President Sheikh Mohamed met French President Emmanuel Macron in Paris on Thursday to discuss strengthening collaboration in artificial intelligence, including investment in a one gigawatt AI Campus in France.
At the meeting, which took place before Mr Macron hosts an AI summit, Sheikh Mohamed noted that the two countries share a commitment to the responsible use of the technology for global development. They also discussed developments in the Middle East.
They attended a ceremony to mark the UAE-France Framework for Co-operation in AI, which was signed by Khaldoon Al Mubarak, Chairman of the Executive Affairs Authority and member of the Abu Dhabi Artificial Intelligence and Advanced Technology Council, and French ministers Jean-Noel Barrot and Eric Lombard.
Sheikh Mohamed and Mr Macron underlined their intention to create a strategic AI partnership, state news agency Wam reported. They are committed to working together on AI projects, including data centre infrastructure and talent development, it added. They also intend to establish Virtual Data Embassies to enable sovereign AI and cloud infrastructure in both countries.
They also addressed ways to deepen collaboration in the economic, investment and cultural fields, as well a climate action and energy. The two countries have maintained a Comprehensive Strategic Energy Partnership since 2022 and launched the UAE-France Bilateral Climate Investment Platform last year.
Mr Macron hosted a dinner in honour of Sheikh Mohamed and the accompanying Emirati delegation, which included Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohamed, Deputy Chairman of the Presidential Court for Special Affairs; Sheikh Mohammed bin Hamad, Adviser to the UAE President; Ali Al Shamsi, Secretary General of the Supreme Council for National Security; Dr Sultan Al Jaber, Minister of Industry and Advanced Technology; Faisal Al Bannai, Adviser to the UAE President for Strategic Research and Advanced Technology Affairs; Ahmed Al Mazrouei, Chairman of the President’s Office for Strategic Affairs and Chairman of the Abu Dhabi Executive Office; and the UAE's ambassador to France, Fahad Al Raqbani.
Common ambitions
The meeting at the Elysee Palace was intended to highlight the “common ambitions” between the two countries regarding AI, Paris said in a statement.
The two-day summit, which starts on Monday, will be co-hosted by Mr Macron and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi. The UAE will also be represented.
US Vice President JD Vance, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz and EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen are also expected to attend, as well as tech leaders including Google chief executive Sundar Pichai and Alibaba chairman Joe Tsai.
“We hope there will be a more concrete conversation about what exactly is AI,” Mr Macron's special envoy for the summit, Anne Bouverot, said in a briefing to reporters.
“Chatbots as we know them today appeared barely two years ago. We don't know where this will go … It's good to sit down together to ask ourselves what we are heading towards.”
Two previous AI summits were held in the UK and South Korea. While AI development is dominated by the US and China, France wants to show that it can also shape the conversation around its development.
Leaders are expected to issue a joint declaration on AI after a meeting in Paris on Tuesday. “It will be a very short statement to show the intention to continue having these discussions in an inclusive manner, for a shared progress on AI,” Ms Bouverot added.
The summit will begin with talks focused on AI and labour, media and cyber security. Hundreds of events are scheduled during the summit to focus on different aspects of AI, including sustainable development.
The rapid development of AI has been making headlines, including the rise of Chinese AI start-up DeepSeek. It quickly became the most downloaded free app on the Apple Store in the US, with President Donald Trump describing it as a “wake-up” call for American industry.
Ms Bouvet said the rise of DeepSeek demonstrated China's “strong innovation abilities based on open source talents and a certain amount of computing power".
Mr Modi is to scheduled to visit Marseille with Mr Macron on Wednesday. The city could become a strategic entry point to Europe for the India Middle East Corridor. “There is a strong message of partnership with a large emerging country,” Ms Bouverot said. “It's a country with which France has had very good collaboration for years, which has a lot of talent in IT and AI.”
