Alibaba’s Cloud launches second data centre in Dubai

Chinese e-commerce company Alibaba’s cloud business launched its second data centre in Dubai on October 14, reports Reuters.

In a statement, Alibaba Cloud said the launch was part of its pledge to invest $54 billion (£40 billion) over three years.

The company has partnered with several companies across a range of sectors, including Abu Dhabi-backed digital lender Wio Bank to accelerate AI deployment.

Alibaba Cloud launched its first unit nine years ago. The second one was launched as the company expands its global cloud computing services in a bid to meet its growing demand.

”The Middle East’s advantageous position in fast-tracking AI adoption and its collaborative ecosystem are crucial enablers for private and public sector companies to thrive,” said Alibaba Cloud international and regional general manager Eric Wan.

The UAE has spent billions of dollars on an AI push. Under a deal signed in May, the country is building the largest AI campus outside the United States in partnership with technology giants including Nvidia and OpenAI.

But according to Reuters, the deal has not been finalised due to US security concerns regarding China’s access to advanced semiconductors through third parties, including the UAE, where Chinese companies are still active.

The news comes after Information technology company HP opened its new manufacturing facility in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, and confirmed an AI R&D Center of Excellence (CoE) in Dhahran, according to Gulf Industry on October 13.

The manufacturing facility, the first of its kind in Saudi Arabia, will focus on desktop PCs before expanding its product portfolio.

Meanwhile, Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund (PIF) said artificial intelligence and automation is now integrated into every aspect of the organisation.

The PIF, which is worth almost $1 trillion, said that its AI-powered valuation platform improves accuracy and efficiency of its private market investment evaluations. It has also built an extensive language model for live investment reporting and is using AI tools to evaluate asset managers and enhance its portfolio.

Reuters, Maghrebi.org