Dubai/Washington: A pair of multi-billion-dollar agreements are drawing scrutiny over the intersection of business, politics, and national security. The deals, struck within months of each other, provided the Trump family’s cryptocurrency startup with a $2 billion cash infusion while granting the United Arab Emirates (UAE) access to some of the world’s most advanced artificial intelligence (AI) computer chips.
The overlapping agreements—one in private finance, the other in high-stakes technology exports—underscore the blurred lines between personal gain and public duty in the Trump administration’s dealings abroad.
Two Parallel Deals
The first arrangement emerged when Sheikh Tahnoon bin Zayed Al Nahyan’s investment firm committed $2 billion to World Liberty Financial, a cryptocurrency venture co-founded by the Trump and Witkoff families. Zach Witkoff, son of U.S. developer Steve Witkoff, announced the investment at an event in Dubai, signaling deepening financial ties between Emirati leadership and Trump business associates.
Shortly afterward, the White House approved the export of hundreds of thousands of advanced AI chips to the UAE, primarily for G42, a technology conglomerate controlled by Sheikh Tahnoon. For years, U.S. officials had restricted sales of these chips to G42 over concerns about its past ties with Chinese partners. The sudden policy shift, so close in timing to the crypto deal, has raised questions about whether diplomatic decisions were influenced by private financial interests.
While no direct evidence links the two deals, their timing and shared network of players has fueled concerns about conflicts of interest.
Key Players and Overlapping Interests
At the center of the controversy is David Sacks, a venture capitalist and Trump-appointed adviser on technology and cryptocurrency. Despite holding financial stakes in AI-related companies, Sacks received an ethics waiver allowing him to help negotiate the UAE chip deal. His dual role as policymaker and investor troubled some officials, who warned of blurred boundaries between public service and private gain.
Steve Witkoff, a longtime Trump ally and co-founder of World Liberty Financial, also played a pivotal role. Balancing his private real estate and crypto ventures with a diplomatic advisory position, Witkoff lobbied for Emirati access to advanced chips at the same time his family’s firm secured billions in Emirati investment.
Adding to the entanglement, a senior executive worked simultaneously for both G42 and World Liberty, effectively tying the crypto and chip transactions together. These overlaps, critics say, represent an unprecedented merging of government authority with personal financial advancement.
Policy Shifts and Internal Power Struggles
Within Washington, the chip export sparked heated debate. National security officials urged caution, citing risks that cutting-edge U.S. technology could indirectly benefit China. But their warnings lost ground after several council officials were dismissed and political allies of the administration applied pressure to relax restrictions.
Sacks argued that granting chips to the UAE would strengthen America’s strategic position in the Middle East, ensuring Gulf states turned to Washington rather than Beijing for AI partnerships. Witkoff, meanwhile, coordinated closely with Sheikh Tahnoon to push the deals forward ahead of President Trump’s planned Middle East visit.
Emirati leaders even floated the idea of constructing a domestic chip fabrication plant. While U.S. agencies resisted the plan, Sacks and Witkoff reportedly signaled quiet support.
Crypto Surge and AI Ambitions
The impact of these back-to-back agreements is already visible. With Sheikh Tahnoon’s investment, World Liberty Financial leapt from a niche crypto startup to a major player. The company used the $2 billion deposit to launch a stablecoin project, expected to generate tens of millions of dollars annually in transaction-based profits.
For the UAE, the chip deal represents a major step in its drive to become a global AI hub. G42, already dominant in cloud computing and biotech, now has access to the high-performance chips critical for training large-scale AI models. This access strengthens the UAE’s technological ambitions but also revives concerns about whether Emirati partnerships with China will truly be severed.
Global Stakes
The dual deals highlight how cryptocurrency wealth, political influence, and advanced technology are becoming increasingly intertwined. They also raise questions about the ethical boundaries of U.S. policy when private business interests overlap with government negotiations.
Critics argue that the agreements risk undermining safeguards designed to protect U.S. national security, while proponents see them as pragmatic moves to keep the Middle East aligned with Washington’s strategic vision.
For Sheikh Tahnoon, the deals further cement his influence as both a political leader and global investor. For Trump allies, they represent lucrative opportunities in emerging industries. For U.S. regulators and foreign policy experts, however, they underscore a troubling reality: that lines between personal enrichment and public responsibility are becoming harder to distinguish.
