Abu Dhabi’s ADNOC and AI firm G42 plan tech joint venture AIQ IPO – sources

Hadir Al Sayeq

DUBAI (Reuters) – Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOC) and Abu Dhabi artificial intelligence firm G42 are in early discussions about a possible listing of their joint venture technology company AIQ, two sources familiar with the matter told Reuters.

AIQ, 60% owned by ADNOC and 40% by G42, leverages artificial intelligence and machine learning to optimize processes, improve planning and increase profitability at ADNOC and the wider oil and gas industry.

The company is considering an initial public offering by the end of the year, the sources said. The sources declined to be named as the matter has not been made public.

AIQ’s owners are debating whether to position the deal as an international deal or market the offering exclusively to domestic investors, they said.

AIQ recently hired veteran investment banker Youssef Salem as chief financial officer, the sources said. Salem spent five years at Moelis & Co and held various positions at the US boutique bank until 2021. He was then appointed as the bank’s external senior adviser until April this year.

ADNOC, which supplies nearly 3 percent of global oil demand, declined to comment. The G42, which is backed by Abu Dhabi state fund Mubadala Investment Company, AIQ and Salem, did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Shares in the artificial intelligence company helped lead the U.S. market this year after OpenAI, the U.S. company that owns ChatGPT, a chatbot capable of remarkably human-like responses to user queries, secured a multibillion-dollar investment from Microsoft Corp. The stock market rose. .

The G42 is part of the business empire overseen by its chairman, Sheikh Tahnoon bin Zayed al-Nahyan, who is also the UAE’s national security adviser and has been its Brother, foreign policy problem solver for President Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed al-Nahyan.

ADNOC started floating operations in 2017. The company raised $2.5 billion in an initial public offering and listed its natural gas business in March, the world’s largest IPO in the first quarter.

(Reporting by Hadir Al Sayeh; Editing by Stephen Coates)