Less than a 1000 miles away from today’s Dubai, and more than 5000 years ago, lived Summarians. It was here that mankind was learning the art of collecting, storing and manipulating data. Summarians used cuneiform tablets to record grain harvests, taxes, and population. It was one of the earliest forms of systematic data collection and its application for administrative purposes.
In the GITEX 2025, the IT and AI experts would also be using tablets but of quite different types than the tablets of Summarians.
In this age of Artificial Intelligence, data is an invaluable asset. It runs algorithms, trains large language models, and enables real time analytics. This was made possible by data centres, the power houses of the AI revolution. In Dubai, the data centres are emerging as strategic assets and opportunity hubs. Events like GITEX are adding new dimensions to the role of data centres. For entrepreneurs, startups and independent professionals, data centres are creating newer revenue streams.
The AI-Data Combine: Why Data Centres Matter
Artificial Intelligence, especially generative AI, deep learning, and large-scale analytics, require tremendous computing potential and storage capacity. AI requires:
- High-throughput storage for datasets used in training.
- Immense computational resources (GPUs, TPUs).
- Low-latency data access for inference tasks and real-time analytics.
- High reliability and scalability for uninterrupted services.
Hyperconnected and energy-efficient data centres are an absolute must for AI to be scalable, affordable and globally accessible.
The Gulf Data Centre Explosion
The Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) is undergoing a dramatic boom in data infrastructure investment. The states of the region are investing billions in digital transformation, smart cities, and cloud-first strategies. Aligning data centre expansion with its Data Strategy and AI Roadmap, Dubai is playing the leading role.

Salient Features
Equinix and Khazna expanding UAE’s hyperscale capabilities.
Amazon AWS, Microsoft Azure, and Oracle launching major regional cloud regions.
Moro Hub (DEWA subsidiary) is launching one of the largest solar-powered data centres in the world at Dubai Digital Park.
Etisalat and du are investing heavily in next-gen data infrastructure.
This spectacular regional initiative is driven by sovereign ambitions to localize data, support national AI strategies, comply with evolving data residency laws, and build digital economies.
GITEX: The Launchpad for Data-Driven Innovation
GITEX (Gulf Information Technology Exhibition), held annually in Dubai since 1981, has morphed into one of the world’s premier tech expos. At GITEX Global and its offshoots like GITEX IMPACT and Expand North Star, data centres have evolved into platforms for innovation.
Standby to Witness
Real time demos of AI and cloud-powered solutions running on regional data centre networks.
Startups pitching edge computing tools, API marketplaces, or decentralized storage solutions.
Panels on green data centres, sovereign clouds, and AI ethics.
For startups and entrepreneurs alike, GITEX is the doorway to visibility and investor access.
Startups in Data Centre Ecosystem
Data centres are no doubt capital-intensive. But the ecosystem they generate offers several niche areas for revenue streams.
1. AI-as-a-Service Built on Local Data Centres
Instead of going for in-house facilities, startups can leverage existing data centres and offer vertical AI services. This can include:
- legal AI assistants
- logistics optimizers
- Arabic-language chatbots, using leased infrastructure.
These services can target underserved sectors like SMEs, education, or local governance.
2. Data Labeling and Preprocessing Services
AI requires clean, structured, labeled data. Startups can establish data annotation farms or offer real-time data wrangling services hosted within local data centres to ensure data sovereignty and faster compliance.
3. Edge AI Deployment and Optimization
With smart cities and IoT networks growing in the Gulf, there is growing demand for edge computing—processing data near the source. Startups can create lightweight AI inference engines or platforms optimized for edge deployment via micro data centres across Dubai and beyond.
4. Cloud-Native Tools and Middleware
Startups and also individual professionals can build cloud-agnostic tools such as orchestration layers, observability tools, data lakes and API connectors tailored for local data centre environments.
5. Green Data and Energy Optimization
Given the huge energy consumption and preference for sustainability (UAE Net Zero 2050), there’s a strong opportunity in AI-driven energy management tools that optimize data centre operations by way of cooling, load balancing and uptime predictions.
6. Managed Services & Consultancy
Tech-savvy individuals and micro-enterprises can offer specialized services like:
- Data migration to/from local data centres.
- AI workload optimization.
- Compliance consulting, particularly for GDPR, UAE PDPL, Saudi PDPL.
- Cybersecurity solutions focused on data centre environments.
7. Data Markets and Sovereign Data Platforms
The trend is rising for decentralized and localized data marketplaces where companies trade anonymized data under regulated frameworks. Startups can offer platforms, aggregation tools, or blockchain-secured frameworks enabling safe data exchange within Gulf jurisdictions.
New Business Models
Entrepreneurs are also experimenting with:
Data centre colocation models. Leasing rack space and offering specialized cloud services to niche sectors like fintech, healthtech.
White-label cloud platforms
Creating local cloud platforms under local branding but hosted in large hyperscale data centres.
Digital Twin Environments Simulating physical operations (factories, utilities, cities) using AI and massive computing power hosted in data centres.
What Startups Should Do at GITEX
To capitalize on GITEX:
Align with Data Strategies. Highlight how your solution fits into UAE’s AI, cloud, or data localization strategy.
Demonstrate Local Relevance. Showcase applications optimized for Arabic, Islamic finance, local logistics, or regional energy constraints.
Target Collaboration:
Partner with telcos, cloud providers, or large data centre operators (du, Etisalat, DEWA, Khazna).
Showcase Efficiency:
Focus on how your tools reduce latency, energy, or compute costs. These are hot themes in the data centre world.
Offer Edge or Hybrid Models: Investors and governments prefer models that go beyond centralized computing.
Challenges and Constraints
Startups should focus on:
- High entry costs for direct infrastructure involvement.
- Tight regulations around data sovereignty and cybersecurity.
- Strong competition from hyperscalers like AWS and Azure.
- Talent shortages in AI infrastructure and DevOps.
Smart strategies include partnering rather than competing, targeting underserved verticals, and focusing on service innovation over hardware.
Conclusion
In the fast-digitizing landscape of the Gulf, data centres are more than infrastructure. They are gateways to AI-driven transformation. Dubai, backed by strategic vision and infrastructure, is at the leading edge. For startups, entrepreneurs, and experts, the opportunity lies not in owning data centres, but in building the tools, services, and platforms that ride atop them.
GITEX is the perfect opportunity to showcase these innovations, secure partnerships and contribute to the Gulf AI Mag (G.AM) vision.
Written By: Paul K.