Digital change

Technology & AI

Follow artificial intelligence, telecommunications, cybersecurity and the technologies changing Pakistan and the wider world.

The reporting trail

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The granite and glass World Bank Group headquarters building in Washington, D.C., viewed from Pennsylvania Avenue, with its lower colonnade visible behind a low stone wall.

Pakistan / Business & Finance

Pakistan holds nearly half the MENAAP region's $3-a-day poor, World Bank finds

The World Bank's October 2026 MENAAP Economic Update puts 48% of the region's $3/day poor in Pakistan and says poverty rose 6.4 percentage points between 2018-19 and 2024-25.

Abu Dhabi skyline with modern high-rise towers along the corniche, viewed from Saadiyat Island under a partly hazy sky.

Pakistan / Technology & Telecom

Pakistan Pavilion opens at AI Everything Global 2026 in Abu Dhabi as IT exports to UAE jump 42% to $536m

Pakistan's PSEB-organised pavilion at the two-day AI Everything Global 2026 in Abu Dhabi opened on 6 October; officials say IT exports to the UAE rose 42% to $536m in FY26.

A studio portrait of Kristalina Georgieva in a dark jacket, facing the camera against a plain background.

International — Region / International — Region

IMF chief warns energy shock, record debt and AI boom threaten global growth

IMF chief Kristalina Georgieva warned on 7 October 2026 that an energy shock, record public debt and the AI boom are pulling the global economy in opposite directions.

School students working at computers during a coding lesson in a classroom

Pakistan / Technology & Telecom

Punjab approves new school curriculum with AI education from Class 1

Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz approved a new school curriculum on 24 September that adds AI education from Class 1 to 12 and cuts textbook volume by 25 per cent.

The south facade of the White House in Washington, DC, with its columns, balcony and flag flying above the building under a partly cloudy sky

International — Region / International — Region

US and China extend trade truce for two months as Trump welcomes Xi to Washington

The US and China extended their trade truce to January 10 as Xi Jinping began his first state visit to Washington in over a decade, keeping tariffs lower for two more months.

A straight-on view of the empty United Nations Security Council chamber in New York, with its curved rows of delegates' seats, the long table and the Per Krohg mural on the far wall

Pakistan / Technology & Telecom

Pakistan tells UN Security Council unregulated AI risks widening global inequality

Pakistan warned the UN Security Council on 23 September that unregulated artificial intelligence could widen global inequality and threaten peace, setting out a five-point position

The United Nations Security Council chamber in New York, showing the curving rows of seats, the long table and the Per Krohg mural

International — World / International — World

OpenAI, Anthropic and Hugging Face chiefs warn UN Security Council that AI could slip beyond human control

OpenAI, Anthropic and Hugging Face chiefs briefed the UN Security Council on 23 September, warning that powerful AI could escape human control and threaten security.

Sailors monitoring computer screens at the U.S. Navy Cyber Defense Operations Command in Norfolk, Virginia, in 2008

Pakistan / Technology & Telecom

Pakistan bars officials from feeding sensitive data to public AI tools under new cyber handbook

Pakistan's National Cyber Security Handbook 2026-27 bars government employees from uploading classified documents and other sensitive data to public AI tools.

A white camera quadcopter drone hovering above a green field

Pakistan / Politics & Governance

Punjab touts AI security network as Maryam warns of border threats

Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz said Punjab had deployed fortified cameras, thermal imaging and drones while facing threats across provincial borders.

Rows of black server cabinets beneath bundled overhead cables in a computing facility

International — World / Technology & Telecom

Anthropic’s Fable 5.1 makes frontier AI cheaper—but keeps its riskiest capabilities gated

Anthropic’s paired model release lowers the cost of long-running AI work while preserving stricter access controls for cyber and biology capabilities.

The white, tiered facade of the Supreme Court of Pakistan building in Islamabad, with its sign, lawns and trees in front under a clear blue sky.

Pakistan / Business & Finance

Court rules firms may offset super tax with tax credits

Pakistan's Federal Constitutional Court ruled on 17 August 2026 that companies may adjust tax credits under Section 168 against super tax, setting aside a high court order.

Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif speaking at an official event in 2024.

Pakistan / Technology & Telecom

Shehbaz inaugurates Pakistan's first AI-ready data centre

Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif opened the Sky47 AI cloud and data centre in Rawalpindi on 24 July 2026, calling it a step towards a forward-looking Pakistan.