News

After nearly two years on the international film festival circuit, where it won several awards, Yelzat Yeskendir’s “Abel” has finally premiered in Kazakhstan — and gone straight into theatrical release.

Whether the film will find a broad audience remains an open question. “Abel” is a demanding work, particularly because its story is set in the early 1990s. Yet the issues it explores remain strikingly relevant today.

The film had its world premiere in the fall of 2024 at the prestigious Busan International Film Festival in South Korea, one of Asia’s leading film festivals.

A slow-burning...

The European Union is officially moving ahead with large-scale financing for the Trans-Caspian Transport Corridor. Brussels has announced up to €2 billion in strategic investments to strengthen connectivity between Europe and Central Asia.

The European Commission has launched the Connectivity Agenda Platform. Agreements with international financial institutions were signed in Brussels.

The strategic meeting was attended by European Commissioners Marta Kos, Jozef Síkela and Apostolos Tzitzikostas, as well as transport ministers and senior representatives from the G7 countries, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, Turkey, Ukraine, Armenia and Moldova.

The platform will coordinate investments and regulatory activities...

Kazakhstanis planning to study or relocate to South Korea will no longer need to travel abroad to prove their Korean language proficiency. The country’s first official center for the Sejong Korean Language Assessment (SKA) has opened in Kostanay.

Where can you take the Korean language exam in Kazakhstan?

The King Sejong Institute of Korean Language and Culture at Akhmet Baitursynov Kostanay Regional University has been designated an official testing center for the Sejong Korean Language Assessment (SKA), an internationally recognized Korean language proficiency exam.

According to Kazakhstan’s Ministry of Science and Higher Education, the King Sejong Institute Foundation selected...

Iñaki Godoy, the rising star best known for his role in Netflix’s adaptation of “One Piece,” is set to arrive at Astana Comic Con 2026 as the festival’s guest. Kursiv LifeStyle explains where fans can see the actor.

According to event organizers, the Mexican actor will be the second headliner and will take the main stage to answer questions. He will also take part in the photo and autograph sessions.

Godoy became famous after taking on the role of Monkey D. Luffy, the charismatic pirate captain in Netflix’s live-action adaptation of «One Piece,» based on the famous manga of the...

Russian rooftoppers Angela Nikolau and Ivan Kuznetsov, known as Ivan Beerkus, who climbed to the top of the Empire State Building to get engaged, were released following their first court hearing in New York City. Nevertheless, the criminal case against the couple is still underway. Kursiv LifeStyle explains how the couple is connected to Kazakhstan.

The court ordered the newlyweds’ release until the next hearing, scheduled for Aug. 24. They are facing accusations of burglary, criminal trespass and reckless endangerment. They left the courthouse holding hands and briefly told reporters, “We love New York.”

Nikolau and Beerkus have long been...

In Kyrgyzstan, the high-profile «Case of 75» has concluded. The main defendants in the case were Kamchybek Tashiev, former chairman of the State Committee for National Security (GKNB) of Kyrgyzstan, Nurlanbek Turgunbek uulu, former speaker of Parliament, and Kurmankul Zulushev, former prosecutor general.

All three were sentenced to four years in prison, with their property ordered confiscated. However, the court placed them on probation. The other five defendants who had been in custody since February: Aaly Karashev, Bekbolot Talgarbekov, Kurmanbek Dyikanbaev, Kursan Asanov and Emilbek Uzakbaev — were released in the courtroom immediately after the verdict was announced.

It’s worth...

A large-scale, world-class artificial intelligence cluster is set to be built in Kazakhstan. The project will be developed by the Ministry of Artificial Intelligence and Digital Development, the international corporation Citi and Freedom Holding Corp. The parties signed a trilateral memorandum of understanding on the sidelines of a Foreign Investors’ Council meeting chaired by President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev.

New infrastructure: Transition to GPU computing

The key objective of the partnership will be the construction of a data center equipped with advanced technologies that will serve as a «computing hub» for the public sector, business and science. The project is...

Kazakhstan plans to establish a Data Center Valley, with Amazon and G42 already planning to participate. President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev announced the initiative during a meeting of the Foreign Investors Council.

The president said the Digital Code, the Law on Artificial Intelligence, adopted by Parliament, and the Digital Qazaqstan strategy create favorable conditions for foreign investors.

Tokayev also said modern research laboratories are being established in partnership with Telegram and Presight, while artificial intelligence is being integrated across Kazakhstan’s education system.

“I recently signed a decree under which AI will become a central...

Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev met with the President of the Islamic Development Bank (IsDB) Muhammad Sulaiman Al Jasser, the Akorda press service reported.

During the meeting, President Tokayev noted that, over the years of cooperation, the IsDB has become a reliable partner in supporting Kazakhstan’s national development priorities.

According to Akorda, the IsDB Group has provided more than $4.2 billion in financing to Kazakhstan to date, while its portfolio of ongoing and planned projects exceeds $3 billion.

In this context, Tokayev expressed gratitude to the financial institution’s management for supporting strategically important projects in water infrastructure, transport connectivity and industrial...

As the artificial intelligence revolution accelerates, the tech industry is witnessing an unexpected shift in hiring priorities. While coding was once considered the essential skill of the digital age, The Economist reports that philosophy graduates are increasingly outperforming computer science majors in the job market. Many are being recruited by AI labs to provide the ethical and logical foundations for emerging AI models.

This “haemorrhaging” of philosophy departments into Silicon Valley is driven by the need to address fundamental problems associated with AI’s “immaturity,” including overconfidence and a lack of humility.

Ancient philosophy shapes modern AI

Philosophers...

Wisdom teeth are often considered the most troublesome teeth because they erupt later than the rest, can be difficult to treat and frequently cause discomfort. Aralbek Tasbulatov, a dentist and prosthodontist, explained why the jaw is not always prepared for the eruption of third molars and what risks they can pose.

Why wisdom teeth erupt later

Tasbulatov said teeth play a vital role in the digestive system because their primary function is to chew food. They are also essential for speech, while aesthetics are a secondary consideration.

Read also: Why millionaires...

Nine-year-old Kaisar Akhmetov has unexpectedly become a social media sensation in Kazakhstan after posting a humorous video about undergoing emergency surgery for testicular torsion. The clip has attracted more than 8 million views and 375,000 likes.

A painful ordeal told with humor

In the video, Kaisar calmly recounts how he developed severe pain after spending time relaxing at the beach.

At first, he assumed the problem was simply that his underwear was too tight and joked that he had complained to his mother because she hadn’t bought him new underwear in a long time.

By the following...

Manually managing a budget can be tedious. Recording every spending in Excel or a budgeting app often becomes a chore that many people abandon after just a week.

It’s no surprise that more people are turning to artificial intelligence to handle the task. Upload a bank statement, and an AI chatbot can quickly generate a spending analysis and financial plan. But how much should you trust the results?

What AI can do well

Audit subscriptions and recurring expenses

AI can analyze a bank statement and identify recurring monthly charges, such as subscriptions to Netflix or Apple services. It...

Meat and poultry prices rose 17.6% over the past year, making them the largest contributor to food inflation in Kazakhstan. Lamb, beef, and ground meat also remained the biggest drivers of price increases among socially important food products.

Read also: Soaring costs force Kazakhs to ditch meat and chocolate.

Overall, meat and poultry accounted for the largest share of inflation across all categories of goods and services, contributing 1.555 percentage points to the overall inflation rate of 10.3%.

According to price statistics for socially important food products, meat ranked among the...

France’s former striker Thierry Henry thinks England has to reflect on its performance after the comeback victory over DR Congo in the 2026 FIFA World Cup round of 32. He believes Thomas Tuchel’s team relies too heavily on Harry Kane’s individual brilliance and may face much more serious problems against Mexico in the next round.

England defeated DR Congo 2-1 despite falling behind as early as the seventh minute. The African side held the lead for a long time and came close to producing one of the biggest upsets of the knockout stage, but Kane turned...

Sony Interactive Entertainment announced it will discontinue physical releases of new PlayStation games. Starting in January 2028, all new titles will be available exclusively in digital format.

Games will be available for purchase through the PlayStation Store or via digital codes sold by retailers. As a result, 2027 will be the last year in which new PlayStation titles are released on disc.

At the same time, owners of physical copies have no reason to worry. All games released before 2028 will remain on sale, and consoles equipped with disc drives will continue...

Russian rooftoppers Angela Nikolau and Ivan Beerkus climbed to the top of one of the world’s most iconic skyscrapers, the Empire State Building in New York. At a height of 443 meters, the couple unfurled a banner bearing a quote about love and peace and then got engaged.

Atop the building’s antenna, Beerkus got down on one knee and proposed to Nikolau. She accepted and later shared a photo of her engagement ring on social media.

Before the proposal, the rooftoppers hung a black banner from the building’s antenna bearing the quote: “When the power of love overcomes the love...

The National Bank of Kazakhstan has granted the country’s first operating license to Astana-based cryptocurrency exchange service Pax Finance.

The license allows the company to officially buy, sell and hold digital assets, as well as establish exchange offices and install crypto ATMs. The exchange service will operate under Kazakhstan legislation.

Since May 1, 2026, a licensing system for digital asset market participants has been in place in Kazakhstan. Companies operating in the sector can obtain a license or complete account registration with the National Bank.

Pax Finance was...

European drivers continue to leave combustion-engine cars behind. Over the first five months of 2026, the EU car market grew by 4%, while the EV share reached 20% for the first time, the European Automobile Manufacturers Association (ACEA) reported.

Electric car popularity

From January to May 2026, around 950,500 new electric cars were registered. Their share of the market rose to 20% from 15.3% a year earlier. In other words, every fifth new car sold in the EU is battery-electric.

The strongest growth in demand was recorded in:

A member of Kazakhstan’s lower house of Parliament has warned about the uncontrolled circulation of surveillance devices and tracking systems in the country, arguing that some modern technologies pose growing risks to personal privacy.

In a parliamentary inquiry submitted earlier this year to Zhaslan Madiyev, Kazakhstan’s minister of AI and digital development, MP Abutalip Mutali said modern technologies threaten the privacy of Kazakhstanis.

Concerns over connected vehicles

According to Mutali, many new Chinese-made vehicles effectively function as data collection tools. He said such vehicles rely on foreign servers and user accounts...

Conditions for doing business in Kazakhstan’s jewelry industry are more favorable than in neighboring Kyrgyzstan, according to Kazakhstan’s Ministry of Industry and Construction.

The ministry said Kazakhstan offers a more comprehensive and flexible support system for jewelry manufacturers, with policies covering the entire production chain — from importing equipment and sourcing raw materials to manufacturing and selling finished products.

Tax incentives and access to raw materials

According to the ministry, companies can use a VAT deferral scheme when importing equipment and technologies that are not manufactured in Kazakhstan.

Jewelry manufacturers can also purchase refined gold...

Kazakhstan’s new Constitution officially entered into force on July 1, launching a transition period that will include the formation of new state institutions and the appointment of senior government officials.

Yerlan Sarsembayev, the country’s justice minister, outlined the transition timeline, saying the process is governed by Articles 94, 95 and 96 of the Constitution.

Key appointments expected within two months

According to Sarsembayev, a large-scale restructuring of state institutions will begin immediately after the close of the current parliamentary session.

He said that beginning July 1, six senior officials are expected to be appointed or...

Kazakhstani banks earned a combined 239.8 billion tenge (approximately $510 million) in May 2026, the highest monthly profit since the beginning of the year. While the five most profitable lenders remained largely unchanged, state-owned Otbasy Bank unexpectedly climbed to third place, according to statistics from the National Bank of Kazakhstan.

After posting a year-over-year decline in profits the previous month, the banking sector rebounded in May, with total earnings exceeding those recorded in May 2025. Most of the country’s largest banks also reported higher profits than a year earlier. Halyk Bank, for example, increased its monthly...

Emergency officials are urging Almaty residents and visitors to avoid hiking in the mountains. Frequent rainfall has increased the risk of mudflows. Kursiv LifeStyle found out which popular hiking trail was shown with a roaring, swollen river.

“The risk of mudflow formation in the Kishi Almaty River basin will remain through July 2. We urge city residents and visitors to refrain from hiking in the Ile Alatau Mountains until weather conditions stabilize,” the akimat’s press service said in a statement.

The Kishi Almaty River (the Small Almaty River) flows past the Tuyuk-Su Alpine Camp, the...