Tashkent, Uzbekistan (UzDaily.com) — On 13 August, President Shavkat Mirziyoyev reviewed a presentation on measures for the development of artificial intelligence (AI) technologies and IT startups in Uzbekistan.

Uzbekistan is experiencing rapid growth in information technologies, which are being integrated into all sectors of the economy and social life. In the first months of this year, the volume of digital services exceeded 21 trillion soums, and by the end of the year, this figure is expected to reach 43 trillion soms. IT service exports totaled US$367 million. The number of IT park residents has increased by 577, surpassing 2,000, and the number of young professionals working in this field has reached 32,000.

This year, more than 100 digitalization projects are being implemented in areas such as healthcare, energy, transportation, education, agriculture, water management, construction, and others.

Artificial intelligence and digital technologies are actively being adopted across various sectors. Projects in this direction have also been initiated in the country. For instance, solutions like "My ID" and "UzFace" are used by over 70 organizations, banks, marketplaces, and payment systems, providing remote biometric identification for 10 million users. Additionally, "Uzbekcosmos" has used AI to identify about 43,000 cases of illegal resource use and unauthorized construction.

The presentation discussed measures for AI development in healthcare, agriculture, banking, tax, and customs sectors. The need to create a legislative framework for AI regulation was highlighted.

The President has instructed the development of an AI implementation strategy and a two-year project program, as well as the establishment of an Artificial Intelligence Technology Center.

Particular emphasis was placed on expanding the application of AI in the banking and financial sector, preparing specialized personnel, and improving staff qualifications.

Currently, AI-related training is offered at four universities, but there is a shortage of specialists, especially in big data processing and language models. Given the anticipated increase in demand for such specialists, the importance of training professionals according to industry needs was emphasized.

The President noted that to support startups, favorable conditions for venture investments need to be created. Accordingly, instructions were given for the development of the startup ecosystem and the implementation of venture financing mechanisms.