News

Talent will remain the primary asset in the era of artificial intelligence (AI), while human value will shift from routine execution to creativity. Freedom Holding Corp. CEO Timur Turlov shared this perspective with President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev and participants in a plenary session on the future of filmmaking at the Digital Bridge forum in Astana on Oct. 2.

According to Turlov, hosting an AI film festival is a bold move that could help set standards for this emerging industry as it takes shape.

«Astana has hosted dozens of technology events, but today’s event is truly unique because...

Plunging global agricultural prices significantly increase the risk of civil war in developing countries, according to a column by economist Antonio Ciccone published by the Centre for Economic Policy Research (CEPR). Analyzing extensive data from 118 low- and middle-income countries between 1957 and 2007, Ciccone finds that a one-standard-deviation drop in international agricultural commodity prices increases the risk of civil war onset by about 30% globally and by 45% in sub-Saharan Africa.

The findings address a major discrepancy in development economics over the relationship between commodity market shocks and internal conflict. While previous research found that...

The first direct flight between Almaty and Tokyo operated by Kazakhstan’s flag carrier Air Astana is scheduled for Nov. 30. Kursiv LifeStyle looks at the details.

Flights will operate twice a week to Narita International Airport on Airbus A321LR aircraft, with both economy and business class available.

Flight KC171 flight from Almaty to Tokyo will depart on Mondays and Thursdays at 9:55 p.m. and arrive in the Japanese capital at 9:25 a.m. the following day. The return flight, KC172, will depart Tokyo on Tuesdays and Fridays at 10:55 a.m. and arrive in Almaty at 4:20 p.m.

The flight from Almaty...

Ferro-Alloy Resources, a Guernsey-registered company listed on the London Stock Exchange (LSE) and the Astana International Exchange (AIX), has raised £4.7 million through a share issue. The proceeds will be used to repay bonds and develop the Balasausqandiq vanadium deposit in southern Kazakhstan, according to Finmentor.kz, citing a company statement.

Ferro-Alloy Resources issued 137.65 million new shares at 3.4 pence each — a 23.1% discount to the closing price — on the LSE and the AIX. The placement was conducted without brokers.

Overall, the company raised £4.7 million, or approximately $6 million. The lion’s share of the proceeds...

Kazakhstani banks can now set the validity period for bank cards issued to foreigners at their own discretion, Oninvest reported. Previously, such cards were subject to a 12-month limit. The changes took effect as part of amendments to the internal control rules aimed at preventing the legalization of criminal proceeds and the financing of terrorism.

In addition, foreigners without a residence permit or permanent residence permit will no longer be automatically classified as high-risk customers solely because of their non-resident status.

Kazakhstan’s Agency for Regulation and Development of the Financial Market (ARDFM...

Viewing the war in Ukraine through Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s lens — through the narrative he presents — is wrong. It is wrong for history. “Zelenskyy is building a dictatorship in my country — in Ukraine,” said Ilya Novikov, a prominent Russian lawyer who became a Ukrainian citizen in 2024, in an interview with journalist Yury Dud.

Criticism of Zelenskyy

«Zelenskyy is a petty, vindictive guy,» Novikov remarked, asserting that the Ukrainian president imposes personal sanctions not only on Russians, such as cat trainer clown (!) Yuri Kuklachev, but also on Ukrainian citizens who criticize...

Germany’s METRO wholesale chain will exit the Kazakhstani market after 16 years of operations. The company will close its six stores by March 2027, according to a statement.

The company said the decision followed an assessment of METRO’s business prospects in Kazakhstan conducted over the past few months. It said it struggled to build a solid foundation for sustainable growth in the local market, despite the local team improving its customer offering and adapting its operations to the market.

METRO Kazakhstan currently employs 650 people. The company said that throughout the closure process, it will treat...

Digital twins can help mining companies reduce waiting time, improve equipment utilization and lower fuel use, while enabling manufacturers to identify costly mistakes while they are still digital, according to Rev Lebaredian, NVIDIA’s vice president of physical AI simulation, who shared his vision with Kursiv.

He cited a scenario typical for Kazakhstan: an open-pit mining company operating dozens of vehicles at a remote site. By using applications built with NVIDIA Omniverse libraries, a company can bring together its site layouts, equipment and operating data in a digital twin.

This model would allow engineers to explore how trucks move between loading...

The Silk Road Electronics plant in Saran, Karaganda region, plans to expand its operations and begin manufacturing ultrasound diagnostic systems. The facility currently produces Samsung home appliances, including televisions and washing machines.

The project’s partner is South Korean company Samsung Medison, which specializes in medical ultrasound systems. Its equipment is used in radiology, cardiology, obstetrics and gynecology.

Read also: Seoul’s shadow economy: How Kazakhs are filling the gap for $100 a day.

Production of the ultrasound systems will be introduced in stages. The plant plans to install the necessary...

Uzbek fintech company Alif Moliya is preparing to issue Islamic sukuk in Kazakhstan, economist Arman Batayev said. To facilitate the issuance, a special-purpose company, Alif Moliya Sukuk SPC Ltd., was registered at the Astana International Financial Centre (AIFC) on Sept. 3. It will serve as the issuance vehicle for the securities.

Alif Moliya’s position in Uzbekistan

Tashkent-based Alif Moliya has operated in the Uzbek market since 2019 and is part of the international Alif Capital Group, based in the United Kingdom. The company is a major regional player in e-commerce and consumer finance...

Shipments of Kazakhstani grain to Afghanistan increased 4.4-fold in the first eight months of 2026, reaching 655,000 tons, according to Deputy Minister of Transport Zhanibek Taizhanov.

Read also: Cheap Russian grain threatens Kazakhstani farmers’ key markets.

Kazakhstan transported 9.3 million tons of grain by rail during the period, up 13% from the same period in 2025. Of that total, 7.2 million tons were shipped for export, while 2.1 million tons were transported for the domestic market.

Growth was recorded on several routes:

It seems law enforcement is now turning its attention not only to little-known streamers but also to popular bloggers. Two TikTok creators were sentenced to five days of administrative arrest each after posting videos containing profanity.

Almaty police came across the videos while monitoring TikTok. The clips featured two young men using swear words and offensive language, although the creators presented the material as humorous content.

Artificial intelligence developer OpenAI has hired hundreds of human contractors to read, rate and critique real user conversations with ChatGPT, according to an investigation by Joseph Cox of 404 Media. The report highlights potential data privacy risks for the chatbot’s 900 million users, many of whom use the platform as a personal assistant, therapist or digital confidant without realizing that human reviewers may analyze their prompts.

OpenAI uses an automated filter designed to remove personal information before data is sent to reviewers. However, the company has acknowledged that the system can miss private references...

On Sept. 24, the exhibition “Jetyqaraqsi” (“Big Dipper”) opened at the Egin Artspace in Almaty, exploring time, distance and space through the work of renowned Kazakhstani artist Askhat Akhmedyarov.

At the gallery entrance, visitors were greeted by a large installation made of kazans — traditional cast-iron cauldrons — bolted together. The kazan holds profound significance in Kazakh culture as a vessel traditionally used to prepare food and gather people around the hearth.

The artist told Kursiv LifeStyle that he created a massive necklace from kazans of various sizes. Having grown up in Western Kazakhstan, he...

Freedom Holding Corp. lawyers are reviewing a lawsuit filed by the Prosecutor General’s Office of the Russian Federation, the company’s press service told Kursiv.

«We do not conduct business or hold assets within the territory of the Russian Federation. We are examining the case and reviewing the materials. We are bewildered,» the Freedom Holding press service said.

According to records from Moscow’s Tverskoy District Court, the administrative lawsuit was registered on Sept. 24.

The lawsuit was filed by Russia’s deputy prosecutor general, although its details have not been disclosed.

Among the administrative defendants are...

Digital learning is transforming education from a stage of life reserved for youth into a lifelong necessity in an increasingly connected world. A recent ranking by World Population Review highlights how online platforms are expanding rapidly across diverse economies, driven by widespread smartphone access, surging demand for practical tech skills and shifting demographics.

Analysts estimate the international digital education market could surpass $500 billion within the next decade, fundamentally reshaping careers, global economies and workforce opportunities.

Rapid expansion across developing nations

Developing economies are experiencing the fastest digital learning growth, often leapfrogging traditional...

Azerbaijan’s Ministry of Digital Development and Transport and SpaceXAI have signed a memorandum of understanding to explore the use of artificial intelligence (AI) in government services and the country’s broader digital transformation, Azernews reported.

Under the agreement, the two sides will assess potential applications of AI solutions based on SpaceXAI’s Grok models across government institutions. If certain solutions prove successful, Azerbaijan could introduce them more widely across the public sector.

The cooperation will also cover knowledge sharing, skills development and efforts to strengthen local expertise in AI and related digital technologies.

According to Azerbaijani Deputy Minister of...

Carlsberg Kazakhstan has officially opened a new non-alcoholic beverage plant in Boraldai, a settlement in the Almaty region, with $344 million invested in the facility. The plant will produce beverages under a license from PepsiCo and will have an annual production capacity of up to 1 billion liters.

The beverages will be sold in Kazakhstan and exported to other CIS countries. Kyrgyzstan has previously been named one of the export destinations.

«Despite the considerable geographical distance between Kazakhstan and Denmark, this does not pose an obstacle to our cooperation. The opening of...

In September, Kazakhstan’s manufacturing sector reported the steepest decline in new orders in four and a half years. The Freedom Holding Corp. Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) remained below the critical threshold, signaling a sharp deterioration in business conditions.

Manufacturing contraction and logistics issues

The PMI stood at 46.4 points in September, up slightly from 46.0 points in August. The index has remained in contraction territory — below the 50-point mark — for nine consecutive months. Survey respondents reported a rapid decline in production volumes and a drop in employment, with the latter trend continuing for the eighth straight month...

The retail investor has changed over the past 20 years. Today, simple access to stock trading is no longer enough; investors need analytics, ecosystem services and smart AI assistants. In an interview with Kursiv.media, Aleksei Maksimkin, managing director for client business development strategy at Freedom Investments, spoke about how the company segments its nearly 400,000 clients, why it pays for their taxi rides, why it discourages newcomers from trading aggressively and how IRONMAN triathlon training helps with capital management.

— You have been working in the stock market for about 20 years. How has the brokerage client changed during that...

Ye (Kanye West) concerts in St. Petersburg have been officially canceled. Kursiv LifeStyle looks at the details.

Concert organizer SAY Agency posted an official statement on Telegram. The agency said ticket refunds will be available starting Oct. 12. Details of the refund process are expected to be announced later.

«Say Agency is very grateful to everyone who has been with us over the past month and a half, supported us, worried and wholeheartedly waited for these concerts, as we did. We remain in touch and continue to work,» the...

Sokol International Circuit management discussed the prospects of hosting FIA events in Kazakhstan during the FIA Asia-Pacific Congress, which is being held in the Philippines from Sept. 29 to Oct. 1.

Dastan Ibragimov of Sokol met with FIA President Mohammed Ben Sulayem in Boracay. The parties discussed possible FIA events in Kazakhstan, including at Sokol International Circuit.

The congress brings together around 120 representatives of FIA clubs from across the Asia-Pacific region. It is the federation’s final regional meeting of 2026. Participants exchange expertise and discuss the development of motorsport and mobility.

The agenda includes road...

The Abai Kazakh National Opera and Ballet Theatre performed at the ancient Aspendos Theatre in Turkey, presenting Aram Khachaturian’s ballet «Spartacus.» Kursiv LifeStyle looks at the performance set against the backdrop of the ancient stone stands.

The performance took place at the historic Aspendos Theatre. Its nearly 2,000-year-old stone stands were filled with spectators who came to watch the Kazakhstani troupe.

According to Kazakhstan’s Ministry of Culture, «Spartacus» performances drew around 30,000 attendees. The Abai Theatre took part in the 33rd International Aspendos Opera and Ballet Festival at the invitation of Turkey’s General Directorate of State...

Kazakhstan’s No. 2 tennis player Yulia Putintseva secured bronze at the 2026 Asian Games in Japan. In the singles semifinal, she lost 4-6, 2-6 to China’s Zhang Shuai.

For around an hour and a half, Putintseva tried to find a way past her second-seeded opponent. However, Zhang consistently outplayed the Kazakhstani at key moments.

This is Putintseva’s first medal at the Asian Games, as well as Kazakhstan’s first in women’s singles.

2026 Asian Games

Tennis. Oct. 1

Women’s singles. Semifinal

Yulia Putintseva (Kazakhstan, world No. 82) vs. Zhang Shuai (China, world No. 57) 4-6, 2-6