The Gulf's AI Boom Has an Undersea Cable Problem

Saudi Arabia and the UAE are investing heavily in AI infrastructure and attracting hyperscalers to position the Gulf as an exporter of compute capacity. Connectivity for these ambitions relies on undersea cables that carry most international data traffic. Regional instability creates a strategic vulnerability because much of the Gulf’s links to Europe and the US depend on a few routes through the Red Sea and the Strait of Hormuz. Escalation involving the US, Israel, and Iran raised concerns that conflict could threaten cable infrastructure, including claims about Iranian control of cables. Damage could undermine the Gulf’s emerging AI business model by disrupting the resilience required by hyperscale AI infrastructure.

"Today, a damaged cable could do far more than slow internet speeds. It could undermine the Gulf's entire emerging AI business model. In many ways, Gulf countries are attempting to transform energy wealth into AI infrastructure- exporting compute power and cloud capacity much like they once exported hydrocarbons. For economies in the Middle East, which are gearing up to become large-scale exporters of compute capacity, the importance of and reliance on these cables is growing, not least because the hyperscale companies setting up shop in the region demand higher-than-ever resilience."

Read at WIRED