Abu Dhabi AI training program plans to equip around 23,000 government employees with practical, role-specific artificial intelligence skills by early 2027 as the emirate accelerates its push toward becoming what it describes as the world’s first fully AI-native government.
The new learning platform, called AiNative, was unveiled at Ai Everything Abu Dhabi and has been developed with support from OpenAI, Microsoft and Mohamed bin Zayed University of Artificial Intelligence, according to officials speaking to Khaleej Times.
The initiative is designed to help government employees use AI tools in their everyday work while understanding security requirements, particularly what information can and cannot safely be entered into AI systems.
Abu Dhabi AI Training Program Expands Across Government
The Abu Dhabi AI training program initially operated as a pilot involving several government entities but is now being made available across the Abu Dhabi Government.
Faisal Al Hawi, Director of AI Factory at the Department of Government Enablement, said the goal is to provide employees with practical guidance tailored to their roles rather than simply teaching general AI concepts.
OpenAI is helping curate training around AI skills and ChatGPT, Microsoft is supporting learning related to Copilot, while MBZUAI is contributing to personalised one-to-one learning sessions, Al Hawi said.
The target is to train approximately 23,000 employees by early 2027.
1. Training Will Be Tailored to Specific Government Jobs
A central feature of the Abu Dhabi AI training program is its emphasis on role-specific learning.
An employee working in human resources, for example, could receive training on AI tools applicable to workforce planning, while legal staff could learn how artificial intelligence may assist with activities such as drafting contracts.
Finance, procurement, tax and other government functions are expected to receive specialised modules as the platform expands.
The approach reflects a broader challenge facing organisations adopting AI: tools and models are developing so quickly that general training can become outdated within months.
AiNative is therefore intended to help employees identify which tools are most suitable for specific tasks rather than focusing on a single technology.
2. Data Security Forms a Core Part of Training
Security is another major component of the initiative.
Government employees will be trained to understand which categories of information can be shared with AI tools, what data requires additional caution and what information should never be entered into such systems.
That focus aligns with Abu Dhabi’s wider emphasis on sovereign and secure AI deployment.
The Abu Dhabi Government has already rolled out Microsoft 365 Copilot across the public sector, with 26,000 civil servants across 27 entities receiving licences during the first phase of its Frontier Employee Programme. Combined with earlier deployments, the government said it had reached 35,000 licences.
The same programme incorporates security, data-governance and readiness assessments designed to ensure AI adoption complies with government requirements.
3. AI Could Reduce Time Spent on Routine Tasks
Officials behind the Abu Dhabi AI training program also see productivity as a major potential benefit.
Al Hawi gave the example of legal staff preparing contracts, saying AI could reduce work that once took days to a much shorter period, leaving employees more time for tasks requiring professional judgement.
He also said AI agents can assist with preparing reports and presentations, completing much of the initial work before a human employee reviews and finalises the output.
The aim is not simply to introduce more technology into government offices, but to change how routine administrative work is handled.
Human oversight remains important, particularly for decisions requiring context, accountability and judgement.
Abu Dhabi Pushes Toward AI-Native Government by 2027
The training initiative forms part of Abu Dhabi’s wider digital transformation strategy.
The emirate’s Government Digital Strategy 2025-2027 includes AED13 billion in planned investment, the deployment of more than 200 AI solutions and a goal of becoming the world’s first fully AI-native government by 2027.
Abu Dhabi has also established AI-related leadership positions across government entities and is expanding the use of sovereign cloud infrastructure, automated services and AI-enabled decision-making.
Importantly, the latest AiNative initiative appears to represent a more specialised phase of workforce development rather than Abu Dhabi’s first large-scale AI training effort.
An official Abu Dhabi Government update in 2025 said more than 95 percent of its workforce of over 30,000 employees had already completed comprehensive AI training. The newer programme focuses more closely on practical, role-based skills and specific tools.
Microsoft Copilot Already Reaching Tens of Thousands
The Abu Dhabi AI training program is also being introduced alongside one of the region’s largest public-sector deployments of generative AI productivity software.
In July, Abu Dhabi announced that Microsoft 365 Copilot had been deployed to 26,000 civil servants across 27 government entities, adding to 9,000 existing licences.
The initiative is intended to embed AI into everyday government workflows while maintaining data residency and security requirements within the UAE.
Abu Dhabi’s AI ambitions extend beyond employee productivity. Its official AI strategy includes government services, AI agents, data infrastructure and an expanding ecosystem of research and technology partnerships.
Public Access Planned Through UAE Pass
AiNative is not expected to remain limited to government employees.
According to Al Hawi, the platform is eventually intended to become accessible to members of the public through UAE Pass, allowing residents to use the learning resources themselves.
A timeline for that public rollout has not yet been announced.
For now, the priority remains the government workforce and the target of reaching approximately 23,000 employees by early 2027.
The Abu Dhabi AI training program therefore represents another step in the emirate’s wider effort to integrate artificial intelligence into government operations while placing greater emphasis on practical skills, data security and human oversight.
As AI tools evolve rapidly, Abu Dhabi’s approach suggests that continuous training — rather than one-time instruction — will be central to its plan for an AI-native public sector.
Source: Khaleej Times / Abu Dhabi Media Office
Abu Dhabi Government Digital Strategy 2025-2027
Official Abu Dhabi Government strategy
Microsoft Frontier Employee Programme
Abu Dhabi Government Microsoft AI rollout
