February 11, 2026
islamabad – Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Monday announced the government’s plan to invest $1 billion in artificial intelligence (AI) by 2030.
Indus AI Week 2026 will be held from February 9th to Sunday, February 15th. The event’s website describes it as “Pakistan’s official national platform for artificial intelligence, bringing together policy, innovation, talent and investment.”
“The government of Pakistan has committed to investing $1 billion in AI by 2030. This will go a long way in building an AI ecosystem in our country,” the Prime Minister said while addressing the opening ceremony of the event in Islamabad.
Announcing further steps the country aims to take to catch up with modern technology, Prime Minister Shehbaz said AI curriculum will be introduced in “all schools, not just all federally administered or federally run schools” in Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) and Gilgit-Baltistan (GB).
He stressed that the plan will also be implemented in remote areas of Balochistan to “connect youth with leadership and the digital economy.”
The Prime Minister further said that the government will provide 1,000 fully-funded PhD scholarships in the field of AI to students across the country by 2030, and said the aim is to build a “well-equipped world-class research center” in Pakistan.
“Last but not least, we are launching a nationwide program to train one million non-IT professionals in AI skills, enabling them to increase their productivity and improve their lives,” he added.
Prime Minister Shehbaz asserted that “Pakistan is absolutely ready to accept this challenge and walk with our global partners, and we will definitely do so with great determination and dedication.”
He elaborated that agriculture, mining and minerals will be among the focus areas, adding that the government aims to empower the youth, who constitute 60% of the country’s total population.
“We have to give them the latest knowledge and the latest technology. IT start-ups and IT technicians are already very concerned, feeling the heat and the challenge,” he said, assuring that the government would introduce programs to transform them from “IT technicians to AI experts”.
He added that this would lead to unprecedented increases in agricultural yield, quality and efficiency, as well as enable industrial growth and women’s empowerment.
The government approved the National AI Policy in July 2025, which aims to democratize access to artificial intelligence, strengthen public services, and open new avenues for jobs and innovation.
However, the implementation of this policy has been stalled for more than six months since its approval due to the government’s decision to amend the composition of the AI Council and lack of response from state governments.
The only pillar of the national AI policy currently in place is building “awareness and preparedness.” Officials claim that Indus AI Week is the first step in this regard.
“It’s nothing short of a game changer.”
At the outset of his speech, the prime minister said Indus AI Week “will not only change Pakistan’s technology landscape, it will be truly transformative.”
“Together with our most friendly and fraternal countries, we will embark on this common path with great commitment and enthusiasm,” he added.
Shehbaz stressed that the government of his brother and former prime minister Nawaz Sharif is “trying its best to meet modern challenges in line with modern requirements.”
He recalled that as the then Chief Minister of Punjab, his government undertook various initiatives that were “very relevant and important in education, health, revenue promotion and encouragement of the youth”.
The Prime Minister highlighted that the Punjab government had launched a laptop distribution scheme in schools and colleges in the state in 2010. He further said that the government had introduced electronic libraries and electronic stamp paper, but the latter was intended to generate “additional revenue siphoned off through collusion.”
Shehbaz also pointed out that the computerization of Punjab’s land records was done in “excellent collaboration with the World Bank to eliminate corrupt revenue officials.”
“They were bringing bags into the office, they were tampering with records, and money was being exchanged by hand. All this has been completely stopped with full digitization,” he claimed.
The Prime Minister highlighted that the country’s first Safe City project, which uses CCTV cameras to reduce crime, and the first IT university have been established in Lahore.
“We are here today having learned lessons from the past and today Pakistan is fully ready to join the world in the field of AI intervention,” he asserted.
Shehbaz also referred to the Federal Board of Revenue’s (FBR) digitization process, saying it has been “almost transformed” at this point.
“We are doing a great job. We have been controlling smuggling in Pakistan through various modern initiatives such as introducing scanners and other digital equipment installed at various ports of Pakistan,” he said.
“We are recovering lost money [and] Tax evasion occurred through collusion through these platforms. ”
“Our resolve is firm and unwavering. We will never look back and will continue to move forward until the day soon comes when Pakistan finds its destiny as a member of the nations.”
Addressing the event, IT Minister Shaza Fatima Khawaja said Indus AI Week aims to strengthen collaboration between universities, governments and international companies, state-run APP reported.
He pointed out that the Pakistan Digital Authority is preparing a national digital master plan to guide the future transformation.
In his remarks, Planning Minister Ahsan Iqbal emphasized that the world has entered an era in which intelligence itself has become a factor of production, and countries compete not with products but with ideas, talent, data and technology.
He described AI as a bigger “disruptor” than electricity or the internet.
The minister said Pakistan’s technology journey began over two decades ago with an early IT policy, the establishment of the National Database and Registration Authority (Nadra), and major investments in advanced human capital.
