OpenAI has signed four agreements with organisations in the United Arab Emirates to expand the use of artificial intelligence across energy, investment, government services and enterprise operations. The agreements were announced on November 2, 2026, during Chief Executive Officer Sam Altman's visit to Abu Dhabi.
Altman met Abu Dhabi Crown Prince Sheikh Khaled bin Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, who witnessed the signing of the agreements involving the ChatGPT developer and several Abu Dhabi-based organisations.
One of the agreements involves Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOC), OpenAI and G42, through its subsidiary Inception42. Under the partnership, ADNOC will become the first company in the energy sector to deploy OpenAI's frontier AI technology.
The collaboration will integrate AI capabilities into ADNOC's operational, investment and commercial decision-making processes. According to the company, AI agents will be used to forecast crude oil supply, demand, prices and margins, helping assess potential implications for its operations.
The technology will operate using OpenAI's GPT models and computing infrastructure located within the UAE.
Speaking at the ADIPEC energy conference in Abu Dhabi, Altman said AI "is going to transform the economics of the energy world."
OpenAI also signed an agreement with Abu Dhabi sovereign investment company Mubadala and Inception42 to introduce AI capabilities into investment analysis, opportunity identification and risk assessment.
In the government sector, OpenAI and the Abu Dhabi Government announced a Machine-Readable Government initiative aimed at converting selected policies and regulations into formats that AI systems can interpret.
The initiative is designed to assist government officials with regulatory compliance assessments, including permits and certificates, while retaining human oversight of final decisions.
Its first pilot is already operating with the Abu Dhabi Agriculture and Food Safety Authority, focusing on food import regulations.
A fourth agreement between OpenAI and Inception42 establishes a five-year collaboration to support AI adoption across government organisations, enterprises and educational institutions in the UAE.
The agreements come as OpenAI seeks additional capital to support the development of advanced AI systems and computing infrastructure.
Bloomberg previously reported that the company had held discussions with several UAE-based investment funds, including Abu Dhabi-based MGX, regarding participation in a proposed $30 billion financing round. The discussions have not been confirmed as completed investments.
The UAE has increasingly positioned AI infrastructure and adoption among its economic development priorities, with investments spanning data centres, government technology and enterprise applications.
For OpenAI, the agreements expand its presence in the Middle East through partnerships involving energy operations, financial decision-making and public administration.
The financial terms of the four agreements were not disclosed. Implementation will depend on the participating organisations' deployment plans and operational requirements.
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