Tashkent, Uzbekistan (UzDaily.uz) — Russian direct investment in Uzbekistan's IT sector has tripled over the past two years to US$320 million, while 47 Russian IT companies have opened representative offices in the country.
Industrial digitalisation and the adoption of artificial intelligence are emerging as promising areas of economic cooperation between the two countries, Kirill Petrov, director general of the National Institute for Strategic Analysis and Economic Development, told UzDaily.
Trade in digital solutions and artificial intelligence technologies reached US$210 million in 2025, up 64% year on year, Petrov said. Demand for such technologies is growing alongside the development of Uzbekistan's industrial sector.
AI applications in industrial production
Petrov cited the Almalyk Mining and Metallurgical Complex as an example of industrial digitalisation.
Its Digital Control Centre operates an artificial intelligence-based system that monitors processes at three copper concentrators and analyses data from more than 20,000 pieces of equipment.
More than 70 projects have already been implemented under the "Digital AMMC–2030" strategy.
The introduction of the "Digital Mine" system increased the service life of tyres on mining dump trucks by 14%, Petrov said. The system also independently calculates optimal excavation routes.
He said Russian engineers could offer Uzbek industrial enterprises and energy companies their own technological solutions.
Uzbekistan plans to invest more than US$4 billion in developing its energy sector over the next five years, according to Petrov. He said this would create additional opportunities for cooperation in digitalisation and artificial intelligence.
Bilateral trade and investment expand
Technology cooperation is developing alongside broader trade and economic ties. Russia remains Uzbekistan's second-largest trading partner, accounting for 16.6% of the country's total foreign trade turnover.
More than 3,000 joint Russian-Uzbek enterprises and around 100 Russian companies operate in Uzbekistan. Around 600 enterprises with Uzbek capital are registered in Russia.
Bilateral trade turnover increased by 12.4% in 2025, Petrov said. Exports rose by 11.6%, while imports from Uzbekistan increased by 14%.
Trade between the two countries grew by a further 20% in the first seven months of 2026 compared with the same period a year earlier.
Petrov linked the expansion of economic relations to the implementation of the Declaration on Comprehensive Strategic Partnership, signed in 2022 by the presidents of Uzbekistan and Russia, Shavkat Mirziyoyev and Vladimir Putin.
Joint industrial and infrastructure projects
Logistics and production infrastructure remain among the areas of bilateral cooperation.
The "Asia-Siberia" project is being implemented in Russia's Novosibirsk region, with 3.4 billion roubles invested, according to figures cited by Petrov.
A Trading House of Ferghana region has begun operating in Omsk region.
In Bashkortostan, a joint agro-industrial complex covering more than 20 hectares is under construction. Investment in the project has exceeded 2 billion roubles.
Russian exports to Uzbekistan increase
Petrov also reported growth in Russian supplies to Uzbekistan.
In 2025, Russian exports of minerals increased by 7.8%, while metal exports rose by 13.7%.
Positive growth was also recorded in supplies of pharmaceutical products, chemicals, plastics, wood and timber, he said.
The article concluded that digital technologies are becoming another area of Russian-Uzbek economic cooperation alongside trade in raw materials and industrial goods and the development of joint production facilities.
