TLDR: Pakistan has launched its inaugural National Artificial Intelligence Policy, a six-pillar framework designed to foster innovation, create jobs, and ensure ethical governance in AI. The policy aims to transform the nation into a knowledge-based economy by investing in AI infrastructure, human capital development, and responsible AI adoption.
KARACHI – Pakistan has officially unveiled its first-ever National Artificial Intelligence Policy, a landmark initiative set to propel the nation into the forefront of the global AI landscape. Announced on August 13, 2025, the comprehensive policy, titled ‘National Artificial Intelligence Policy – 2025,’ outlines a strategic six-pillar framework aimed at fostering innovation, generating employment opportunities, and ensuring the ethical and responsible deployment of AI technologies across various sectors.
The Ministry of IT & Telecom, which shared the policy document, emphasized that this ambitious plan is designed to transform Pakistan into a ‘knowledge-based economy’ through significant investment in research, innovation, and skills development, while simultaneously safeguarding personal data and human rights. The policy received unanimous approval from the federal cabinet, led by Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, underscoring the government’s commitment to this technological leap.
The six strategic pillars underpinning the policy are:
1. AI Innovation Ecosystem: This pillar focuses on establishing a robust environment for AI development, including the creation of a National AI Fund (NAIF) by permanently allocating 30 percent of the R&D Fund managed by Ignite, a government-run technology financing body. It also mandates the establishment of Centers of Excellence in AI across seven major cities and the creation of venture and innovation funds to support R&D and commercialization. Key performance measures include tracking AI startups, AI-based job growth, and industry adoption in sectors like smart cities, healthcare, and agriculture.
2. Awareness and Readiness: This pillar targets large-scale human capital development, aiming to train 1 million AI workers by 2030, with a target of 200,000 individuals annually. The policy also includes provisions for awarding 3,000 AI scholarships and offering 20,000 paid internships. It seeks to promote AI literacy across all social segments, including marginalized groups, and sets a target for 90 percent public awareness of AI by 2026. Emphasis is also placed on expanding research and intellectual property in AI, with indicators like the number of AI-focused research papers and patent applications.
3. Secure AI Ecosystem: This pillar prioritizes the reduction of cyber threats, implementation of data standardization, and promotion of ethical AI practices. It mandates transparency and disclosure of AI system usage in the public sector and will develop AI-integrated security guidelines for end-to-end protection during AI system development and deployment. Public awareness campaigns will encourage responsible AI use.
4. Transformation and Evolution: This pillar focuses on prioritizing AI adoption in key sectors such as education, health, agriculture, and governance. It involves launching sector-specific roadmaps, workforce upskilling programs, and performance evaluation systems to integrate AI solutions effectively.
5. AI Infrastructure: The policy envisions a national compute grid, centralized datasets, AI hubs, and cloud-based resources to support scalable innovation. Efforts will be made to digitize and synchronize existing infrastructure, such as WAPDA, NADRA, FBR, and the health and education sectors, to enable real-time data sharing and facilitate the development of local large language models.
6. International Partnerships and Collaborations: This pillar aims to promote global cooperation through joint research, cross-border projects, and alignment with international standards, ensuring Pakistan remains connected to global AI advancements.
According to the foreword of the policy document, ‘The Artificial Intelligence (AI) Policy 2025 is a pivotal milestone for transforming Pakistan into a knowledge-based economy,’ adding that it will ‘establish an ecosystem necessary for AI adoption… by ensuring responsible and ethical use of AI.’ The plan also sets ambitious targets, including launching 50,000 civic AI projects and introducing 1,000 local AI products into the market within five years. An AI Council will be established to coordinate these efforts, ensuring inclusiveness, data protection, and ethical AI application, with a vision to expand access to women and disabled individuals through accessible education and financing.
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This policy marks a significant step for Pakistan, positioning it to embrace the AI age and leverage technology for national development and prosperity.
