The government is discussing a loan to finance technologies of the future. The total cost of the project is estimated at $149 million, half of which may be covered by the international institution.
What happened
The World Bank is negotiating with Kazakhstan to provide a loan for the development of artificial intelligence and Industry 4.0. The project documentation has already been published on the financial institution’s website, Inbusiness.kz reports.
A decision on approving the loan is expected in early September 2026. If the parties reach an agreement, implementation will begin in 2027 and last until the end of 2031. The Ministry of Digital Development, Innovations and Aerospace Industry will oversee the work.
Where the money will go
The budget is divided into three main blocks:
- $39.85 million will be directed to support startups. This includes assistance at stages from idea to seed funding, acceleration programs, and bringing projects to the international level. A portion of the funds will go to a venture fund to stimulate private investment in IT and green technologies.
- $30 million will be allocated for infrastructure and personnel. Plans include creating an AI Center, launching cloud platforms, opening robotics laboratories, and specialized training programs.
- $5.2 million is budgeted for project management, monitoring, and analyzing gaps in the innovation ecosystem.
The country and the market
Kazakhstan is actively declaring its plans to become a regional hub for artificial intelligence development. While the private sector is selectively implementing technologies — for example, Finteqstan previously wrote that Halyk Bank is preparing to launch its own AI assistant — the state needs to create a basic infrastructure. Without local cloud capacities and specialized professionals, scaling heavy neural networks at the national level is impossible.
A year earlier, the relevant ministry had already raised a World Bank loan of 42 billion tenge. At that time, the focus was on developing telecommunications infrastructure in rural areas.
Why it matters and what’s next
The state is taking on the financing of the most capital-intensive and risky stages: creating a computing base and supporting startups at the idea stage.
Now the market will have to follow the September negotiations. If the loan is approved, local IT companies and fintech startups will have a new major source of funding and access to computing power starting in 2027.