Experts talk about holes in Pakistan’s AI strategy

At a moot on Friday, speakers stressed the importance of closing gaps in the national artificial intelligence (AI) roadmap by properly putting into action the newly released AI Policy on the country’s economy, governance, and society.

The Pakistan Institute of Development Economics (PIDE) held a well-known symposium on Pakistan’s National Artificial Intelligence Policy. The main topic was “Bridging Gaps in Pakistan’s AI Roadmap: Opportunities, Challenges, and the Way Forward.”

Policymakers, academics, entrepreneurs, and business leaders came together for the event to talk about how AI could change Pakistan’s economy, government, and society as a whole.

The panel included well-known speakers like Dr. Anil Salman, the Chair of the Government of Pakistan’s AI Policy Committee; Dr. Najibullah, a Member of Science and Technology at the Planning Commission of Pakistan; Suniya Shahid, the CEO and Co-founder of Techvention Ltd.; and Dr. Naveed Iftikhar, the CEO of Atomcamp, who joined the discussion via Zoom. Wajid Islam, a research economist at PIDE, led the workshop.

Dr. Salman said that the policy’s aim was ambitious, ethical, and transformative, with a focus on include everyone in all areas of life, including economic, social, and technological ones. He said that the policy was made after talking to a lot of people in the country and around the world, such as UNESCO, the Asian Development Bank, and the Commonwealth. He said that its complete execution may raise GDP by 7 to 12 percent and create up to a million jobs by 2030.

Dr. Najibullah talked on the financial ecosystem and how important venture capital and accelerators are for helping start-ups cross Pakistan’s “valley of death” when they grow. He said that a Rs2 billion Public Venture Capital Fund would be set up and that worldwide accelerators should be used to help Pakistani innovators.