Stanford published a study on the development of artificial intelligence in Tajikistan
From now on, the history of the new artificial intelligence (AI) industry in Tajikistan is part of Stanford's master's degree program.
Silkroad Innovation Hub, a startup center located in the heart of Silicon Valley, hosted a case study presentation written by a Stanford Graduate School of Business research team led by Professor Gloria Lee and Master's student Shadman Uddin.
The speakers were Azizjon Azimi, founder and CEO of zypl.ai, Chairman of the Council on Artificial Intelligence under the Ministry of Industry and New Technologies of the Republic of Tajikistan, Gloria Lee, Professor at Stanford University, and David Halpert, a famous American investor and founder of the Battery Road Digital Holdings venture fund.
The presentation was attended by over 60 Stanford students and professors. The case study reveals the history of the formation of the AI industry in Tajikistan through the prism of three organizations that laid the foundation for AI: the fintech startup zypl.ai, the AI Council and the public organization tajrupt.
The case begins with an analysis of a Harvard University master's thesis that argued for the need for an AI industry in Tajikistan in 2020-21. The authors note that the main argument for focusing on AI was the risk of a middle-income trap that Tajikistan could face as a result of rapid growth due to industrialization.
The risk was an outflow of capital and investment to less developed countries in the near future, when Tajikistan would have reached middle-income levels.
By investing early in AI and machine learning technologies, Tajikistan could build a long-term source of economic growth with the potential to attract foreign investment.
The authors provide facts about the realization of this plan through the history of the formation of the AI Academy from tajrupt. Training over 150 AI engineers in 2021-22 has created a talent base to launch AI-based developments.
The case study authors consider zypl.ai, a fintech that deploys AI-based software to optimize credit scoring, as an anchor example of the creation of an AI industry. Launched in 2021, zypl.ai has successfully entered 12 markets around the world - from the Czech Republic and the UAE, to Indonesia and the U.S. - winning 35 banks as customers for its software.
$130 million loan portfolio and headquarters in Dubai
According to the Stanford group, zypl.ai has proven the scalability of AI algorithms produced in Tajikistan by reaching the mark of more than $1 million in AI-based software exports.
Along the way, zypl.ai has attracted over $3 million in investments from foreign investors including Commercial Bank International (an innovative Emirati bank), Plug & Play (a leading global startup gas pedal), Tumar Fund (World Bank and the Government of Kazakhstan), Battery Road Digital Holdings Fund (USA), Alokabank (Uzbekistan) and others.
More than $130 million of the loan portfolio was originated by financial institutions that implemented software from zypl.ai with PAR30+ delinquency rates of less than 1%.
With a current valuation of $25 million, zypl.ai recently announced the opening of its new headquarters at the AI & Web3 campus of Dubai International Financial Center (DIFC) thanks to receiving an innovative license from DIFC to operate in the UAE.
Meanwhile, zypl.ai maintains its AI labs in Dushanbe and Khujand and plans to launch an additional two new labs in other parts of the country by the end of 2024.
And about plans...
The case also tells the story of the preparation and subsequent signing by the head of state of the National Strategy for the Development of Artificial Intelligence until 2040, the first National AI Strategy in Central Asia.
As part of the case study development, the research team conducted dozens of interviews with direct participants of AI development processes in the country, including the Minister of Industry of New Technologies of the Republic of Tajikistan Sherali Kabir, as well as instructors and graduates of the AI Academy.
Azizjon Azimi shared future plans for the implementation of the National AI Strategy - from introducing the subject AI Fundamentals in all schools of the country by 2027 to training 500 highly qualified AI engineers with export orientation of their developments in 2024-25. The vision of the future AI hub in Dushanbe: Area AI.
In the next five years, the plan is to create the infrastructure for a leap in AI, encompassing a green data center, R&D development of new applications of AI algorithms and attracting global technology corporations to launch local AI labs.
The event was also attended by alumni of tajrupt's educational programs who are studying at leading US universities including Stanford, Duke and Dartmouth with full scholarships. Their stories epitomized the mission of transforming the human potential of youth into the human capital of the country through AI development.