• MoU signed at Digital Readiness Retreat 2026 integrates du Tech’s National Hypercloud and Open Innovation AI’s GPU orchestration platform for secure, in-country AI deployment  

Dubai, UAE: du, a leading UAE telecom and digital services provider, has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Open Innovation AI, a UAE-based AI infrastructure and workload orchestration provider. Orchestrated in collaboration with the UAE Cyber Security Council (CSC), the partnership will accelerate the adoption of Agentic AI workforce across government entities and enterprises. This initiative will strengthen the UAE’s sovereign AI ecosystem through du’s sub-brand du Tech, in alignment with national security and digital priorities.

The MoU was signed during the Digital Readiness Retreat 2026 in Dubai, a premier national forum for digital transformation.  Jasim Al Awadi, Chief ICT Officer at du and Dr Abed Benaichouche, Co-Founder & CEO of Open Innovation AI executed the agreement in the presence of His Excellency Dr Mohamed Al Kuwaiti, Head of the UAE Cyber Security Council. This high-level endorsement underscores the convergence of AI capabilities and national security. The partnership leverages du Tech’s National Hypercloud platform, which recently received formal CSC certification, ensuring locally governed capabilities to power the nation’s AI-driven economy.  

His Excellency Dr Mohamed Al Kuwaiti, Head of the UAE Cyber Security Council, said: "Sovereign AI is a critical national security priority. Following our recent certification of du Tech’s National Hypercloud, this homegrown collaboration represents the secure in-country AI infrastructure orchestration the UAE requires to protect its data and digital future. The UAE Cyber Security Council remains committed to fostering an environment where AI is securely governed within UAE jurisdiction, and this initiative is a meaningful step toward elevating national AI innovation."

The partnership brings together du’s advanced digital infrastructure and cloud capabilities with Open Innovation AI’s expertise in AI infrastructure orchestration, GPU resource management, and AI security. By integrating du Tech’s National Hypercloud with Open Innovations AI fabric, the collaboration will enable public and private organizations to deploy and scale autonomous Agentic AI workloads with unprecedented speed, efficiency, and strict regulatory compliance.   

Under the MoU, both parties will explore several areas of collaboration, including technical integration between du Tech’s National Hypercloud and Open Innovation AI’s platform to action GPU orchestration, along with resource management capabilities, sovereign AI platform development, commercial deployment opportunities, and joint go-to-market initiatives.

Jasim Al Awadi, Chief ICT Officer at du, said: “True digital sovereignty requires an infrastructure capable of powering tomorrow's cognitive workloads today. By merging du Tech’s CSC-certified National Hypercloud with Open Innovation AI’s orchestration platform, we are delivering the foundational compute engine required for secure, in-country Agentic AI deployment. We are building the secure, compliant, and high-performance backbone that will allow UAE government entities and enterprises to deploy autonomous AI workforces with absolute confidence.”

As part of this collaboration, both parties will assess opportunities to establish sovereign AI and GPU orchestration capabilities on du Tech’s National Hypercloud infrastructure, enabling secure access to AI compute resources while supporting innovation across public and private sector ecosystems. The initiative is expected to contribute to the development and deployment of AI solutions and agentic AI agents that meet the UAE’s growing demand for trusted and locally governed AI services, with security and data sovereignty embedded at the infrastructure level in alignment with the UAE Cyber Security Council's national framework.

Dr. Abed Benaichouche, Co-Founder & CEO, Open Innovation AI, said: "This MoU with du marks a meaningful step toward building the foundations of sovereign AI in the UAE. By bringing Open Innovation's Sovereign AI Fabric together with du Tech's National Hypercloud, we aim to give government entities and enterprises secure, in-country access to the compute that AI workloads demand, while keeping data, models, and infrastructure firmly within UAE jurisdiction. We are proud to work alongside du and the UAE Cyber Security Council to accelerate this national ambition."

The agreement is expanding du’s growing AI partner ecosystem, reinforcing its position as a primary sovereign infrastructure enabler under its sub-brand du Tech with cybersecurity governance embedded at the core.

About du

du adds life to life with a comprehensive portfolio of mobile, fixed, broadband, entertainment services, and fintech solutions. Through a digital-first approach powered by ultra-reliable fiber and 5G technology, du delivers bespoke solutions leveraging cloud computing, AI-driven analytics, advanced cybersecurity, and IoT integration. As a trusted digital telco enabler

spearheading the UAE's digital transformation, we collaborate with a dynamic partner ecosystem to propel industries and society toward operational excellence, shaping a more connected and digitally advanced future across the region.

About Open Innovation AI

Open Innovation AI is a UAE-based technology company enabling enterprise adoption of artificial intelligence through a sovereign, hardware-agnostic platform. Its core product, the Open Innovation Cluster Manager (OICM), delivers GPU orchestration and full lifecycle management for AI workloads, from development to deployment. The company also offers OI AI Security, a solution for testing and securing AI models and applications, helping organizations deploy trusted AI systems at scale.

About the UAE Cyber Security Council

The UAE Cyber Security Council was established in 2020 by a UAE Cabinet resolution to serve as the federal entity responsible for ensuring a secure digital transformation, as well as proposing and developing a comprehensive legislative framework that strengthens the nation’s cybersecurity posture.

The Council is dedicated to enhancing the readiness of all vital sectors including economy, education, healthcare, and social development to efficiently counter cyber threats through the design of innovative security solutions, ultimately boosting the UAE's global competitiveness and pioneering leadership.

The "National Cybersecurity Strategy 2025–2031" serves as the primary umbrella guiding the Council’s initiatives to elevate national resilience against cyberattacks. Under this ambitious strategy, the Council actively works on drafting advanced legislative policies, managing proactive cyber threat response frameworks, and launching comprehensive national initiatives designed to accelerate secure digital transformation and support sustainable digital economic growth, ensuring a safe, secure, and risk-resilient digital ecosystem across the United Arab Emirates.