STORY: Nvidia has signed a deal to deploy its artificial intelligence technology at data centers owned by Qatari telecoms group Ooredoo in five Middle Eastern countries.

That’s according to Ooredoo’s CEO Aziz Aluthman Fakhroo, who spoke to Reuters.

“Ooredoo is very proud to sign that agreement with Nvidia, putting Ooredoo at the forefront in the region for AI. And this falls right in our strategy of becoming the leader in the region for digital infrastructure.”

The agreement marks Nvidia’s first large-scale launch in a region to which Washington has curbed the export of sophisticated U.S. chips to stop Chinese firms from using Middle Eastern countries as a backdoor to access the newest AI technology.

Ooredoo says the move will make it the first company in the region able to give clients of its data centers in Qatar, Algeria, Tunisia, Oman, Kuwait and the Maldives direct access to Nvidia’s AI and graphics processing technology.

“…our b2b clients, thanks to this agreement, will have access to services that probably their competitors won’t have access for another 18 to 24 months till this capacity builds out organically in the market.”

Washington allows the export of some Nvidia technology to the Middle East, but curbs exports of the company’s most sophisticated chips.

Nvidia and Ooredoo did not disclose the value of the deal, which was signed on the sidelines of the TM Forum in Copenhagen on June 19.

Ooredoo also would not disclose exactly what type of Nvidia technology it will be installing.