Kazakhstan secured $10 billion in AI infrastructure investment through a partnership involving NVIDIA and Firebird for regional capacity development.

Kazakhstan has signed $10 billion worth of agreements with U.S. AI infrastructure company Firebird and NVIDIA to develop large-scale artificial intelligence infrastructure. Following a June 16 meeting chaired by Prime Minister Olzhas Bektenov, the agreements establish the groundwork for the Data Center Valley project in Ekibastuz, designed to transform Kazakhstan into a regional hub for AI computing, cloud services and digital infrastructure. The initiative will include the construction of advanced data centers and deployment of a computing cluster powered by 100,000 next-generation graphics processing units, including NVIDIA's GB300 and Vera Rubin chips.

According to Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Artificial Intelligence and Digital Development Zhaslan Madiyev, the project is expected to generate at least $3 billion in annual export revenue while creating high-skilled jobs and attracting global technology companies. The initiative reflects President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev's designation of 2026 as the Year of Digitalization and Artificial Intelligence, as well as the recently approved Digital Qazaqstan strategy. Prime Minister Bektenov stated, "Our goal is to create a platform capable of hosting global digital infrastructure."

Energy availability emerged as a critical factor in site selection. NVIDIA Vice President Rev Lebaredian emphasized that computing infrastructure depends on abundant power supplies, saying, "Kazakhstan has energy. Because the country has it in abundance and can generate even more, it is an excellent place to start." Firebird Chief Executive Officer Razmig Hovaghimian noted the company's planned 2027 launch could position Kazakhstan among the world's top ten countries in AI infrastructure.

The agreements include a strategic cooperation framework between the Ministry of Artificial Intelligence and Digital Development and Firebird to support the country's AI ecosystem and establish Firebird Labs Kazakhstan at Alem.ai. A separate agreement between Kazakhtelecom and Firebird outlines technical and organizational cooperation on the Data Center Valley project. If completed as planned, the initiative would become one of the largest digital infrastructure projects in Central Eurasia and a key pillar of Kazakhstan's efforts to diversify its economy beyond traditional resource exports.