- Donald Trump made a £1 trillion AI deal with the UAE
- The US President went on a four-day trip of the Gulf
- It involved lots of press, planes and McDonald’s

President Donald Trump signed a $1 trillion deal with the United Arab Emirates to build the biggest Artificial Intelligence campus outside the United States.
The arrangement was made between himself and the UAE’s President His Highness Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan.
It is one of the biggest deals made by the US Head of State on his recent four-day trip to the Middle East.
The White House said the AI agreement “includes the UAE committing to invest in, build, or finance US data centres that are at least as large and as powerful as those in the UAE.”
President Donald J. Trump meets with UAE President His Highness Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan in Abu Dhabi. 🇺🇸🇦🇪 pic.twitter.com/0Jac1Pw7fn
— U.S. Asia Pacific Media Hub (@eAsiaMediaHub) May 16, 2025
“The agreement also contains historic commitments by the UAE to further align their national security regulations with the United States, including strong protections to prevent the diversion of US-origin technology,” it continued.
It is set to be built in a 10 square mile area in Abu Dhabi and require 5 gigawatts of power capacity, according to the US Commerce Department.
US President Donald Trump visits Abu Dhabi's Abrahamic Family House
— The National (@TheNationalNews) May 16, 2025
The tour is his final stop in the UAE capital before he returns to the US
Latest https://t.co/ZoSzhcQDN5 pic.twitter.com/4uZY1fmKXV
Neither the US nor the UAE did not clarify which chip would be used. However, Reuters reported their was room to ship more than 500,000 chips from Nvidia’s most powerful line this year.
Read more: Donald Trump gets treated to McDonalds in Saudi Arabia
What else did Donald Trump do on his Middle East trip?
Well, Trump managed to squeeze in a lot of his relatively brief diplomatic jaunt to the region. His stops included Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the UAE.
Notably, the Republican accepted a $400 million plane from the Qatari government, a move that was criticised by the Democrat party.
In response he said,“It’s a great gesture from Qatar. I appreciate it very much. I would never be one to turn down that kind of an offer.”
Saudi Arabia set up a mobile McDonalds to serve Donald #Trump during his visit. 🤣 pic.twitter.com/mIBfx4kFAC
— Gaming & Global News (@GamingAndGlobal) May 14, 2025
Read more: Donald Trump swears he’s made no ‘mistakes’ in office
On Truth Social, his own social media app, Trump also added, “The Defense Department is getting a gift, free of charge, of a 747 aircraft to replace the 40-year-old Air Force One, temporarily, in a very public and transparent transaction.”
When he landed in Riyadh, he was met with a McDonald’s truck, a on-wheels restaurant serving his favourite fast food.