Abu Dhabi has unveiled a comprehensive digital strategy aimed at becoming the world's first fully AI-native government across all digital services by 2027, allocating AED13bn ($3.54bn) to accelerate technology adoption and innovation, the emirate announced on January 21, state news agency WAM reported.

The "Abu Dhabi Government Digital Strategy 2025-2027," implemented by the Department of Government Enablement (DGE), targets the complete adoption of sovereign cloud computing for government operations and full digitisation of processes.

"The Abu Dhabi Government Digital Strategy 2025-2027 reflects our leadership's vision of being an AI-native government, seamlessly integrating AI across all government systems for a future that is proactive, agile and fully technology-enabled," DGE Chairman Ahmed Hisham Al Kuttab said.

The strategy includes the development of a unified digital enterprise resource planning platform and the deployment of more than 200 AI solutions across government services.

The initiative builds on previous digital evolution from e-government to smart services, including the recent launch of the TAMM 3.0 platform.

The government expects the strategy to contribute over AED24bn ($6.5bn) to Abu Dhabi's GDP by 2027 and create more than 5,000 jobs supporting the so-called “Emiratisation” efforts where locals shadow foreign experts and follow their mentors.

Key partnerships include collaboration with the Mohamed bin Zayed University of Artificial Intelligence for upskilling, the Advanced Technology Research Council for large language models, and G42 for AI infrastructure development.

The programme also focuses on cybersecurity, establishing digital guidelines and frameworks to address future challenges. Under the "AI for All" initiative, the government will invest in training citizens in AI applications.

The strategy pits the UAE capital against other regional cities and countries, including Dubai and Saudi Arabia, which have become increasingly interested in investing in global AI companies, including Damac, which will be investing in the US.

That investment will target facilities across the Midwest and Sunbelt regions, with potential for further expansion "if the market allows," Sajwani said at Trump's Mar-a-Lago resort on January 7.

The investment comes amid growing global demand for data centre capacity driven by AI and cloud computing requirements.