Kazakhstan Opens Innovation Hub in Shanghai to Boost Tech Ties

• Kazakhstan opens Khan Tengri tech hub in Shanghai.
• Hub offers legal, marketing, and investor support.
• Aims for $10B exports, 8 unicorns by 2030.

Kazakhstan has opened its first innovation hub Khan Tengri located at Zhangjiang Science and Technology Park in Shanghai, commonly referred to as China's "Asian Silicon Valley." The hub is being coordinated by Kazakhstan's Ministry of Digital Development in conjunction with Astana Hub, IT Park Uzbekistan, and Growth Vision Pro so that Central Eurasian startups and tech companies can be integrated into China's digital ecosystem.

The Khan Tengri hub was officially launched recently at the World Artificial Intelligence Conference (WAIC 2025) as the Khan Tengri hub describes itself as a "soft landing" model that includes legal, language, marketing, and acceleration support services related to cross-border operations. The hub connects Central Asian tech startups to Chinese investors, accelerators (like XNode), and growth opportunities in China’s innovation and manufacturing ecosystem.

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Kazakhstan Minister Zhaslan Madiyev highlighted the hub will be integral to helping domestic startups get access to the large Chinese consumer and investment market, and be a conduit for Central Asian innovation into China and beyond.

The Khan Tengri platform is part of the broader Central Asian Innovation Hubs initiative with new international offices planned for China and the UAE. The consortium comprised of Astana Hub and IT Park Uzbekistan aims to have $10 billion in regional technology exports, in addition to eight unicorns, by 2030 with support from joint acceleration programs and international ecosystem integrations.

Kazakhstan's digital diplomacy and its Silicon Valley-styled bridging point to a more long-term ambition: a positioning for the country as a technology exporter, an AI innovator, and a digital connector between the East and West. The hub suggests there is a growing understanding that geopolitical and economic resiliency increasingly hinges on technology cooperation and mobility of startups.