DUBAI: Amazon Web Services, the cloud computing arm of the Internet giant, said it will build data centers in the UAE in the first half of 2022 as it adds to its Middle East footprint.

The AWS Middle East (UAE) region will include three so-called Availability Zones, which consist of infrastructure in geographic locations that are far enough apart that they should not be impacted by a single event, while being close enough that they reduce latency for local customers, the company said in a statement.

AWS has 80 availability zones across 25 geographic locations globally, including the Middle East’s first in Bahrain. It plans to open 18 more availability zones across six geographies, including Australia, India, Indonesia, Spain, Switzerland and the UAE.

Each Availability Zone has independent power, cooling, and physical security, AWS said.

Companies already using AWS in the Middle East include Al Tayer Group, Aramex, AXA Gulf, Axiom Telecom, Emirates NBD, Flydubai, Gulf News, MBC Group, OSN, Seera Group, and Virgin Middle East.

Samaco Automotive Company, the premium car dealer for Audi, Bentley, Bugatti, Lamborghini, Porsche and Volkswagen, said this week it had become the first automotive dealer in the Kingdom to launch a customer service feature on the AWS and ThingLogix Solutions platforms.

However, AWS has competition in the form of regional industry upstarts such as Wasabi, which received a $25 million investment last week from Prosperity7 Ventures, a venture capital unit of Saudi Aramco.