On August 13, President Shavkat Mirziyoyev reviewed a presentation detailing measures for the development of startup projects in the fields of artificial intelligence (AI) and information technology (IT).

Uzbekistan is rapidly advancing its information technology sector, with these technologies being applied across various industries. As a result, the volume of digital services has increased by 21 trillion soums during the first half of this year and is projected to reach 43 trillion soums by year-end. The sector has also exported services worth $367 million. The number of IT Park residents grew by 577, exceeding 2,000, and the workforce in this sector now includes 32,000 young professionals.

This year, over 100 digitization projects are being implemented in areas such as healthcare, energy, transportation, education, agriculture, water management, and construction.

As the world rapidly changes, artificial intelligence and digital technologies are increasingly influencing every sector. In this context, Uzbekistan has initiated several projects. For instance, the "MyID" and "UzFace" programs have been introduced in over 70 organizations, banks, electronic trading platforms, and payment systems, enabling the remote biometric identification of 10 million users. Additionally, "Uzbekcosmos" has utilized artificial intelligence to detect approximately 43,000 cases of illegal underground resource exploitation and unauthorized construction.

The presentation highlighted measures for the development of AI technologies in healthcare, agriculture, banking, taxation, and customs. It was emphasized that establishing a legislative framework for artificial intelligence is crucial. The development of a strategy for AI implementation, along with a two-year project program, was also mandated. Additionally, plans to organize a center for AI technologies were set in motion.

The expansion of AI use in the banking and financial sectors, as well as the training and upskilling of personnel, was particularly emphasized. Currently, four universities in Uzbekistan are training specialists in artificial intelligence. However, there is an immediate demand for 600 specialists in big data processing and language models, a demand expected to double in the coming years. For this reason, it was noted that training specialists to meet the sector’s needs is of paramount importance.
President Mirziyoyev stressed that all leading global IT companies began as startups, and Uzbekistan is also taking its first steps in this direction. Last year, the country attracted $134 million in venture investments for startup projects.

The President emphasized the importance of creating a conducive environment for venture investments to finance startup projects. Consequently, directives were issued to develop the startup ecosystem and implement mechanisms for venture financing.