Countries around the world are searching for ways to use artificial intelligence to improve their national economies, and Kazakhstan is no exception. At a recent high-level meeting, Prime Minister Olzhas Bektenov ordered the creation of a “digital headquarters” to accelerate AI integration into Kazakhstan’s economy. 

This comes after President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev’s recent call to adopt AI as a driver for national growth and independence. Kazakhstan risks being left behind at a time when the United States and China are racing to achieve artificial general intelligence (AGI) by 2027. While Kazakhstan must consider how it hopes to implement its AI policy, it will also require the means to power its AI ambitions. The sustainable option? Nuclear energy. 

AI as a Strategic Imperative
 Forecasts from the UN Conference on Trade and Development put the global AI market at $4.8 trillion by 2033, with its share of the tech industry rising from 7% to 29%. The United States has unveiled its AI Action Plan, China is pushing for a global AI cooperation organization, and competition for both talent and capital is fierce. Tokayev wants Kazakhstan to join that race — not as a peripheral player, but as a Eurasian digital hub.

He acknowledged that Kazakhstan has made some progress in AI but criticized the slow pace of infrastructure, legal, and implementation efforts. The government, together with the Agency for Strategic Planning and Reforms, is now tasked with producing a pragmatic national AI strategy. The program will involve international experts and cover nine strategic areas — from deploying AI in industry and healthcare to building a sovereign digital ecosystem, upgrading cybersecurity, and preparing the labor market through large-scale training.

Tokayev also highlighted the importance of nurturing startups and attracting investment, noting that in 2024 nearly $100 billion went into AI ventures globally. He praised emerging Kazakh AI startups — some with unicorn potential — and called for export support measures and digital diplomacy to promote the country’s innovations abroad.

The Energy Question: Why Nuclear Power Matters

Behind the gleaming promise of AI lies an often-overlooked fact: AI runs on immense computational power, and computational power runs on electricity. Data centers, supercomputers, and machine learning clusters require not just abundant energy but also a stable, uninterrupted supply. For Kazakhstan, already a regional energy exporter, meeting that demand sustainably and securely is part of the strategic equation.

This is where nuclear power re-enters the conversation. Modern nuclear plants can provide large-scale, low-carbon baseload electricity — exactly what AI infrastructure requires. By linking AI development to nuclear expansion, Kazakhstan could position itself as a rare combination of digital innovator and clean energy provider in Eurasia.

In a referendum held last year, Kazakhstan voted in favor for the construction of a nuclear power plant. Russia’s state-owned nuclear energy company, ROSATOM, was selected to construct the country’s first nuclear power plant. Construction of the plant by ROSATOM is scheduled to begin in the near future with operations expected to start by the early 2030s.

Security and Sovereignty in the Digital Age

Tokayev tied AI advancement directly to national sovereignty. He warned of rising cybersecurity threats — from biometric identity theft to deepfake misinformation — and cited over 40 serious data leaks in Kazakhstan this year alone. He ordered a migration of all state and quasi-state systems to a sovereign digital platform and encouraged the use of secure domestic messengers like Aitu for official and personal data.

Education is equally central to his vision. The AI-Sana training program for students will be expanded, and teacher upskilling in AI will become mandatory. The goal: ensure that a generation fluent in AI is ready to lead the country into a future where digital capabilities are as strategic as oil or uranium reserves.

A Digital Hub with Regional Reach

For Kazakhstan, AI is more than an economic policy; it’s a tool for geopolitical relevance. As the country builds out its AI ecosystem, it also has the chance to anchor digital cooperation in Central Asia, leveraging its new UN Sustainable Development Goals Regional Center in Almaty and its growing role in multilateral fora. The combination of technological ambition, energy capacity, and diplomatic positioning could make Kazakhstan an unlikely but formidable player in the global AI order.