Crossroads Asia | Security | Central Asia

How Kazakhstan Wrote Its Security Service Into the AI Business

Largely construed as routine modernization efforts, the KNB’s new responsibilities may not have not attracted much scrutiny but they could have significant implications.

Securitization of digital infrastructure is not new, nor is the involvement of national security agencies therein. These phenomena have become quite common and don’t surprise anyone, especially as cybersecurity threats become more dangerous and sophisticated following the adoption of AI for hostile purposes.

In May 2026, Presidential Decree No. 1258 vested the National Security Committee (KNB) of the Republic of Kazakhstan with additional responsibilities, including in the digital domain. Largely construed as routine modernization efforts, the KNB’s new responsibilities may not have attracted much scrutiny and may have therefore flown under public’s radar, as security agencies worldwide play an increasingly bigger role in cybersecurity.

Buried in the bureaucratic language of Decree No. 1258 are three clauses that go well beyond routine oversight. Together, they don’t just make the KNB a “watchdog” over digitalization, but also give it the legal standing to become a direct participant in Kazakhstan’s AI buildout, with the authority to draw private industry into its orbit.

Section 14 now enables the KNB to develop, purchase, and operate, among others, digital systems, armament, and equipment and – for these purposes – to sign contracts with state bodies and organizations of the Republic of Kazakhstan regardless of ownership form, with special services, and with organizations of foreign states. In Section 15, Clauses 224-2 and 224-3 vest the KNB with the responsibility to execute the state’s AI policy and the authority to develop and deploy artificial intelligence models and software products. 

On the surface, these clauses point at data and critical infrastructure protection efforts, and some may even be tempted to attribute these new responsibilities to a growing problem with data leaks in Kazakhstan. While leaks – such as the July 2025 breach that exposed the personal data of 16 million Kazakhstani citizens, an investigation that the KNB was tasked to lead – deserve government intervention, all the clauses combined hint at something else, too: a potential military-civil fusion in Kazakhstan’s digital sector. 

The first and the last clauses mentioned above combined may lay the groundwork of military-civil fusion, a term coined by the Chinese Communist Party for eliminating the line between a country’s civilian tech sector and its military and security apparatus in order to advance both economic and security development. Now that the KNB can legally contract private agencies and develop AI models and software, the agency finds itself with lots of opportunities to employ such tools in its operations. It’s difficult to speculate on the type of products that the security apparatus may wish to develop and deploy – be it an early warning system or open-source intelligence software. Whatever the product, private entities will jump at the chance to increase their collaboration with the security apparatus for at least one reason: Kazakhstan has already set the stage for rapid AI and digital development.

Incubators and accelerators like AlemAI and AstanaHub are already producing high-quality AI and tech startups. That means that........

© The Diplomat