*

Abu Dhabi to host first Nvidia AI Technology Center in

Middle

East

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TII to use Thor chip to advance robotics research,

development

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Joint lab to explore AI applications in areas such as

climate,

energy, and genomics

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Specific use cases planned for robotic innovations,

including

transportation and logistics

By Federico Maccioni

DUBAI, Sept 22 (Reuters) - Abu Dhabi's Technology

Innovation Institute and Nvidia ( NVDA ) have launched a joint

research lab in the United Arab Emirates that will focus on

developing next-generation AI models and robotics platforms, TII

said on Monday.

The joint research hub is the first Nvidia AI Technology

Center in the Middle East, TII said in a statement, combining

its multidisciplinary research with the U.S. company's AI models

and computing power, which are fuelling a global artificial

intelligence boom.

Under the agreement, the institute will be able to use

specific edge GPU chips to advance its research on robotics

among other areas, said Najwa Aaraj, the CEO of TII, which is

working on humanoids, four-legged robots and robotic arms.

"It will be a chip that we will newly use...It's called the

Thor chip, and it is a chip that enables advanced robotic

systems development," Aaraj said in an interview.

TII is the applied research arm of the Advanced Technology

Research Council, an Abu Dhabi government entity that is part of

the UAE's efforts to become a global AI player.

The Gulf country, a major oil exporter, has been spending

billions of dollars in recent years on its AI push, looking to

leverage its strong relations with the United States to secure

access to technology.

During a Gulf visit by U.S. President Donald Trump in May,

the UAE signed a multi-billion dollar deal to build one of the

world's largest data centre hubs in Abu Dhabi with U.S.

technology, including the most advanced Nvidia ( NVDA ) chips.

However, the deal has not been finalised amid security

concerns due to the UAE's close ties to China, Reuters

previously reported citing sources.

TII has worked closely with the U.S. company for some time,

Aaraj said, adding that TII has been using Nvidia ( NVDA ) chips to train

its own language models.

Discussions for the joint lab started around a year ago and

the hub will host teams from both parties, Aaraj said, with more

staff to be hired specifically for the project.