Tashkent hosts GSMA M360 as Eurasia’s digital economy grows

By Euronews

Published connected 23/05/2025 - 9:42 GMT+2•Updated 9:46

The acme highlights nan increasing domiciled of integer technologies successful nan region’s economical improvement and coincides pinch nan merchandise of nan GSMA’s latest Mobile Economy Eurasia report. The study projects that mobile technologies will lend €238 cardinal to Eurasia’s system by 2030, balanced to 8.3% of nan region’s GDP. This forecast is driven by nan maturation of smartphone usage, expanded net access, and nan accelerating rollout of 5G networks.

The prime of Tashkent arsenic big metropolis reflects Uzbekistan’s rising floor plan arsenic a location integer leader. Since launching wide-ranging reforms successful 2017, nan state has opened up its economy, encouraged overseas investment, and promoted invention successful nan tech sector. Today, Uzbekistan is location to much than 9,700 ICT companies and 200,000 tech professionals, pinch services exported to 90 countries and a full turnover of €4.1 billion.

“Uzbekistan has undergone 1 of nan astir successful transformations successful nan world,” Kaan Terzioğlu, CEO of VEON, said. “With a organization of 40 cardinal and complete 1 cardinal babies calved each year, nan state is demographically beardown and afloat of potential.”

Vivek Badrinath, Director General of GSMA, stressed nan broader economical effect of mobile assemblage growth. “A $1 summation successful nan mobile system generates $6 successful GDP. When governments create investment-friendly environments and cardinal sectors for illustration banking aliases carrier merge mobile tech, nan benefits are shared by all,” he said.

A cardinal item of nan acme is nan unveiling of nan Kazakh Large Language Model, developed done a business betwixt Kazakh researchers, QazCode, nan Barcelona Supercomputing Center, and nan GSMA Foundry. The AI exemplary supports Kazakh, Turkish, English, and Russian, addressing a important spread successful section connection technologies.

Meanwhile, Uzbekistan continues to promote invention done initiatives for illustration nan Presidential $1 cardinal tech award, aimed astatine supporting start-ups and integer entrepreneurship. Sherzod Shermatov, Minister of Digital Technologies, pointed to caller app launches that merge IT, tourism, and business services - generating complete 2,000 world personification interactions successful conscionable 1 week.

Neighbouring Kazakhstan is besides advancing its integer infrastructure. Zhaslan Madiyev, Minister of Digital Development, Innovations, and Aerospace Industry, emphasised nan country's committedness to AI and integer infrastructure saying, “We are building our AI ecosystem pinch initiatives specified arsenic nan creation of a nationalist AI Center. This halfway will support research, education, and startups, playing a important domiciled successful nurturing nan full ecosystem.”

Despite advances immoderate challenges remain. According to nan GSMA, astir 80 cardinal group successful Eurasia stay offline, contempt having mobile web coverage. Addressing this "usage gap" will beryllium cardinal to ensuring inclusive integer maturation crossed nan region.

GSMA initiatives specified arsenic its collaboration pinch IBM — offering members entree to nan Watsonx.ai level — and associated efforts pinch nan European Space Agency connected Non-Terrestrial Networks, purpose to heighten connectivity and span nan integer divide.

As Tashkent takes nan spotlight during M360 Eurasia, Uzbekistan positions itself arsenic a cardinal subordinate successful shaping nan region’s integer early — 1 progressively defined by innovation, inclusion, and world cooperation.