Pakistan’s AI Push Faces Broadband and Power Gaps, World Bank Says

Pakistan is building one of the region’s largest pools of digital talent, but weak mobile broadband penetration, incomplete electricity access and limited local-language data could slow wider adoption of artificial intelligence, according to the World Bank’s October 2026 regional economic update.

The report places Pakistan among the Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan and Pakistan region’s “talent and ecosystem builders,” highlighting around 75,000 IT graduates entering the workforce each year and record ICT services exports of $4.6 billion in fiscal year 2025-26. At the same time, the World Bank says the country still lacks some of the physical infrastructure needed for AI to spread beyond a relatively narrow group of connected workers and firms.

For Pakistan’s telecom sector, the message is clear: AI growth is no longer only a software, skills or startup issue. Reliable broadband, fibre backhaul, mobile network quality, electricity supply and data infrastructure are increasingly becoming part of the country’s AI competitiveness.

The World Bank argues that countries can only capture AI-driven productivity gains if users can access stable networks and reliable power. In Pakistan, that foundation remains uneven.

Broadband Penetration Is One of the Main Constraints

The World Bank said Pakistan is among eight economies in the wider MENAAP region where mobile broadband subscriptions remain below the level expected relative to income. That does not mean Pakistan has low internet use overall, but it does indicate that the depth and quality of broadband connectivity remain weaker than needed for advanced digital adoption.

This distinction matters. Basic internet access may be enough for messaging, social media or lightweight online services, but AI applications often depend on more reliable connections, cloud access, large data transfers and low-latency interaction with remote computing infrastructure.

Businesses using AI for design, software development, analytics, customer service or automation need consistent network performance. Universities, startups and public institutions also rely on stable connectivity if they are to use cloud-based models, research tools and shared computing resources at scale.

Pakistan’s telecom operators have expanded mobile broadband coverage significantly over the past decade, but performance remains inconsistent across locations. Quality-of-service surveys have repeatedly shown that mobile internet experience can vary by city, operator and network conditions.

Electricity Access Adds a Second Infrastructure Challenge

Connectivity is only one side of the problem. The World Bank’s data shows electricity access in Pakistan at 95.7% of the population, based on the latest available 2024 figure. That is high in absolute terms, but it still leaves Pakistan below near-universal access levels found in many other economies covered by the report.

For AI and digital services, the more important issue is not only whether electricity exists but whether it is reliable enough to support continuous digital activity. Power outages can disrupt mobile sites, enterprise networks, data centres and home broadband equipment, while also increasing backup-power costs for telecom operators and businesses.

Large AI workloads are especially energy intensive. Even when models are accessed remotely through cloud platforms, the surrounding digital economy depends on power for network equipment, data centres, offices and user devices.

This makes energy reliability a telecom issue as much as a power-sector issue. Every expansion in AI usage increases demand for stable connectivity and the electricity needed to keep that connectivity available.

Pakistan Still Has Strong AI and ICT Foundations

The infrastructure gap sits alongside several important strengths. The World Bank says Pakistan is positioning itself as a talent-led AI services exporter, supported by approximately 75,000 IT graduates annually and $4.6 billion in ICT services exports in FY2025-26.

Pakistan and Egypt were also identified among the top global suppliers of services across thousands of skill categories on major online work platforms. That reflects the scale of Pakistan’s freelancer and digital-services workforce.

The country has also announced a broad AI development agenda that includes shared computing infrastructure, a sovereign multilingual model, scholarships and training programmes. The World Bank describes Pakistan as pursuing “AI sovereignty” through a programme worth about $1 billion through 2030.

That combination of talent, export experience and policy ambition gives Pakistan a strong base. The challenge is ensuring that digital infrastructure keeps pace with the scale of those ambitions.

Why Telecom Networks Matter for AI Adoption

Most users do not run large AI models on their own devices. They access them through cloud platforms, applications and enterprise systems. That means the quality of the network between the user and the AI service becomes part of the user experience.

Slow or unreliable broadband can make AI tools difficult to use for tasks involving large documents, images, video, voice or live collaboration. Enterprises may also hesitate to integrate cloud-based AI into core workflows if connectivity is inconsistent.

Higher-capacity mobile networks, fibre-to-the-home connections and stronger fibre links to mobile towers can therefore have a direct impact on AI adoption. Faster connections are not only a consumer convenience; they are part of the infrastructure for digital productivity.

Pakistan’s ongoing 5G rollout and fibre expansion could help, but the benefit will depend on how widely networks are upgraded and whether service quality improves outside major urban centres.

Pakistan’s 5G and Fibre Buildout Becomes More Important

The telecom sector is already moving toward higher-capacity networks. Government and regulatory plans call for wider 5G deployment, stronger fibre backhaul and improved broadband quality over the coming years.

Pakistan has also been expanding its fibre backbone and mobile broadband base. Government officials have said the country now has more than 161 million broadband subscribers and a fibre-optic backbone of about 17,200 kilometres, while additional spectrum has been released to support next-generation connectivity.

These investments are important because AI demand can grow much faster than ordinary web traffic. Video generation, real-time translation, voice agents, coding assistants and cloud-based analytics all increase the amount of data that moves across networks.

For telecom operators, AI could therefore become a new demand driver for higher-speed mobile packages, fibre connections and enterprise connectivity services.

Urdu Data Is Another Major Readiness Gap

Infrastructure is not the only barrier. The World Bank also points to a localisation problem because Urdu is underrepresented in global digital data.

Urdu accounted for only 0.03% of global URLs collected by Common Crawl in July 2026, compared with 40.6% for English. In open-source datasets hosted on Hugging Face, Urdu’s share was higher at 0.6%, but still small relative to major global languages.

This matters because AI systems learn from available digital content. If local-language data is scarce, models may perform less consistently on culturally specific, historical or professional topics.

For Pakistan, that means digital infrastructure policy cannot focus only on networks. Local data, Urdu content, public datasets and digitisation of government, education and cultural material are also important parts of AI readiness.

‘Small AI’ Could Work Around Some Infrastructure Limits

The World Bank says countries do not need to wait for universal high-speed broadband before adopting AI. It highlights the potential of “small AI” — lightweight, purpose-built systems designed to work with limited bandwidth, basic devices or intermittent connectivity.

Such systems could be particularly useful in agriculture, health, education and public services where high-end devices and continuous fibre connectivity may not be available.

Applications that operate through SMS, voice calls, lightweight mobile apps or partial offline functionality could bring AI-assisted services to users outside major cities.

For Pakistan, this approach could allow some AI adoption to expand before every infrastructure gap is closed, while still reinforcing the need for long-term investment in stronger networks.

Business Impact

For companies, weak broadband and unreliable power increase operating costs. Businesses may need multiple internet connections, backup power systems, local servers or higher-cost enterprise links to maintain dependable digital operations.

These additional costs can be manageable for large firms but more difficult for small and medium-sized businesses. That creates a risk that AI adoption becomes concentrated among larger companies and urban users who can afford better infrastructure.

Improving broadband quality could therefore widen the number of firms able to use AI productively. It could also help Pakistan attract more outsourcing, cloud-service and technology investment by reducing concerns around reliability.

Telecom Industry Opportunity

The same infrastructure challenge creates an opportunity for telecom companies. Demand for AI could increase the value of fast, reliable broadband and encourage customers to move toward higher-tier packages.

Operators can also expand enterprise services around cloud connectivity, data centres, cybersecurity, edge computing and managed networks. As AI adoption grows, businesses may need more than basic internet access; they may want secure, low-latency connections to cloud platforms and dedicated computing infrastructure.

Telecom companies that can combine connectivity with data-centre and cloud partnerships may therefore become more important in Pakistan’s AI ecosystem.

Pakistan’s Data-Centre Position Could Be an Advantage

The World Bank says Pakistan already has a relatively significant data-centre presence within the MENAAP region, alongside larger Gulf markets. That creates a base for future cloud and AI infrastructure investment.

However, data centres also intensify the need for reliable power, cooling, high-capacity fibre and international connectivity. Without those supporting systems, adding more compute capacity alone may not deliver the expected economic benefit.

The challenge for policymakers is therefore to coordinate telecom, energy and technology policy rather than treating them as separate sectors.

Global and South Asia Relevance

Pakistan’s situation reflects a broader pattern across South Asia. The World Bank’s October 2026 South Asia update says broadband speeds in the region remain below the average for emerging and developing economies, even as AI adoption begins to spread.

That means Pakistan is not alone in facing a digital-infrastructure gap. Countries across South Asia are trying to expand AI usage while still improving broadband, electricity reliability and digital skills.

The difference will come down to how quickly each economy converts policy plans into dependable infrastructure that businesses and households can use every day.

What Happens Next

The next phase of Pakistan’s AI strategy will depend heavily on execution. Telecom networks need to become faster and more consistent, fibre deployment needs to expand, and mobile sites need stronger backhaul and power reliability.

At the same time, government and industry will need to increase local-language data, improve digital skills and make advanced computing resources available to universities, startups and businesses.

The World Bank’s message is not that Pakistan lacks AI potential. It is that the country’s talent and export strengths could produce larger gains if physical infrastructure catches up.

For the telecom sector, that turns AI into a strategic growth story. The quality of Pakistan’s networks may increasingly shape not only how people communicate, but how effectively the country participates in the next phase of the global digital economy.

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