UAE's Nextgen joins OpenAI select partner to drive AI integration across key sectors

Abu Dhabi: The UAE’s efforts to expand the use of artificial intelligence across government and business have received a boost, with homegrown AI transformation firm Nextgen being named an OpenAI Select Partner.

The appointment brings a UAE-based company into OpenAI’s partner network, strengthening local expertise in helping organisations adopt and deploy advanced AI technologies at scale.

The company said its work goes beyond advising clients on where AI could be useful. Its engineers work directly with organisations, using their existing systems and infrastructure to develop and deploy solutions, while helping internal teams acquire the skills needed to manage and expand them.

For the UAE, the development comes at a time when artificial intelligence is becoming an increasingly important part of the country's plans for economic growth, better public services and business competitiveness. While access to advanced AI models is important, turning the technology into solutions that work within organisations remains a key part of that journey.

Nextgen will help government entities and businesses build and deploy AI solutions using OpenAI’s models and products, including GPT and ChatGPT Work.

The focus will be on integrating AI into existing operations, improving productivity and helping organisations get measurable value from their investments.

“Bringing OpenAI’s frontier models together with our strategy and implementation expertise, we help governments and enterprises embed AI into how they operate and turn their investment into real returns, from higher productivity to sustainable growth,” the company said in a statement.

Nextgen works across several sectors, including financial services, fintech and payments, real estate, hospitality, education, healthcare, technology and media.

It has more than 135 specialists across five offices and works with over 50 enterprise clients. The company has delivered more than 200 AI use cases.

Nextgen said it would continue to take a technology-independent approach, choosing AI models and platforms based on each client's needs rather than building solutions around a single provider. Its new status as an OpenAI Select Partner adds OpenAI's technologies and support to the range of capabilities it can offer.

It added that the partnership would also support the UAE’s AI ambitions by enabling secure, scalable and sovereign AI solutions that align with national priorities.

The partnership highlights the growing role of UAE-based technology companies in helping organisations move beyond AI experimentation and put the technology to work across their businesses and services.

As the country continues to invest in its AI ecosystem, building local expertise and the ability to deploy these technologies at scale will be central to translating its ambitions into tangible economic and operational gains.