situation, who wished to remain anonymous due to the plans' confidentiality, indicate that ChatGPT's creator will likely be a key initial occupant of a newly revealed 5-gigawatt data centre complex in Abu Dhabi.

These sources cautioned that OpenAI's participation is still pending, but an official announcement could be forthcoming. According to two individuals, Oracle Corp. is also part of this undertaking and is set to help build some of the initial infrastructure for the Abu Dhabi campus.

Upon completion, this extensive facility is projected to span ten square miles and consume approximately the same amount of energy as five nuclear power plants – a scale exceeding any data centre publicly announced by the ChatGPT creator or its main competitors so far.

G42 And US Collaboration On Abu Dhabi Data Centre

According to residents, the 5-gigawatt power capacity will not be solely for OpenAI but will be distributed among multiple firms. Bloomberg News had previously reported on OpenAI's potential plans for a data centre in the UAE.

In a Thursday announcement, US and UAE officials stated that G42, an AI company in Abu Dhabi with prior ties to China, would be building a 5-gigawatt data centre alongside several unnamed US companies.

This development occurred on the same day President Trump visited the UAE, which was part of his Middle East tour focused on striking deals. During the president's visit, on-site officials were reportedly still negotiating possible AI collaborations for the UAE.

According to sources, a Abu Dhabi-based investment firm, MGX, is reportedly considering involvement in the data centre project alongside OpenAI and G42. This individual also suggested that other US partners might join the initiative.