Ulugbek Mirzamukhamedov on AI and the Transition to a New Technological Paradigm

The following overview presents Ulugbek Mirzamukhamedov’s views on artificial intelligence as a force reshaping economies, national development strategies and the role of human responsibility in a new technological era.

Businessman and investor Ulugbek Mirzamukhamedov argues that artificial intelligence should be integrated across social and economic life as a key driver of proactive development. He believes this shift could also give developing countries a rare opportunity to accelerate their transformation.

The entrepreneur notes that large language models (LLMs) are developing rapidly, yet many people still underestimate the broader capabilities of AI. Mirzamukhamedov attributes this to two factors: the inertia of established ways of thinking and fears that artificial intelligence could eventually escape human control.

Nevertheless, he suggests that a new form of intelligence is now emerging – one that is not tied to biological life. The businessman believes that humanity is on the verge of the emergence of Superintelligence, which will fundamentally change the way we understand cognitive functions that until now have been considered uniquely human.

Mirzamukhamedov argues that artificial intelligence is not subject to the biological limitations of human intelligence and is already capable, at least in part, of reproducing aspects of its own functionality. In his view, this raises the possibility that humanity could move toward a technological singularity within the foreseeable future.

The businessman points out that human history is, in many ways, the history of technological development. This is hardly surprising: from the very beginning, people organized themselves into societies around practical and economic needs supported by technologies such as irrigation systems, tools and other innovations. The emergence of generative AI, however, is taking progress to an entirely new level, making the creation of a Cognitive Civilization (a society in which knowledge, computation and intelligent systems become core sources of economic and social organization) possible.

He believes that humanity is not simply going through another stage of digitalisation, but experiencing a far more profound transformation. The world, in his view, is moving towards a fundamentally different technological paradigm, in which intelligence and cognitive capabilities themselves become a productive force.

Ulugbek Mirzamukhamedov believes that AI and computing capacity will become the defining resource of the 21st century – the “new oil.” This will lead to a fundamental restructuring of the global economy. In the future, the prosperity of individual countries may be measured not by GDP or foreign exchange reserves and gold holdings, but by their ability to develop, access and apply advanced intelligence systems. 

The entrepreneur predicts that AI will eventually take on a fundamentally different role from any other resource. It will become the cornerstone of the economy and its central driving force. The nature of economic output itself will also change, becoming increasingly intellectual. This shift may also give rise to new forms of capital, including computational and intellectual capital, which could become important measures of economic strength. Human capital will evolve as well, with greater value placed on the ability to work effectively with AI rather than compete with it.

At the same time, Ulugbek Mirzamukhamedov argues that humans will not lose their place in this new world. Because of its non-biological nature, AI will never be able to fully replace a human being or truly “become” one, he says. The entrepreneur also raises the question of responsibility, which in practice cannot simply be assigned to an abstract neural network. In the future, the value of human beings will lie precisely in what makes them human: morality, spirituality and an awareness of oneself as part of a nation.

The transition to a new technological paradigm could provide developing regions with a historic opportunity, turning them into centers of rapid growth. A combination of economic, geographical and natural factors could all contribute to this transformation. History shows that countries and regions that have lagged behind can move ahead if they are able to turn a new economic reality to their advantage.

Central Asia could be one such region, Ulugbek Mirzamukhamedov believes. It possesses many of the conditions needed for such a transformation, including demographic and human capital potential, substantial energy resources and the capacity to make a rapid transition to a new development model. This creates an opportunity to build new infrastructure and industries without being constrained by traditional economic sectors. Investment in data centres, connectivity, energy infrastructure and modern education could provide a solid foundation for the development of AI-intensive industries.