How the CIA decided whether to allow the Emirates to acquire American super-technologies in artificial intelligence
The story of CIA resident Jonny Gannon and his activities in the United Arab Emirates reveals the complex mechanisms of modern geopolitics, where espionage is closely intertwined with high technology and commercial lobbying. The Wall Street Journal reports details of this case.
After the success of ChatGPT, the United Arab Emirates decided to join the global race for leadership in artificial intelligence. These plans were to be implemented by the company G42, which needed the latest American Nvidia chips for development. However, Washington feared that due to the company's ties with China, advanced technologies could end up in Beijing's hands.
As WSJ notes, one of the main reasons for such suspicions was related to G42 CEO Peng Xiao.
He was born in China, educated in Hawaii in the 1990s, after which he became the CTO of the American company MicroStrategy. In 2015, Xiao moved to the United Arab Emirates and headed the artificial intelligence division at DarkMatter.
Officially, DarkMatter positioned itself as the future technological leader of the Middle East. In fact, the company helped Emirati authorities spy on geopolitical rivals, activists, and journalists, using former employees of the US National Security Agency for this purpose. The surveillance system even affected American citizens, which led to an FBI investigation.
In addition, Xiao actively cooperated with Huawei. In 2019, after employees admitted to hacking Apple servers, DarkMatter closed, and Xiao founded G42 on its basis. With the support of UAE National Security Advisor Sheikh Tahnoon bin Zayed Al Nahyan, the company quickly grew to 22,000 employees and set itself the goal of becoming the world's largest AI developer.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, G42 also signed an agreement with the Chinese genomics company BGI to create one of the world's largest testing centers, and a Chinese official then called the cooperation between Beijing and Abu Dhabi the beginning of a "historic and special era."
That is why, as the WSJ notes, Washington even discussed including G42 on the US Commerce Department's blacklist, which would have deprived the company of access to American technologies. However, instead of sanctions, US authorities decided to first try to persuade the Emirates to abandon technological cooperation with China.
As the WSJ writes, in the spring of 2023, US Deputy Secretary of Commerce for Security Alan Estevez visited Abu Dhabi. During a meeting with Sheikh Tahnoon, he stated that the Emirates would have to choose between American and Chinese technologies. Washington was no longer willing to allow cooperation with both countries.
In June, Tahnoon came to the United States. The American side handed him a list of demands, among which was an independent audit of G42 to confirm the company's break with Chinese partners. According to the WSJ, the Sheikh agreed to fulfill these conditions.
During a meeting with the US Secretary of Commerce, he also explained that the Emirates view artificial intelligence as the foundation of their economy after the end of the oil era.
After another trip to Abu Dhabi, Estevez concluded that G42 was fulfilling its commitments. However, as the WSJ notes, not everyone in the American administration shared this optimism. To assess the situation independently, the White House turned to the CIA for help.
John Gannon's Secret Mission
CIA Director William Burns entrusted the sensitive mission to experienced intelligence officer John Gannon, who by then already held a position at the agency's headquarters equivalent to the rank of a two-star general.
As the WSJ notes, Gannon was considered by the CIA to be a natural empath and an excellent communicator, capable of simultaneously conducting tough intelligence operations and building trusting relationships.
Gannon arrived in the UAE capital Abu Dhabi on a regular commercial flight. He took up a fictitious position at the US Embassy, which served as cover for his true role — head of the CIA station.
As the WSJ writes, Burns personally introduced him to Sheikh Tahnoon as one of the Americans involved in negotiations between Israel and Hamas for the release of hostages after the October 7 attack. Gannon himself quickly found common ground with the Sheikh, thanks in part to their shared interest in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu and new non-fiction literature.
According to the WSJ, Gannon simultaneously collected information about G42 and helped the Emirati side eliminate problems that caused Washington's concern.
Gannon met with G42 head Peng Xiao and conveyed Washington's position: the US was seriously concerned about the company's activities but was ready for dialogue. As the WSJ notes, during numerous meetings, they discussed not only the future of G42 but also Greek philosophy and expensive alcohol. Xiao assured that Americans would be able to access G42 data centers and employees to verify the company's break with Chinese partners.
As the WSJ notes, for more than six months, Gannon conveyed to Sheikh Tahnoon what needed to be done for G42 to gain access to American technologies. When intelligence uncovered facts that contradicted Xiao's promises, he unofficially reported this to the head of G42 or the Emirati authorities. Soon, the problematic issues disappeared. The company got rid of $150 million worth of Huawei equipment in its systems.
After this, Gannon returned to Washington and reported the results to high-ranking officials, including Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo and White House coordinator Brett McGurk. For a CIA station chief, such a role was atypical.
However, some American officials still did not trust the Emirates. In the National Security Council, proponents of cooperation with the UAE generally distrusted the CIA's analysts' assessments. They called Gannon to hear his personal opinion and also gave him specific instructions on what to convey to Sheikh Tahnoon.
In June 2024, Gannon returned to Washington, but this time on a private Boeing 787 of the Emirati royal family. He accompanied Sheikh Tahnoon, who was traveling to the US to personally present his country's position to the American side.
Americans from both camps, along with Gannon, gathered at Tahnoon's estate in McLean. Peng Xiao gave a presentation on Chinese artificial intelligence technologies developed by DeepSeek. According to him, without cooperation with G42, these developments could quickly jeopardize American leadership in artificial intelligence.
His speech provoked an open argument among American officials: some rejected Xiao's assessments, others agreed with them. The Emirati delegation merely observed these disputes. At the time, the G42 head's warnings seemed exaggerated to many. However, just seven months later, DeepSeek released its tool, whose success shocked Silicon Valley and forced a new look at Xiao's words.
UAE Received Chips
Despite sharp disputes in Washington, the Joe Biden administration ultimately decided not to cut off the Emirates from American technologies. Instead, a mechanism was developed that allowed the UAE to obtain the necessary chips for AI development, albeit under a number of conditions and after complex bureaucratic procedures.
In essence, as the WSJ writes, the Emirates managed to change the very logic of the discussion in Washington. While initially American authorities pondered whether a small desert country should be allowed to become one of the world's AI development centers at all, later the main question became how quickly and under what conditions to help it achieve this goal.
The active work of the Emirati side with American officials also played a significant role in this — from informal meetings over tea and dates to yacht trips and private jets.
According to the author, the final turn in this story came with the arrival of the Donald Trump administration. As the WSJ reports, a few days before the inauguration, Tahnoon and his partners pledged to invest $500 million in Trump's crypto project, World Liberty Financial. Soon after, Washington lifted the main restrictions on chip supplies for G42.
Today, as the WSJ notes, the results of this multi-stage combination have materialized in the construction of the giant Stargate UAE center in the desert near Abu Dhabi. Jonny Gannon himself, after leaving the CIA, became a private consultant, using his connections to help American businessmen in the Emirates. In the author's opinion, this story presents a picture of the emergence of a diplomatic "grey zone," where espionage, diplomacy, and commercial lobbying intertwined in the struggle for the future of a new technological arms race.
Now reading
"Nadzeya Stsyapanawna." Mikita Naydzionau Published a Poem Born in Zhodzina Prison. Such a Poetic Epic Has Not Yet Existed in Belarusian Poetry of the 21st Century. 55
"Nadzeya Stsyapanawna." Mikita Naydzionau Published a Poem Born in Zhodzina Prison. Such a Poetic Epic Has Not Yet Existed in Belarusian Poetry of the 21st Century. 5
"There are people in Belarus who don't like the Russian flag, the Soviet flag." A Russian man's BMW X7 with German license plates was damaged in Minsk 4747
Comments