Abu Dhabi just launched a massive AI training program, and here’s the part that matters to you: even if you don’t work for the government, you can join for free. The emirate wants 20,000 government employees trained in AI tools by the end of this year, and it’s opening a public version too, built around ChatGPT, at no cost.
The program is called AiNative. It comes from the Department of Government Enablement- Abu Dhabi (DGE), built with OpenAI, Microsoft and Mohamed bin Zayed University of Artificial Intelligence (MBZUAI). It was announced at the Ai Everything event in Abu Dhabi, the same gathering where several other AI deals were unveiled this week. The goal is bigger than training: Abu Dhabi wants to become the world’s first AI-native government by 2027.
What does AI training in Abu Dhabi actually look like?
For government staff, the plan is practical. Employees will learn to use everyday AI tools like ChatGPT, Codex and Microsoft 365 Copilot in their daily jobs. Think faster reports, smarter data handling, quicker decision-making. Later phases will add specialised certifications in coding and data, for people who want to go deeper than basic use.
But the real headline for most residents is the public track. DGE is rolling out a version of AiNative for the wider public, delivered through the free tier of ChatGPT. It’s not about turning everyone into a programmer. It’s aimed at real-life problems: managing personal finances, running a small business, job hunting, studying for exams, and creating content responsibly online.
That’s a notable shift. Instead of keeping advanced AI skills locked inside government offices, Abu Dhabi is handing the same toolkit to shop owners, students and freelancers across the emirate. If you’ve ever wanted to use ChatGPT to budget better or write a business plan but didn’t know where to start, this program is built exactly for that gap.
Why is Abu Dhabi racing to become an “AI-native” government?
The 2027 target isn’t just a slogan. Being “AI-native” means the government wants AI embedded in how it runs, not bolted on as an extra feature. Training 20,000 employees in a matter of months is a big bet on getting there fast, and it signals how seriously Abu Dhabi is treating the global AI race.
This isn’t happening in isolation either. The same week, Scale AI and Presight signed an agreement to work on AI evaluation and governance for critical sectors like water, power, healthcare and transport in the UAE. Separately, Bahrain’s Fintech Forward event wrapped up with more than 60 deals focused on digital finance and AI. Put together, it’s clear the Gulf is moving on multiple fronts at once: training people, building infrastructure, and signing partnerships, all around AI.
For UAE and GCC readers, this matters beyond government offices. If public bodies are pushing AI literacy this hard, private employers are likely to expect similar skills soon. Knowing how to use tools like ChatGPT or Copilot could become as basic as knowing how to use email or spreadsheets. Getting ahead of that curve, especially with a free, government-backed program, is a low-risk way to build a skill that’s quickly becoming standard across industries covered in our technology news section.
There’s also a business angle worth watching. Small business owners juggling finances, marketing and admin with limited staff could genuinely benefit from the public training track. Learning to use AI for basic financial planning or content creation isn’t just a personal upskilling move, it could directly cut costs or save time for people running their own ventures in Dubai, Abu Dhabi or elsewhere in the Gulf.
What to watch next: how quickly the 20,000-employee target is reached, and whether the public program expands beyond the free ChatGPT tier into more advanced tools. It’s also worth watching whether other emirates or GCC governments launch similar public AI training efforts, especially as Abu Dhabi aims to hit its AI-native milestone by 2027. For now, this story was first reported by GCC Business News, and it’s one of the clearest signs yet that AI skills are becoming a public priority, not just a corporate one.
