AI Adoption Reaches 70.1% of UAE Working-Age Population
The UAE is the first economy to cross the 70% AI usage mark among working-age residents, Microsoft’s Q1 2026 report shows.
Artificial intelligence use has reached 70.1% of the UAE’s working-age population, placing the country first globally for AI adoption in the first quarter of 2026 and making it the first to surpass the 70% threshold.
The figures come alongside a wider expansion of AI programmes across government. At the federal level, the Agentic AI Project aims to convert 50% of government sectors, services and operations into autonomous AI-driven models within two years, while the National Committee for Agentic AI has approved an operating framework and implementation guide. A Federal Authority for Artificial Intelligence and Data has also been announced to bring national data, AI and digital government systems under a more integrated structure.
Across the Emirates, Abu Dhabi is advancing its AI-native government programme through AINative, developed with Mohamed bin Zayed University of Artificial Intelligence, OpenAI and Microsoft, while Dubai, Sharjah and Ajman have introduced their own agentic AI and government capability programmes. In education, more than 24,000 teachers, school leaders and specialists participated in professional development during the specialised training week for the 2026-2027 academic year.
AI deployment has also expanded across healthcare, transport and workforce development. Applications include diagnostics, medical imaging, genomics, precision medicine, traffic management and digital government services, alongside new training programmes in AI, data science and cybersecurity. Government entities are also developing governance frameworks, cybersecurity measures and implementation guidelines intended to support broader adoption.
