Palm Beach, Florida: Emirati billionaire Hussain Sajwani has announced a staggering $20 billion investment in the burgeoning U.S. data center industry over the coming years. The announcement was made alongside U.S. President-elect Donald Trump during an event at Trump’s Mar-a-Lago residence in Palm Beach, Florida.
Sajwani, chairman of Dubai-based property giant DAMAC, expressed optimism about the sector’s potential. “We’re planning to invest $20 billion and even more than that, if the opportunity in the market allows us,” he said. This investment marks a significant boost to the U.S. economy, aligning with Trump’s pledge to prioritize domestic industry growth.
Trump, whose electoral victory was fueled by promises of economic revitalization, has doubled down on his commitment to bolstering domestic investments. His administration has proposed higher tariffs on Chinese goods and aims to restrict China’s access to advanced data center technology, including the coveted AI chips critical for generative AI and power-intensive data infrastructure.
This latest announcement comes amid a wave of high-profile investments in AI technology and infrastructure. Last week, Microsoft unveiled plans to spend $80 billion this fiscal year to expand its AI capacity. In a similar vein, Japanese tech investor SoftBank recently pledged a $100 billion investment in U.S.-based AI initiatives over the next four years, announced during an earlier meeting with Trump.
Sajwani’s ties to Trump are well-documented. DAMAC owns the Middle East’s only Trump-branded golf course in Dubai, which opened in 2017, and the two families share a long-standing relationship, celebrating New Year’s Eve together in Florida.
However, past investment announcements have occasionally fallen short of expectations. During Trump’s first term, a $10 billion Foxconn factory project in Wisconsin promised thousands of jobs but failed to materialize as planned.
The U.S. data center industry has seen accelerated growth following the debut of OpenAI’s ChatGPT in late 2022, which ignited a global race to develop generative AI technologies. This surge has fueled demand for advanced AI chips and the infrastructure required to support the technology, including power generation and transmission systems.
The investment by Sajwani signals confidence in the U.S. market and underscores the nation’s pivotal role in the global tech race, particularly in the face of mounting geopolitical tensions with China.
Source: Zawya
