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Gulf Chip Deliveries Lag as Washington Weighs Security, Investment and Infrastructure

Shipments of advanced US computer chips to Gulf companies are running behind schedule, held up by investment negotiations, regulatory hurdles, infrastructure limits and Washington’s concerns about technology reaching China, analysts have said.

Approved a Year Ago, Still Arriving

The US Commerce Department authorised the shipment of 35,000 Nvidia Blackwell chips to G42 in the UAE and Humain in Saudi Arabia a year ago. Both companies have received some of their allotted units, but not all.

Humain received its first shipment of the latest Nvidia chips at the end of December last year, according to CEO Tareq Amin, who said so in a LinkedIn post. The UAE saw its first batch in May, according to Emirati ambassador to Washington Yousef Al Otaiba. Neither announcement gave the number of chips delivered or a timeline for further transfers.

The department’s Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS), which oversees export controls, also eased restrictions on chip sales to the UAE in July. Industry watchers speaking in Washington this week said the effects of that move are still unfolding.

Waiting on Investment Pledges

Nazak Nikakhtar, an international trade and national security partner at Wiley Rein who held senior roles in the first Trump administration, said some chips have gone and some have not “because I think the Commerce Department is still waiting.”

She pointed to pledges by the UAE and Saudi Arabia to invest hundreds of millions of dollars in the US, which have only partly materialised. American officials are also working to make sure recipients adopt the security and regulatory measures Washington required for approval. “They’re pretty onerous, so I think there’s a lot of policy and negotiations going on,” she said at an event hosted by the Middle East Institute (MEI).

Limits on the Gulf Side

Analysts at the MEI event said the Gulf states’ limited ability to deploy the chips quickly may also play a part, along with certain caveats attached to the easing of rules for the UAE.

In July, BIS moved the Emirates into the A:5 group of US allies and partners that enjoy the easiest access to American technology. Nikakhtar said it is still too early to judge the practical effect because the UAE’s industry is still developing. “I would predict some slowness right now while the UAE builds that supporting infrastructure for the use of those chips,” she said.

A Deadline and a Governance Question

BIS has facilitated direct purchases by G42 and its cloud and infrastructure arm Core42 only until April 6, 2027. The deadline can be extended, or the companies can move their headquarters to the US.

Mohammed Soliman, a senior fellow at MEI, said officials are working through those details and settling the governing structure of the two UAE companies.

Concerns About China

The delays come as the US and China compete to embed their technology infrastructure around the world while trying to stop each other from copying it. Nikakhtar said many people in the US government remain very worried about the UAE’s collaboration with China and “kind of wish this had never happened.”

A Possible Side Effect

Ruth Berry, who leads global policy at Nvidia and is a former State Department official, warned that dragging out deliveries could unintentionally make Chinese alternatives more attractive. She called for consistency and clear rules, focused on what is core to US national security rather than what is merely useful as leverage. “It does come at a cost,” she said.

What to Watch

Several questions will shape the months ahead. How many chips arrive, and how fast? Will G42 and Core42 settle their governance structure before the April 2027 deadline? Will Gulf investment pledges in the US move forward? And will Washington’s approach become more predictable?

For Gulf governments, the delays slow ambitious plans to build computing capacity. For Washington, the challenge is balancing security worries against the risk of pushing partners toward rivals. The outcome will help decide whose technology powers the Gulf’s next wave of growth.

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