News

Rare wild cats have been appearing more frequently in the mountains and canyons near Almaty, with videos of these encounters spreading rapidly on social media. Kursiv.media has compiled the most recent footage that has surprised and delighted users online.

On Jan. 29, residents of Almaty spotted a snow leopard while driving toward Big Almaty Lake. In a video sent to Kursiv.media, the predator is seen calmly descending a slope near the Ayusay Visitor Center, as if strolling through its territory.

Tourists also spotted a snow leopard in the same area a few days before. For such a cautious animal, daytime...

An independent developer’s experimental AI assistant, called Moltbot, is quickly drawing attention for its ability to automate complex digital tasks directly from a user’s computer, Wired reported.

The tool was built by software developer Peter Steinberger, who wanted an AI assistant that would store all user data locally rather than in the cloud. He first launched the tool in November as Clawdbot and changed its name to Moltbot earlier this month after receiving a request from Anthropic, which also uses the name «Claude» for its AI models.

According to Steinberger, Moltbot offers little that is technically new, but...

Kazakhstan’s Ministry of Transport said it is working on implementing a joint project with Afghanistan to build the Turgundi-Herat-Kandahar-Spin Boldak railway, which is set to ensure goods delivery from Central Asia to the ports of Pakistan.

The cabinet held a session with an interagency working group on developing cooperation with Afghanistan. Its task is to develop transport corridors and trade, economic, and humanitarian cooperation with the country.

One of the key projects is the construction of the Turgundi-Herat-Kandahar-Spin Boldak railway through Afghan territory, which is set to connect a city on the Turkmenistani border with a...

Kazakhstan’s Aviation Administration has ordered all domestic airlines to avoid Iranian airspace until further notice. The decision was made due to the current situation in Iran and is intended to ensure flight safety, according to the press service of Kazakhstan’s Ministry of Transport.

Airlines rerouted on Middle East flights

The directive has been issued to Kazakh carriers Air Astana, FlyArystan and SCAT. Flights to destinations including Dubai, Sharm el-Sheikh, Jeddah, Doha and Medina are currently operating on alternative routes.

According to the ministry, aircraft are bypassing Iran through the airspace of Turkey, Iraq...

Kazakhstan’s Minister of Tourism and Sports Yermek Myrzabossynov said Kazakh athletes will wear uniforms from international sportswear brand Under Armour at the Olympic Games.

Contract details and athlete needs

Myrzabossynov said a contract with Under Armour was signed this year, emphasizing that high-quality sportswear is critical for athletes during competition. According to the minister, each athlete will receive a set of about 18 items, ranging from summer to winter gear, ensuring they have appropriate equipment for all seasons.

Discount and local production

The minister added that under the agreement, Under Armour will supply the...

Not long ago, Chinese cars raised various concerns, but today they are appearing on race circuits, including virtual ones, CarNewsChina reported. Notably, this isn’t a casual arcade title, but “Gran Turismo 7,” one of the world’s most respected racing simulators.

Why it matters

Gran Turismo isn’t just a video game but a cultural phenomenon. The series has been uniting automotive icons for decades, including Porsche, Ferrari, BMW and Mercedes-AMG. Now, this list features the first vehicle from a Chinese brand — the Xiaomi SU7 Ultra.

For a brand that, until recently, was associated with smartphones and...

Kaznet users are actively discussing a video released by Kazakhstan’s Interior Ministry showing what authorities described as a «drug lab» discovered in a residential building in Almaty. The footage was published after police conducted a door-to-door raid in one of the city’s districts.

What police reported

According to police, officers found marijuana plants inside an apartment. Authorities said they opened a criminal case, launched an investigation and pledged to continue what they described as a tough fight against drug trafficking.

President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev criticized government officials for what he described as excessive use of artificial intelligence tools, including Grok and ChatGPT, in their official work. He made the remarks Tuesday while discussing digitalization and the activities of the Financial Monitoring Agency.

Concerns over growing dependence

Tokayev said he is concerned by what he sees as a growing tendency among both officials and the public to rely too heavily on AI technologies.

«I’ve noticed that people have begun to depend on artificial intelligence. They’ve even stopped...

Social media users are discussing an unexpected reason Russians are traveling to Kazakhstan: going to the movies. The conversation was sparked by a post on Threads in which a woman said she flew to Almaty specifically to see the film «Avatar.»

A viral post fuels debate

The post quickly went viral, drawing tens of thousands of views and a flood of comments. Users expressed surprise, debated the logic of such trips and discussed what some have dubbed «cinema tourism.»

«I’m flying to Kazakhstan to see ‘Avatar.’ Kazakhs really wanted...

Police in Astana have started using an unusual patrol officer in public places — a robot dog that can be encountered in malls and railway stations.

The robot is equipped with cameras and transmits live video to the police control center. It is designed to monitor the situation, help prevent violations and respond promptly to incidents.

«The technology is used for monitoring the situation, preventing law violations, and providing prompt responses. The deployment of modern digital solutions is being carried out as part of the president’s instructions and the phased digital transformation of internal affairs bodies...

The number of AI-based startups in Kazakhstan has been growing rapidly, while venture investment in the sector has increased from $14 million to $73 million. This shift makes protecting copyright in AI-generated content increasingly important. MP Yekaterina Smyshlyaeva, who helped draft Kazakhstan’s Artificial Intelligence Law, shared her views on the matter with Kursiv.media.

Prompts as intellectual property

According to the MP, prompts — queries submitted to neural networks — are protected by copyright law and may be recognized as copyrighted works.

If a dispute arises, it is resolved in court, where the author’s contribution is assessed. There is an international...

Freedom Holding Corp. has grown from a small brokerage into a $10 billion ecosystem spanning more than 20 business lines — from banking and insurance to telecommunications and ticketing. How does the company manage technology across more than 30 different subsidiaries? Why does it need a Group CTO, and how does that role differ from a traditional CTO?

In an interview with Kursiv.media, Freedom Holding Corp.’s Chief Technology Officer (CTO) Renat Tukanov shared his perspective on building effective collaboration between IT and the business, saving $8 million in a single year, why negotiation skills matter more than coding, even for...

Kazakhstan plans to host several large-scale concerts featuring international stars this year, Kazakh Tourism Chairman Talgat Gazizov said at a recent government meeting.

First event set for May

The first major music event with international performers is scheduled for May. Artists expected to appear include producer and musician Timbaland, singer Nicole Scherzinger and rapper Busta Rhymes, along with other well-known acts.

More shows planned

Gazizov said at least five large concert events are planned throughout the year. Additional details on dates and venues will be announced later.

Kazakhstan’s economy is showing signs of overheating amid accelerating growth, loose fiscal policy and active consumer lending, according to a report by the International Monetary Fund (IMF).

The IMF noted that after growing by approximately 5% in 2023 and 2024, the country’s economy has continued to accelerate — to 6.5% in 2025 — driven by increased oil production, the expansion of quasi-fiscal operations and rapid growth in consumer lending.

At the same time, inflation remains high and the current account deficit is widening. The IMF believes that global uncertainty and a possible decline in oil prices could pose additional...

On Jan. 28, the Seoul Central District Court in South Korea sentenced the country’s former first lady, Kim Keon Hee, to one year and eight months in prison on charges of receiving lavish gifts from the controversial religious group Unification Church in exchange for favors, Yonhap reported.

The ruling also included the forfeiture of roughly $9,000. Prosecutors had sought a 15-year prison term, but the court acquitted the former first lady of charges related to a stock-price manipulation scheme and violations of the Political Funds Act, including allegations that Kim and her...

ASML Holding NV plans to eliminate roughly 1,700 positions, primarily within its technology divisions, according to Chief Executive Officer Christophe Fouquet, Bloomberg reported. The announcement came as the Dutch tech giant reported its 13th straight year of revenue growth.

Most of the job reductions will take place in the Netherlands, with a smaller number affecting operations in the U.S. Fouquet said the cuts will largely target management roles and will amount to about 4% of ASML’s total workforce.

ASML is the world’s sole provider of Extreme Ultraviolet (EUV) lithography machines – massive, $250 million systems essential...

Kazakhstan’s top-ranked tennis player Elena Rybakina (World No. 5) will face American Jessica Pegula (6) in the semifinals of the Australian Open 2026. Ahead of the match, the American player pointed out the strengths of her Kazakhstani opponent.

«She has a massive serve, big groundies, cool as a cucumber, you get nothing out of her. And she’s been playing some great tennis, honestly since the end of last year. But I’m going to do my best to hopefully crack the code on her for the next round and we’ll see how it...

The Kazakhstan Stock Exchange (KASE) plans to launch the country’s first exchange-traded funds linked to KASE indices, marking a milestone for Kazakhstan’s capital markets.

The move will allow retail investors to gain exposure to the domestic market using a structure similar to widely followed global benchmarks such as the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq.

Two funds planned

According to KASE, the funds were developed by BCC Invest and have already been registered. The exchange said trading start dates and ticker symbols will be announced later.

The first ETF will track the main...

On Jan. 27, South Korean tech firm Samsung Electronics, a Worldwide Olympic Partner since the Olympic Winter Games Nagano 1998, unveiled an exclusive edition of its Galaxy Z Flip7 smartphone for the athletes of the upcoming 2026 Winter Olympics and Paralympics in Milan and Cortina d’Ampezzo, Italy, according to the company’s release.

Around 3,800 participants in the Olympics and Paralympics from 90 countries will receive the Samsung Galaxy Z Flip7 Olympic Edition. The company aims to enhance their experiences in every moment of the event — from their stay in the Olympic...

LEGO and Crocs have teamed up to release an unconventional footwear collaboration: clogs designed to resemble oversized LEGO building blocks.

The new model debuted at Paris Fashion Week, where it was unveiled alongside rapper and performance artist Tommy Cash.

Design details

The shoes feature Crocs’ signature raised «bubble» texture with LEGO branding, a logo patch, a heel strap and a sole molded to resemble the underside of a LEGO brick.

Kazakhstan’s Energy Minister Yerlan Akkezhenov said production at the Tengiz oil field is being restored in stages, with full output expected to resume within a week.

Fields restarting after fire

Speaking on the sidelines of Parliament, Akkezhenov said production at the Korolevskoye field has already been fully restored. He added that operations at Tengiz are gradually restarting following a fire and an electrical equipment failure.

Damage to critical equipment

Akkezhenov said a total of 30 transformers, most with a capacity of 110 kV, operate at the Tengiz field. Three of them were destroyed in...

The Atyrau Regional Court in Kazakhstan has denied a request to commute the sentence of 38-year-old Arman Zhetpissov, who was convicted of the brutal murder of NCOC manager Bibigul Shpanova.

According to the court’s press service, the appeals filed by Zhetpissov and his attorney were rejected, and his life sentence remains in force.

Last year, the Specialized Interdistrict Criminal Court of the Atyrau Region found Zhetpissov guilty of multiple crimes, including fraud, rape and the murder of a pregnant woman. He was also convicted of theft and the illegal seizure of a...

Kazakhstan’s top-ranked tennis player Elena Rybakina (World No. 5) reached the Australian Open 2026 semifinals after defeating the world’s second-ranked player, Poland’s Iga Świątek, 7-5, 6-1. Three years ago, Rybakina had already reached the semifinals and finals of the Australian major.

This was the third meeting between the players in a relatively short period. In November 2025, Rybakina defeated Świątek 3-6, 6-1, 6-0 at the WTA Finals in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. In December 2025, at the World Tennis Continental Cup in Shenzhen, China, the Pole avenged the loss, winning 6-3, 6-3.

Today’s match escalated quickly. After...

Kazakhstan’s Aerospace Committee of the Ministry of Artificial Intelligence and Digital Development has revealed a tourism program for Baikonur, which includes establishing a visitor center to obtain permit passes, a space camp for children and weekend tours, Kazinform reported.

Baikonur will get its first official visitor center, located in the village of Toretam at the city’s entrance. Tourists, school students and international delegations will obtain passes to the space site and receive information on routes and excursions.

There are also plans to establish a space camp for kids in Baikonur. School students will be able to...