Microsoft plans to invest over $10 billion in the Middle East by 2030, targeting UAE, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and Kuwait for cloud and AI infrastructure.

Microsoft plans to invest more than $10 billion across four Middle East countries through 2030, expanding its cloud and artificial intelligence infrastructure while strengthening the resilience of its regional operations. Vice Chair and President Brad Smith announced the investment, which will be directed to the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and Kuwait.

"The spending reflects both Microsoft's ongoing build-out of infrastructure and also the expansion of operations in the region," Smith said.

Countries throughout the Middle East have been investing heavily in artificial intelligence as they seek to develop into global technology hubs and diversify their economies beyond oil and gas. Relatively cheap energy and abundant land have attracted major technology companies to the region, including Microsoft.

However, the regional conflict has created new challenges for digital infrastructure. Data centers have been among the targets, including facilities operated by Amazon's AWS cloud unit in Bahrain and the UAE.

Microsoft intends to maintain its spending trajectory despite the conflict. "We're sustaining all the investments we planned to make before this conflict started, and we're in fact adding to them," Smith said. "It's an aggressive spending schedule."

Since the early stages of the conflict, which began on February 28, Microsoft has provided local partners with digital resilience assessments. The company is now working with Middle Eastern governments on preparedness and protection of critical data as part of a broader digital resilience initiative.

Smith did not provide a breakdown of Microsoft's planned investment by country or project, citing security considerations. While the UAE has largely avoided attacks since May, other Middle East countries continue to face ongoing threats.

Microsoft also plans to invest more than $400 million in subsea and terrestrial connectivity across the Middle East by 2030.

The company is expanding partnerships with national artificial intelligence companies in the region. Microsoft invested $1.5 billion in Abu Dhabi-based G42 in 2024 for a minority stake and secured a board seat, which Smith currently holds. The company is also working with Saudi Arabia's Humain and Qatar's Qai "in selected areas that are priorities for them," Smith said, though it does not plan to make capital investments in either company.