Former White House AI Adviser Applauds Middle East Innovation, Warns of China’s DeepSeek Disruption

At the 2025 Emerging Technologies Symposium hosted by Johns Hopkins University, former White House AI adviser Ben Buchanan praised the Middle East’s bold push into artificial intelligence, particularly highlighting the UAE and Saudi Arabia’s unwavering commitment to becoming global AI leaders. He called their ambition “remarkable” and urged the United States to deepen its strategic partnerships with the region to help steer the global AI trajectory—and maintain its own technological dominance.
“The conviction of Middle East governments is certainly remarkable in AI, and the ambition is also remarkable,” said Buchanan, who previously served under President Biden and remains an influential voice in shaping tech policy.
He pointed to institutions like the Mohamed bin Zayed University of Artificial Intelligence, the first of its kind globally, as an example of how seriously the region is treating its AI future. But Buchanan warned: ambition alone won’t secure leadership.
“Investment without strategic collaboration can fall short,” he said. “It’s critical we structure these partnerships to keep the Middle East aligned with the United States.”
Buchanan cited recent UAE-U.S. collaborations—including with Microsoft, which has referred to the UAE as a “hugely important hub” for AI—as essential steps in maintaining influence and innovation momentum.
DeepSeek: A Rising Rival from China
Turning to China’s DeepSeek, Buchanan addressed the growing buzz surrounding the company’s highly efficient large language model, which rivals OpenAI’s models but claims to use far less computing power. The company’s R1 model, now featured on Microsoft’s Azure AI, has drawn attention for its performance and low reported costs—allegedly under $6 million.
Buchanan pushed back on those claims, suggesting the actual investment likely exceeds public estimates, especially when research costs are considered. More importantly, he underscored that DeepSeek’s innovation is still limited by a critical weakness: compute power.
“They’re still incredibly compute constrained—this remains a U.S. advantage,” Buchanan said. “And we should double down on that advantage.”
He argued that U.S. semiconductor policy, including export restrictions, may have inadvertently forced Chinese firms like DeepSeek to innovate in algorithmic efficiency—but it also validates America’s long-term strategy of maintaining dominance through superior computing infrastructure.
While DeepSeek’s AI assistant app remains a top-ranked productivity tool in China, Buchanan emphasized that OpenAI, Google, and Meta continue to control more market share, talent, and funding.
The Talent Superpower
Ending on a high note, Buchanan reiterated what he sees as America’s greatest edge: global talent.
“A lot of the people making great discoveries weren’t born in the U.S. Our superpower is attracting brilliant minds from everywhere,” he said. “I hope we don’t lose that.”
In a world racing toward an AI-powered future, Buchanan’s message was clear: collaboration, compute leadership, and open talent pipelines will define the next era of dominance—and determine who sets the rules of the game.