Sam Altman, the CEO of OpenAI, has come to the defense of the Trump administration’s decision to facilitate artificial intelligence agreements with Saudi Arabia and the UAE, criticizing opponents of these arrangements as “naïve.”
During Trump’s recent trip to the Middle East, a series of AI agreements were revealed, including a contract in which companies like Nvidia and AMD committed to supplying thousands of chips to Saudi Arabia. Lawmakers from both sides have raised concerns regarding these arrangements, particularly regarding the potential for China to gain access to advanced US-manufactured chips through intermediary channels.
In a post on X last Friday, Altman expressed his views in response to comments by White House AI advisor David Sacks, stating, “This was an extremely smart thing for you all to do and I’m sorry naïve people are giving you grief.”
Sacks expressed confusion over how critics, who label themselves as “China Hawks,” could argue that the AI deals with the UAE and Saudi Arabia do not provide significant advantages for the United States. He emphasized, “As leading semiconductor analyst Dylan Patel noted, these agreements will significantly alter the balance of power in favor of America. The only question to consider is: does China wish it had made these deals? Absolutely. But President Trump was proactive and made the first move.”
Last week, OpenAI announced intentions to construct a large data center in the UAE to bolster its AI initiatives. Meanwhile, Amazon Web Services rolled out plans for a $5 billion “AI Zone” in Saudi Arabia.
In a recent Senate floor address, Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) criticized the Trump-endorsed chip agreements.
He stated, “This deal could pose significant risks as we lack clear assurances on how the Saudis and Emiratis will prevent the Chinese Communist Party and its government from accessing these chips.”
The U.S. House Select Committee on China, which is led by Republicans, has also questioned these agreements.
The committee stated, “Reports concerning new U.S. chip agreements with nations in the Gulf—without a new chip regulation in effect—create a vulnerability that the Chinese Communist Party could exploit.”
They added, “The CCP is actively seeking ways to indirectly access our most cutting-edge technology. Without a formal AI export rule, arrangements like this risk establishing loopholes that could thwart export controls.”