Nvidia is preparing to release free software designed to rival the best artificial intelligence models from China. The new model is scheduled for release by the end of the year. Anyone will be able to download it for free. Counterpoint Research analyst Marc Einstein noted that the software aims at buyers already running Nvidia hardware. Few countries match that description better than the United Arab Emirates. The UAE flagship data center will run on 400,000 Nvidia chips.
For years, the UAE maintained a neutral stance between the United States and China. It purchased hardware from the U.S. and equipment from China. It also built its own free model named Falcon to reduce reliance on imported software. That neutrality began fading when state-backed AI company G42 cut its Chinese ties to secure Nvidia chips. Aligning with Nvidia on the new software would narrow that neutrality further.
Mohammed Soliman, a senior fellow at the Middle East Institute, explained the industry shift. Nvidia already supplies the chips and is now scaling the factory that produces models running on those chips with open weights. Two institutions currently lead the UAE artificial intelligence push. Each holds a different view on building sovereign models from scratch versus using existing technology.
The Technology Innovation Institute, a government lab behind Falcon, insists on building models from the ground up. G42 aligns itself with Nvidia and free models. TII chief researcher Hakim Hacid defended the lab's approach. Hacid stated that maintaining diversity in AI perspectives and technological sovereignty requires a strong, homegrown foundation. He added that the value lies in mastering underlying technology and retaining control across the entire stack.
G42 did not answer questions about whether it would use Nvidia's model. The company was an early supporter of Nvidia initiatives to distribute powerful models. Nvidia formed an alliance in July around the argument that countries need inspectable AI models. G42 joined immediately as the sole Gulf company in the group. G42 CEO Peng Xiao wrote on X that frontier open models are essential alongside closed models.
Soliman argued that using external models does not mean sacrificing control. He views AI sovereignty as a matter of degree rather than an all-or-nothing choice. Soliman stated that sovereignty centers on model weights, fine-tuned data, and the ability to serve models to users in the UAE and other markets.
The U.S. government approved sales of advanced Nvidia chips to the UAE after G42 sold its stakes in Chinese technology companies two years ago. The U.S. placed the UAE in its group of closest technology allies in July. Meanwhile, TII created Falcon in 2023 as a free alternative to U.S. and China models. Counterpoint ranked Falcon first this year among state-backed models.
Saudi Arabia pursues a different strategy in its competition to become a regional AI hub. State AI company Humain received clearance to buy tens of thousands of Nvidia chips. Humain introduced an Arabic model this month commissioned from a Chinese lab, following an earlier model built locally. Carnegie Endowment for International Peace senior fellow Sam Winter-Levy noted that these states have strong incentives to hedge.
Nvidia has distinct motivations for pushing its upcoming model, expected to be named Nemotron 4. Earlier U.S. AI models lagged behind free Chinese models that recorded roughly two billion downloads this year. Nvidia spent $7 billion last month to buy a stake in U.S. coding startup Poolside and license its AI tools. Nvidia also agreed to pay almost $13 billion to buy Hugging Face. Einstein explained that these financial moves aim to make Nemotron the primary base for governments building models.
TII maintains it can pursue both paths. Hacid stated that sovereignty does not mean isolation. The lab builds local foundations while remaining open to global technology.
The new model is due by the end of the year.
