A report compiled by tech giant Microsoft shows most of Central Asia’s states rank among the lowest in the world in terms of citizens integrating generative artificial intelligence (AI) into their daily lives. The findings seem to compound the challenges facing governments of the region, many of which have outlined ambitions to develop “cognitive” economies.

Kazakhstan, where President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev has declared 2026 to be the year of AI, was the highest-ranked Central Asian state in Microsoft’s Global AI Diffusion report, coming in at 70th place out of 147 countries evaluated. The other Central Asian states lagged far behind, near the bottom of the table. Kyrgyzstan ranked 116th, Uzbekistan 142nd, Afghanistan 144th, Tajikistan 145th and Turkmenistan 146th.

Like Kazakhstan, the leaders of Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan have all articulated plans to develop IT/AI hubs in their respective countries.

On the bright side, the report showed that Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan and Uzbekistan had some of the highest AI adoption growth rates in Asia.

In the South Caucasus, Azerbaijan and Georgia were ahead of Kazakhstan, ranking 62nd and 54th respectively. Meanwhile, Armenia, which has also unveiled plans to develop IT/AI capabilities, ranked 139th.

Overall, the report found that AI adoption rates in the economically developed “Global North” are growing at about double those in the emerging economies of the “Global South.” 

“This divide reflects the systemic challenges facing the Global South, where limited access to electricity, internet connectivity, and digital skills continue to constrain adoption,” the report states. “Until these foundational gaps are addressed, the benefits of generative AI will remain unevenly distributed.”

This report first appeared on Eurasianet here.