Mariam Al-Yazidi, Author at icnlive

NVIDIA

Nvidia’s $105 billion OpenAI deal puts Ohio compute under fresh scrutiny

The $105 billion OpenAI deal disclosed in an Nvidia securities filing on Monday commits the chipmaker to standing behind a data center it will neither own nor operate. Credit from Nvidia covers an initial 4.25 gigawatts of computing capacity, with an option on a further 3.75 gigawatts. SB Energy will build and manage the site at the PORTS-Pike Technology Campus in Pike County, Ohio, under a 20-year lease to OpenAI. Capacity is expected to come online in phases from 2028.

Who carries the risk in the $105 billion OpenAI deal?

Three parties sit at different points on the risk ladder. Nvidia supplies the compute and, according to the company, backs defined portions of lease and power payments. OpenAI holds the tenancy and said it will begin paying only as capacity becomes available for lease. SB Energy, backed by SoftBank, owns the asset. Jensen Huang, chief executive of Nvidia, said the company is securing long-lived infrastructure so OpenAI can deploy AI factories that can be upgraded with each new chip generation. Yahoo Finance

Ownership ties run through the structure. OpenAI holds a stake in SB Energy, and Sam Altman invested in the developer at an early stage. Nvidia will now place $1.5 billion into the company as well, deepening a relationship it also underwrites.

A financing model under scrutiny

The Nvidia OpenAI Ohio data center follows a run of financing moves that have drawn questions about AI circular financing, where a supplier funds the customers who then buy its products. Huang rejected that reading, writing that OpenAI will pay the lease. Danni Hewson, head of financial analysis at AJ Bell, said the real test is whether the investments deliver decent returns to everyone putting up cash, a judgement that can only be made later.

Earlier reporting by CNBC put the talks at a backstop of up to $250 billion for a 10-gigawatt project at the same location. The Wall Street Journal reported last week that the figure would be trimmed to less than $120 billion. What was filed came in below both numbers. Days before, Nvidia joined six large asset managers on platforms designed to deploy $500 billion of third-party capital into data center projects.

Power, jobs and the local ledger

The $105 billion OpenAI deal also reshapes the energy question in southern Ohio. SB Energy and SoftBank will build power sources supporting 10 gigawatts and invest at least $4.2 billion in regional grid infrastructure. OpenAI has committed $40 million toward local priorities. The company said the SB Energy data center will support 35,000 construction jobs through 2032 and 2,500 long-term positions. Daily Sabah

Scale is the reason the accounting matters. One gigawatt is roughly enough electricity for 750,000 American homes. Nvidia estimates each generation of systems deployed at the campus could involve about 1.5 million GPUs and $150 billion to $200 billion in revenue. Communities near new load face the practical question of who absorbs the cost of getting power to the site. Stocktwits

What the arrangement secures

For Nvidia, the lease guarantee buys certainty in a market where land and interconnection have become the scarce inputs. For OpenAI, it converts a balance sheet constraint into a tenancy. Huang has acknowledged that frontier labs are growing faster than their balance sheets and credit profiles can support. That admission sits at the heart of the structure.

Greg Brockman, president of OpenAI, told CNBC’s Squawk Box on Monday that compute is a fundamental resource for the industry. He described it as the new oil of the AI age, a limited input rather than an abundant one. Who ultimately pays for it remains an open question.

By Mariam Al-Yazidi
3 min read

Investments

World Bank grants $100 million to Syria for financial sector reform push

The World Bank grants $100 million to Syria to rebuild the foundations of a financial system worn down by more than a decade of conflict. Delivered as a grant from the International Development Association, the Bank’s arm for its poorest borrowers, the money will fund the Syria Financial Sector Modernization Project. That program is built to make payments safer and to widen access to banking. Behind the headline figure sits a harder question about governance, one about who will oversee the funds and to what standard.

A sector rebuilt from cash upward

After 14 years of war, Syria’s banking system remains small and leans heavily on cash. Financial intermediation is thin, digital payment infrastructure is dated, and supervision has weakened. These gaps raise the cost of every transaction and keep the country cut off from the international channels that trade and investment depend on. The project aims to operationalize core financial systems and to enable at least 15 million electronic retail payments a year. It also aims to bring 500,000 people and businesses into digital payments, among them 150,000 women. Expanding Syria’s digital payments sits at the center of the plan, which the World Bank frames as a route toward wider financial inclusion.

Why the World Bank grants $100 million to Syria now

Timing reflects a shift in how Damascus and the Bank work together. In May 2025, Saudi Arabia and Qatar cleared Syria’s arrears to the International Development Association, which restored the country’s eligibility for financing after a 14-year suspension. A month later, the Bank approved a $146 million grant for emergency electricity, its first Syrian project in nearly four decades. Finance Minister Mohamed Yisr Barnieh has said the Bank endorsed Syria’s economic reform plans for 2026. The latest decision, in which the World Bank grants $100 million to Syria, carries that reengagement into the heart of the financial system.

Oversight, integrity, and accountability

Much of the grant targets control rather than cash. The plan funds independent asset quality reviews across public and private banks, a step meant to show regulators the true health of the system. It strengthens risk-based supervision and rebuilds the Central Bank of Syria’s core systems, from its banking platform to its cybersecurity. Investment will also flow to anti-money laundering and counter-terrorism financing tools, and to the Financial Intelligence Unit that runs them. Dalia Khalifa, the World Bank’s director for the Middle East, tied the project to Syria’s economic recovery, calling a modern financial system essential to the country’s future.

A test of standards

Governor Mohamed Safwat Raslan called the approval a milestone for the country’s banking infrastructure and a step toward standards used across global finance. He told the Syrian Arab News Agency the Central Bank would keep working to restore confidence and to return Syria to the international financial system. The International Development Association grant carries no repayment obligation, which lowers the fiscal risk for a state whose revenues have fallen sharply since 2011. Whether the reforms hold will depend on the strength of the new oversight. When the World Bank grants $100 million to Syria, the harder task is not the transfer but the accountability that comes after.

By Mariam Al-Yazidi
3 min read

Media

Dubai Media Narrative Committee Formed to Unify the Emirate’s Global Message

The Dubai Media Narrative Committee will take charge of how the emirate speaks to the world, under a decision issued by the Dubai Media Council. Sheikh Ahmed bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Second Deputy Ruler of Dubai and Chairman of the Council, approved the move. The committee’s job ranges from aligning messages among government bodies to shaping how Dubai deals with international media.

Who leads the committee?

Mona Ghanem Al Marri, Vice Chairperson and Managing Director of the Dubai Media Council, will chair the new body. She frames the decision as a response to how much weight a country’s story now carries. A strong media narrative, she said, drives strategic influence and helps build awareness and shape how people see a place. Mona Al Marri continued:

“In today’s world, a strong media narrative is a key driver of strategic influence and an essential tool for building awareness and shaping perceptions,” she said.

“The ability to develop an influential media narrative has become a strategic imperative. Those capable of shaping their story and communicating it creatively and authentically, while sustaining its impact, are better positioned to build trust and strengthen their influence.”

Al Marri set out how the committee will operate. Its framework rests on clear messaging, coordinated effort, complementary roles, quick response, and the use of facts and figures. Credibility and transparency sit at the center of that approach. She said cities that can tell their story clearly, tie it to shared human values, and turn it into something people find inspiring will hold the advantage.

What the committee governs

The Dubai Media Narrative Committee will propose policies, plans, and priorities, working alongside relevant entities. Its recommendations go to the Dubai Media Council for approval, and the committee then tracks how they are put into practice. This structure keeps decisions accountable to a single body rather than scattered across departments.

It will also design ways to coordinate media work across government, semi-government, and private sector groups. The goal is complementary roles and less duplication. On the global side, the committee guides Dubai’s official presence across international platforms and channels, and works to build steadier ties with foreign media.

Measuring the message

Part of the mandate is self-assessment. The committee will set key performance indicators and prepare analytical reports on media trends at home and abroad. Those insights feed back to the Dubai Media Council to support decisions and point to where the approach can improve. The committee may also give technical advice on media matters when the Council or other entities ask.

Sheikh Ahmed bin Mohammed described the decision as a strategic step toward an integrated institutional framework, one that keeps key messages consistent and strengthens their reach. A clear, unified narrative grounded in facts builds trust, he said, and supports Dubai’s standing as a city focused on opportunity. He linked the effort to the long-running vision of Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President, Prime Minister of the UAE, and Ruler of Dubai.

Sheikh Ahmed bin Mohammed said: “A clear and unified media narrative provides a strategic point of reference grounded in facts, strengthens trust, and further enhances Dubai’s global standing as an inspiring city committed to shaping a future rich with opportunities for all,”.

Wider role in Dubai media strategy

The committee fits inside a broader Dubai media strategy that the Council has pushed over recent years. Permanent or temporary teams may support its work, and the Council can hand it further duties in line with the UAE’s media policies. Under the decision, every government entity in Dubai must cooperate and share the data, statistics, studies, and reports the committee requires. The General Secretariat of the Dubai Media Council will provide administrative and technical backing.

The formation of the Dubai Media Narrative Committee places responsibility for the emirate’s public voice with one accountable body. How it performs will show in the reports it sends back to the Council, and in whether Dubai’s message reads as consistent across the channels it reaches.

By Mariam Al-Yazidi
4 min read

Mariam Al-Yazidi