October 29, 2025
In a significant step to advance its digital economy, President Shavkat Mirziyoyev has inaugurated the second phase of the IT Park Uzbekistan innovation complex in Tashkent, officials announced on Tuesday.
The expansion marks a strategic pivot towards artificial intelligence (AI) and large-scale data infrastructure. During the launch, Minister of Digital Technologies Sherzod Xotamovich confirmed to Uzbekistan 24 that AI integration is the central focus of the country's next digital development phase, a directive issued by President Mirziyoyev to build a nationwide innovation ecosystem.
The new phase of IT Park is designed to host AI-focused startups and feature modern data centers equipped with high-performance graphic processors for large-scale data workloads. A cornerstone of this initiative is a 12-megawatt data center currently under construction by Saudi Arabian company DataVolt. Upon completion, it is slated to be the largest AI-dedicated data center in Central Asia.
DataVolt has signaled further substantial investment in the country, with plans for future data centers that could bring its total capacity in Uzbekistan to 500 megawatts. This ambitious rollout aims to position the nation as a leading regional hub for data storage and processing.
In a key strategic move, President Mirziyoyev identified the autonomous republic of Karakalpakstan as a prime location for energy-intensive digital projects. The government plans to transform the region into a large-scale data center hub, offering a suite of major incentives to attract investors committing over $100 million.
These incentives include tax breaks, dedicated infrastructure support, and a critically competitive preferential electricity tariff of five cents per kilowatt-hour. This rate is significantly lower than the current national average of approximately eight cents.
The initiative is part of a broader strategy to attract global technology giants, including Google, Microsoft, Meta, and Amazon, to establish data operations within Uzbekistan. The government believes this will solidify the country's status as a central digital hub in the region and accelerate the integration of AI across key economic sectors.
SOURCE timesca.com
