Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang Backs Kazakhstan as Central Asia’s Emerging AI Hub
ASTANA — Tech giants are turning their eyes toward Central Asia as Kazakhstan positions itself as a growing center for artificial intelligence and cloud computing. Nvidia Chief Executive Jensen Huang made his first trip to the nation on Friday, telling an audience in Astana that the country has the power capacity and resources to become a primary AI computing gateway for Europe.
Speaking alongside Zhaslan Madiyev, Kazakhstan’s deputy prime minister and minister of artificial intelligence and digital development, Huang emphasized that nations must construct domestic infrastructure to process AI services while preserving local languages and cultures. To support that shift, Kazakhstan’s government declared 2026 as the Year of Digitalization and Artificial Intelligence.
Multibillion-Dollar Infrastructure Bets
The government’s push is backed by massive capital commitments. In June, officials unveiled a $10 billion AI infrastructure venture with U.S. Cloud firm Firebird to construct a computing cluster equipped with 100,000 advanced GPUs, featuring Nvidia technology. Nvidia plans to invest in Firebird, which is targeting a 2-gigawatt expansion across Kazakhstan, Armenia, and neighboring regional markets.
Local infrastructure is already scaling up. Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev confirmed earlier this month that two supercomputing clusters running on Nvidia systems are operational. Key to the expansion is Data Center Valley in Ekibastuz, a facility with 300 megawatts of active power capacity that plans to grow to 1 gigawatt.
Singapore’s GK Hyperscale is also stepping in, signing a deal with the digital development ministry to build two hyperscale facilities representing a $1.5 billion project with 200 megawatts of IT capacity. The venture incorporates an additional $1.2 billion investment into regional power infrastructure, with construction slated for early 2026 and the first module set to open in 2027.
Venture Capital and Corporate Expansion
Venture investors are taking notice of the local talent pool. San Francisco-headquartered AI video startup Higgsfield maintains an engineering and creative footprint of over 300 staff members in the country. Company co-founder and Kazakhstani engineer Yerzat Dulat noted that “building a team in Kazakhstan was an unexpected bet for many. Today, we’re backed by some of the most influential names in technology and media.”
Higgsfield announced Friday that Nvidia and investment firm TCV participated in an extension of its Series B round for an undisclosed sum. That follows a $400 million Series B raise in August that valued the startup at $5.4 billion. “The first thing and the last thing is you invest in people, not companies. And the founders of Higgsfield are visionary in the work that they do,” Huang said during the Astana event.
Interest in the region extends beyond computing. German automaker Volkswagen announced in late June that its Chinese manufacturing hub would directly export vehicles to neighboring Uzbekistan before expanding operations into Kazakhstan weeks later. On the diplomatic front, members of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation recognized the nation’s technological progress in the “Tianjin Declaration” following their 2025 summit, pointing directly to the potential of Kazakhstan’s domestic AI innovation center.