UAE Establishes New Federal Authority for Artificial Intelligence and Data
Omar Sultan Al Olama was appointed to lead the authority with the aim of creating a faster, more efficient, flexible, and proactive government that leverages data and assisted AI to serve people and build better opportunities for future generations.
DUBAI, In a major move to solidify its position as a global technology powerhouse, His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum has approved the establishment of the Federal Authority for Artificial Intelligence and Data.
The new federal entity will operate directly under the UAE Cabinet and will be chaired by the Minister of State for Artificial Intelligence.
A Unified Tech Super-Ecosystem
Rather than operating via fragmented departments, the UAE is streamlining its digital future.
The new authority merges the core competencies of three massive state entities:
- The Artificial Intelligence Office
- The Digital Government and Information sector (previously under the TDRA)
- The UAE Data Office
By consolidation, the UAE aims to eliminate bureaucratic silos, accelerating the deployment of next-generation civic technologies.
Key Mandates of the New Authority:
- Unified Digital Leadership: Leading the data, artificial intelligence, and digital government ecosystem across the country under a single umbrella. Gulf News
- National Alignment: Harmonizing national directives and priorities that support a unified digital government ecosystem utilizing "Agentic AI" (Autonomous AI Assistants).
- Policy & Strategy Formulation: Proposing policies, legislations, strategies, and national programs, ensuring their alignment and integration at both federal and local levels. Government of Dubai Media Office
- Economic Impact: Steering the national Artificial Intelligence strategy to increase its overall contribution to the country's Gross Domestic Product (GDP).
- Integrated Government Services: Managing the design and delivery of integrated digital government services to elevate and enhance the customer experience.
- Data Governance: Managing and integrating government data platforms, ensuring their quality, unification, accessibility, and sharing under advanced governance frameworks.
One of the most notable highlights of the authority’s mandate is its explicit focus on "Agentic AI", autonomous AI systems capable of executing complex workflows with minimal human intervention.
The UAE plans to integrate these advanced systems to support a unified digital government infrastructure, drastically shifting how public services are delivered to citizens and residents.
Beyond optimizing daily government operations, the entity is explicitly tasked with driving the economic deployment of AI.
The authority will spearhead strategies meant to heavily boost AI’s direct contribution to the UAE's GDP.