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Du doubles down on AI, cloud and network investment for H2 growth
Du's CEO said the company will continue investing in its mobile and fibre networks while also expanding its data centre business as part of its long-term investment strategy
- PUBLISHED: Mon 27 Jul 2026, 6:00 AM
Dubai telecom operator du will continue investing heavily in artificial intelligence infrastructure, cloud services, fibre networks and data centres during the second half of 2026 as demand from businesses accelerates, even after regional geopolitical tensions weighed on market activity earlier this year.
Speaking to Khaleej Times, Du chief executive Fahad Al Hassawi said the company sees enterprise ICT services as one of its biggest growth opportunities for the remainder of the year, driven by the UAE's push to accelerate AI adoption across the economy.
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"The ICT business continues to show very strong growth in the market," Al Hassawi said. "AI adoption and AI transformation, which is led by the government, is creating very strong demand for cloud adoption, agentic AI and GPU usage. I see a strong momentum happening there, and I hope it will continue further in the year."
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He said the company will maintain its long-term investment strategy despite the softer operating environment that emerged from March following heightened geopolitical tensions in the region.
"We will continue investing in the mobile network and the fibre network. This is an area where we will not reduce our investment," he said. "Data centre expansion will also continue. We take a longer-term view of our investments because they are crucial to sustaining growth, not just this year but over the coming years."
Resilience amid regional conflict
Al Hassawi said the company plans its investments over a three-to-five-year horizon and has no intention of scaling back projects that support future growth.
The CEO said Du's resilience during the first half was underpinned by its strong customer base, robust enterprise connectivity business and disciplined cost management.
"We had to see some slowness starting from March because of the geopolitical situation. Nevertheless, despite this slowdown, we were still able to generate growth and deliver good performance," he said.
Enterprise connectivity, particularly broadband and fibre services, exceeded expectations during the period, while effective cost controls and improvements in gross margins helped support profitability despite weaker market conditions.
"The products doing extremely well are connectivity. Broadband services and fibre are performing very well on the enterprise side," he said.
Customer service continuity is priority
To ensure uninterrupted services during the regional challenges, du activated contingency plans focused on network resilience and customer service continuity.
"Our challenge was to make sure customers continued to receive the best service without interruption. We activated a well-thought-out resilience plan across the network and customer operations, and the team successfully ensured a seamless experience," Al Hassawi said.
The telecom company reported resilient financial results for the first half of 2026 despite the slowdown that emerged during the second quarter.
Revenue for the six months, ending June 30, rose 5.8 per cent year-on-year to Dh8.2 billion, while EBITDA increased 10.5 per cent to Dh4.03 billion, lifting the EBITDA margin to 49.2 per cent from 47.1 per cent a year earlier. Net profit climbed 12.6 per cent to Dh1.63 billion.
During the second quarter, revenue increased 4.6 per cent to Dh4.08 billion, while net profit rose 9.8 per cent to Dh798 million despite softer trends that emerged from March. The board also approved an interim cash dividend of Dh0.26 per share, up 8.3 per cent year-on-year.
Looking ahead, Al Hassawi said du expects enterprise demand for AI, cloud and connectivity solutions to remain strong while continuing to deepen relationships with its existing customer base.
"Our customer base is showing a lot of resilience," he noted. "We will continue offering the best products in the market and increase the range of services we provide. Our business model has proven resilient, and we have shown that we can adapt to challenges while continuing to create value."
Hind Aldah is a business reporter based in Sharjah. In her spare time, you will find her playing classical guitar, painting amateur oil paintings, or crocheting the same old scarf that leads nowhere.