TL;DR

U.S. eases Nvidia chip exports to UAE; Nvidia adapts in China; Anthropic raises $2.5B credit line.

Highlights

• U.S. to allow UAE import of up to 500,000 Nvidia AI chips per year, supporting a 5-GW Abu Dhabi data center project (“Stargate”) with OpenAI as likely anchor tenant; Microsoft invests $1.5B in G42 15.
• Nvidia to open Shanghai R&D center and ship modified Hopper and Blackwell chips to China amid tightened U.S. export controls; domestic competition from Huawei intensifies as U.S. curbs limit Nvidia’s China market 2.
• House Republicans propose a 10-year moratorium on state/local AI regulation, facing opposition from 40 state attorneys general and threatening California’s 20+ AI laws 3.
• Anthropic secures $2.5B revolving credit line and reports $2B Q1 annualized revenue; company valued at $61.5B as Wall Street increases AI sector investment 4.
• Trump administration announces $3.2T in Gulf deals, including major AI chip contracts, an AI factory partnership in Saudi Arabia (Nvidia , Humain), and large-scale U.S. investment commitments 13.
• China launches 12 AI-powered satellites as the start of a planned 2,800-satellite “Three-Body Computing Constellation” for in-orbit AI processing and space-based cloud infrastructure 8.
• China allocates $20B+ to accelerate humanoid robotics, aiming to address labor shortages and maintain manufacturing competitiveness; rapid scaling and state procurement drive sector growth 7.
• Amazon deploys 750,000 Vulcan robots with tactile sensing in warehouses, targeting a 25% reduction in labor costs and improved efficiency 10.
• Tesla to pilot robotaxi service in Austin in June using supervised FSD and remote teleoperation; initial rollout limited to 10–20 Model Ys and invite-only users 11.
• Google to unveil Android XR smart glasses and Gemini 2.5 Pro update at I/O, expanding AI into AR/VR and wearables 9.
• Apple faces U.S. government scrutiny over plans to integrate Alibaba AI in China-sold iPhones, raising data and censorship concerns 6.
• MIT retracts widely cited AI productivity paper due to data integrity issues, highlighting ongoing research reliability challenges 14.
• Apple ’s upcoming iPhone 17 Air to feature silicon-anode batteries and AI-driven battery management in iOS 19 for thinner, AI-enabled devices 15.
• Google ’s AI Overviews reach 1.5B users in 150+ countries; ad revenue steady, cloud business supply-constrained 12.

Commentary

The U.S. is recalibrating its AI export strategy, as seen in the planned relaxation of Nvidia chip restrictions for the UAE and the concurrent launch of a massive 5-GW data center in Abu Dhabi. This move, with OpenAI, Microsoft , and other U.S. tech firms involved, signals a shift toward enabling large-scale AI infrastructure in the Gulf while maintaining regulatory oversight 15. Simultaneously, the Trump administration’s multi-trillion-dollar Gulf deals—spanning AI, defense, and manufacturing—underscore the region’s growing significance in global AI supply chains and infrastructure buildout 13.

Nvidia ’s China strategy is increasingly constrained by U.S. export controls, prompting the company to open a Shanghai R&D center and ship downgraded chips tailored to regulatory limits 2. These curbs are accelerating the rise of domestic competitors like Huawei and fueling China’s parallel investments in AI hardware, humanoid robotics, and a 2,800-satellite AI constellation 28. The scale and ambition of China’s state-backed robotics and orbital AI projects reflect a focus on self-sufficiency and industrial automation, with implications for global supply chains and competitive dynamics 78.

On the regulatory front, the proposed federal moratorium on state-level AI laws has triggered significant opposition from state attorneys general and could upend existing frameworks, especially in states like California with active AI legislation. The outcome will impact compliance requirements and the pace of AI deployment across sectors, particularly in areas like privacy, discrimination, and algorithmic accountability 3.

Commercially, capital continues to flow into leading AI firms, with Anthropic’s $2.5B credit line and strong revenue growth highlighting investor confidence 4. Amazon ’s large-scale robot deployment and Tesla ’s robotaxi pilot demonstrate ongoing automation and AI integration in logistics and mobility 1011, while Google and Apple push AI deeper into consumer hardware 915. However, the MIT paper retraction is a reminder of the need for rigorous standards in AI research, especially as claims of productivity gains become central to enterprise adoption narratives 14.