In September, reports emerged indicating that representatives from TSMC and Samsung traveled to the UAE to discuss potential fabrication facilities in the region.
Discussions regarding this initiative with the Biden administration reportedly stalled when officials expressed the need for assurances to ensure a specific allocation of the production capacity and a degree of control over the site by the US government.
Recently, it has come to light that Steve Witkoff, the US Special Envoy to the Middle East, has engaged in several discussions with both TSMC and an investment firm connected to the brother of the UAE President.
Additionally, last month, the US government reached an agreement to support the UAE’s initiative to establish a significant AI data center in Abu Dhabi, along with a purchase of 500,000 of Nvidia’s cutting-edge chips by the UAE.
At that time, the White House announced that the UAE had committed to further aligning its national security measures with those of the United States, including robust safeguards to avoid the unauthorized transfer of US-origin technologies.
However, some US lawmakers and officials are expressing concern over the security ramifications associated with the UAE data center venture and view the TSMC fabrication facility proposal as even more vulnerable to security risks, potentially allowing technology to be transferred to China.
With TSMC’s six fabrication plants in Arizona already projected to cost $165 billion, it is estimated that constructing six potentially more advanced plants in the UAE could exceed $200 billion.