Founder and CEO of NVIDIA Jensen Huang visited Kazakhstan for the first time and stated in Astana that the country is capable of becoming a major computing power center for the European market.

"This will be a hub, a computing hub, a hub of 'AI factories' for all of Europe," he said.

What the calculation is based on

Huang's argument relies on two factors: available energy resources and already announced data center expansion plans.

For artificial intelligence infrastructure, energy is a key constraint. A computing cluster consumes power comparable to an industrial enterprise, and the placement of such facilities is determined primarily by the availability of cheap power generation, not proximity to consumers.

What has been announced

Key projects in question:

  • together with American provider Firebird, investments in AI infrastructure totaling $10 billion were announced in June;
  • the planned computing cluster is designed for approximately 100 thousand graphics processors;
  • two supercomputer clusters based on NVIDIA technology have been launched in the country — President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev spoke about this.

Firebird itself plans to create about 2 GW of capacity in Armenia, Kazakhstan and several other countries — meaning Kazakhstan in this scheme is one of several nodes, not the only platform.

Projects in numbers

A separate direction is the industrial site Data Center Valley in Ekibastuz. Currently, 300 MW is available there, and after expansion, it is planned to reach 1 GW.

Company GK Hyperscale intends to build two hyperscale data centers with a combined capacity of 200 MW. Expected investment volume is $1.5 billion, and another $1.2 billion is planned to be directed to energy infrastructure. The launch of the first module is scheduled for 2027.

A ratio worth noting

The distribution of costs in the GK Hyperscale project is indicative: energy investments are comparable to data center investments.

This reflects the actual structure of such projects. Building a facility and delivering equipment is not the most difficult part; providing the facility with stable supply of hundreds of megawatts requires a separate investment program in power generation and networks.

Government framework

Kazakhstan's authorities have designated artificial intelligence as a national priority, and 2026 has been declared the Year of Digitalization and Artificial Intelligence.

Against this backdrop, private success stories emerge. Startup Higgsfield, whose teams number over 300 people in Kazakhstan, raised $400 million in August in a Series B round at a valuation of $5.4 billion.

What this means for the region

NVIDIA's CEO's statement is not a commitment to invest, but an assessment of potential. However, the fact of the visit and public rhetoric itself increases the region's visibility to global investors in technological infrastructure.

For Central Asia as a whole, this means competition for the same capital. Countries in the region have similar initial advantages — energy resources, available land, government readiness to support such projects. The winner is the one who faster provides real connected capacity and predictable conditions for operators.

Is this applicable to Uzbekistan

Comparable conditions exist here too: power generation expansion is actively discussed, foreign investors are entering the energy sector, and the diplomatic track with the USA in recent weeks has produced a notable package of agreements involving major technology and financial companies.

The difference is in the stage. In Kazakhstan, there are concrete sites with declared megawatts and launch dates, not just intentions.

For local investors, the practical takeaway is modest: companies behind AI infrastructure are not yet represented on Central Asian exchanges, so tracking stock prices of market participants can only be done on foreign platforms.

What to watch for

Indicators that will show whether announcements are moving to implementation:

  • actual introduction of connected capacity, not projected;
  • signing of equipment supply contracts;
  • conclusion of long-term electricity supply agreements;
  • launch of the first GK Hyperscale module on schedule.

Until these elements appear, projects remain at the planning stage — like most announcements in this segment across the region.

This material is informational and is not an investment recommendation.