Nvidia and Abu Dhabi institute open AI lab in the UAE
Nvidia and Abu Dhabi's Technology Innovation Institute (TII) have opened a joint AI and robotics research lab in the United Arab Emirates. The facility marks Nvidia's first AI Technology Center in the Middle East.
The lab will develop AI models and robotics platforms using Nvidia's Thor chip. Research will focus on climate, energy, genomics, transport, and logistics applications. TII will combine its research capabilities with Nvidia's computing technology and software.
Joint teams from both organizations will operate from a single facility. TII plans to hire additional staff for the project, and also operates as the research division of Abu Dhabi's Advanced Technology Research Council, which oversees the emirate's technology development.
Joint teams from both organizations will operate from a single facility. TII plans to hire additional staff for the project, and also operates as the research division of Abu Dhabi's Advanced Technology Research Council, which oversees the emirate's technology development.
TII CEO Najwa Aaraj said the institute will use Nvidia's Thor chip for advanced robotic systems. Nvidia designed Thor for physical AI and robotics applications. The Jetson Thor platform delivers up to 2,070 FP4 teraflops of AI compute power and up to 128GB of memory.
Nvidia’s Isaac software stack lets the chip run multiple AI workloads simultaneously. Earlier versions of DRIVE Thor functioned as centralized automotive computers for AI inference. TII's robotics program includes humanoids, four-legged robots, and robotic arms. The institute has previously used Nvidia hardware to train its language models.
Nvidia’s Isaac software stack lets the chip run multiple AI workloads simultaneously. Earlier versions of DRIVE Thor functioned as centralized automotive computers for AI inference. TII's robotics program includes humanoids, four-legged robots, and robotic arms. The institute has previously used Nvidia hardware to train its language models.
The UAE has increased AI infrastructure spending as it seeks a larger role in the technology sector. Discussions for the joint lab started approximately one year ago.
TII describes itself as part of Abu Dhabi's strategy to develop sovereign AI, robotics, and digital science capabilities through ATRC and its research network, including the Autonomous Robotics Research Center.
This launch deepens collaboration between UAE organizations and U.S. technology companies on AI computing and software. Previous announcements about a large data center project using advanced chips remain under security review.
TII describes itself as part of Abu Dhabi's strategy to develop sovereign AI, robotics, and digital science capabilities through ATRC and its research network, including the Autonomous Robotics Research Center.
This launch deepens collaboration between UAE organizations and U.S. technology companies on AI computing and software. Previous announcements about a large data center project using advanced chips remain under security review.
