Digitalization today has become something close to a new currency. In the way that industrialization once determined the power and prosperity of nations, the ability to build and harness digital systems now underpins economic growth, political influence, and national security. Governments across the world are racing to expand their digital infrastructure and artificial intelligence (AI) capabilities. Yet there is a real risk that in the scramble to be first, ethical boundaries are neglected, inequality widens, and technological sovereignty is compromised.
It is here that middle powers like Kazakhstan are seeking to carve out a different role. Their approach is not to compete directly with Silicon Valley or Shenzhen. Instead, they are positioning themselves as responsible players in shaping the norms of digitalization and AI. At the Digital Bridge forum in Astana, President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev framed Kazakhstan’s digital ambitions around both opportunity and responsibility.
“The world has entered the era of artificial intelligence,” Tokayev said. “Our task is to direct these new technologies for the benefit of humanity as key drivers of progress and cooperation.” He drew a deliberate historical parallel to Kazakhstan’s decision in the early 1990s to renounce nuclear weapons. “Today, our country speaks with equal conviction: artificial intelligence must be used only for peaceful purposes.”
Tokayev’s speech was the centerpiece of Digital Bridge, Central Asia’s largest technology forum. Several initiatives were unveiled that highlight both Kazakhstan’s ambitions and its challenges. Telegram founder Pavel Durov announced that Telegram will open an AI lab at the Alem.ai International Center in Astana, with its first project linking to Kazakhstan’s national supercomputer cluster. This represents a notable vote of confidence from one of the digital world’s most influential entrepreneurs, and a recognition of Kazakhstan’s strategy to provide advanced infrastructure for global projects.
Another innovation was the launch of SKAI, an AI-powered independent member of the Board of Directors of Samruk-Kazyna, Kazakhstan’s sovereign wealth fund. Powered by Kazakhstan’s own large language model (Alem LLM) and operating on the domestic AlFarabium-2 supercomputer, SKAI is the first system of its kind in the region to hold formal voting rights. Its role is to provide data-driven insights to improve transparency and decision-making. If successful, it could mark a step change in how corporate governance integrates with AI, though questions remain about how human and algorithmic judgment will balance in practice.
A State-Led Digital Transformation
Kazakhstan’s approach is ambitious. Tokayev set a target that the country should become a fully digital state within three years, with all public services digital by default, and regulatory acts subject to mandatory digital review. To drive this transformation, a new Ministry of Artificial Intelligence and Digital Development has been established. Complementing this institutional push are investments in infrastructure, including a second national supercomputer cluster, and new institutions such as the country’s first AI research university and the Alem.ai Center, described by Tokayev as a “factory of ideas and innovations.”
The strategy prioritizes human capital. Through the AI-Sana program, more than 440,000 students have already received AI certificates, while the government is developing digital student profiles to personalize education pathways. Tokayev insists that AI in education must enhance, not replace, fundamental learning. “AI should reinforce the educational process, not replace its fundamental foundations,” he said, calling for safeguards to protect ethical standards, cultural identity, and national values.
What makes Kazakhstan’s approach noteworthy is the way it places ethics and sovereignty at the center of its digital ambitions. Tokayev warned that technologies must not deepen inequality. “Justice means that technology must serve all, not only chosen ones,” he said. The Kazakh President has called for a Global Dialogue on AI Governance under the auspices of the United Nations, aligning Kazakhstan with international debates on how AI should be regulated. He welcomed partner initiatives, including China’s proposal for a Global Organization for AI Cooperation. In doing so, Kazakhstan positions itself as an advocate for inclusive frameworks that ensure equal access to advanced technologies. By echoing the language of disarmament in the AI debate – “artificial intelligence must be used only for peaceful purposes” – Tokayev seeks to project Kazakhstan as a normative player in global governance.
There are clear opportunities here. Kazakhstan has the chance to establish itself as a regional hub for AI and digitalization, attracting investment and talent, while also shaping international discussions on governance and ethics. Initiatives like Alem.ai, the AI university, and SKAI could produce genuine first-mover advantages.
Kazakhstan’s challenge will be to balance state direction with space for entrepreneurial initiative. Ambitions to digitize every service, create comprehensive digital profiles, and integrate AI into governance will test institutional capacity. While initiatives such as the “once-only principle” – ensuring citizens’ data is not repeatedly requested – aim to reduce bureaucracy, they will also require safeguards to protect privacy and prevent misuse.
Nevertheless,what emerges is a picture of a country that is not simply trying to “catch up” with the digital leaders of the world, but to define its own path. Kazakhstan wants to be more than a consumer of global technology; it wants to help shape the rules of the game.
The next few years will be decisive. If Kazakhstan succeeds in building a balanced ecosystem – one that combines state direction with entrepreneurial dynamism, ethical safeguards with innovation, and domestic sovereignty with international engagement – it could emerge as a model for how middle powers navigate the digital age.
In a world where digitalization is the new industrialization, and data the new currency, Kazakhstan is betting that it can make its mark through moral authority and strategic positioning. That is a gamble worth watching.
