The Gulf’s AI Boom Hangs by a Thin Fiber

The Gulf region’s ambition to become a major player in the global artificial intelligence market is being held hostage by an unlikely culprit: fragile undersea cables. These critical infrastructure assets carry approximately 95 percent of international data traffic, and their fragility has transformed them from technical necessities into strategic vulnerabilities.

For years, Gulf countries have invested heavily in building AI infrastructure, luring hyperscalers and positioning themselves as future exporters of compute capacity. However, the region’s dependence on a narrow concentration of undersea cables running through the Red Sea and the Strait of Hormuz poses a significant threat. A damaged or severed cable could not only slow internet speeds but also undermine the entire emerging AI business model.

The issue is not just about connectivity; it’s about resilience. Unlike traditional internet traffic, AI infrastructure relies on massive and continuous flows of data between hyperscale data centers, cloud providers, and enterprise customers. Short disruptions can create significant operational and financial consequences, making resilient fiber infrastructure a commercial necessity rather than a luxury.

A notable incident in 2025 serves as a stark reminder of the risks involved. Two cables linking Europe to the Middle East and Asia were cut in the Red Sea, degrading internet connectivity across the Gulf for days and causing an estimated $3.5 billion in damages from lost services.

The vulnerability is not just technical but also strategic. The Middle East sits at the intersection of Europe, Asia, and Africa, making it one of the world’s most strategically important transit zones for global internet traffic. This makes undersea cables geopolitical assets, subject to regional conflicts and rivalries.

Proposed terrestrial and subsea routes across the Middle East have struggled to move forward due to regulatory barriers, political instability, and regional conflict. However, with the rise of AI-driven economies, many of those same corridors are now being reconsidered as critical digital infrastructure.

Countries like Saudi Arabia and the UAE are investing heavily in building new undersea cables and terrestrial fiber corridors. The proposed SilkLink and WorldLink projects aim to create additional East-West connectivity corridors that reduce reliance on maritime chokepoints. These initiatives hold promise but also underscore the complexity of the challenge.

The Gulf’s AI ambitions are forcing a rethinking of connectivity strategies across the region. Hyperscalers are demanding similar route diversity in the Middle East as they do in transatlantic and transpacific routes, where four or five physically separate network paths minimize disruption risks. The Gulf remains heavily dependent on a narrow concentration of routes.

Satellite connectivity is also attracting growing interest as part of broader resilience planning. While not a silver bullet, it offers advantages over traditional undersea cables in terms of flexibility and redundancy.

The future of the Gulf’s AI boom hangs precariously on the stability of its undersea cable infrastructure. As the region continues to invest heavily in building new data centers and attracting hyperscalers, it must also address this strategic vulnerability head-on. The stakes are high, but so is the potential for growth and innovation.