AI could add $10-20bn to Pakistan’s GDP by 2030, says Saudi Data and AI Authority advisor

Pakistan’s digital economy is poised for significant growth, potentially contributing an estimated $60 billion, with around one-third ($10-$20 billion) through advancements in artificial intelligence (AI) by 2030, Dr Sohail Munir, advisor to the Saudi Data and AI Authority (SDAIA) said.

Dr Munir shared these insights during the AI Convergence Summit Pakistan on Wednesday, organised by Cygnis, an information technology (IT) company with notable IT exports in the seven-figure range in US dollars.

He said AI could drive up to 10% of the gross domestic product (GDP) in Pakistan, with at least one-third of this expected digital economy growth attributed to AI.

Dr Munir calculations were based on a PwC report, indicating that countries like Pakistan could see an overall AI impact of 5.6% on their GDP by 2030. This is a part of a broader global perspective, where AI is projected to contribute up to $15.7 trillion to the world economy in the same timeframe, surpassing the combined economic output of China and India.

Addressing the audience, he underscored the potential economic uplift that digitisation and AI could bring to Pakistan.

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The SDAIA advisor conservatively anticipated that the Pakistan’s economy could reach a GDP of $600 billion by 2030, driven by cumulative growth and the transformative effects of digitisation, particularly through expected development of the Digital Public Infrastructure (DPI).

Meanwhile, Ahmed Hashim, CEO of Cygnis, noted that while AI is still in its formative stages within Pakistan, its influence is noticeable in the IT sector and beyond.

“Currently, about 30% of our IT exports are AI-based,” he said.

“We are eager to position ourselves at the forefront of the impending changes that AI will bring in the next one to two years,” Hashim remarked on organising the AI event.

CEO of foodpanda Muntaqa Peracha said they leverage AI to solve problems such as minimising waiting time for riders to pick orders from restaurants, which increases rider earnings as riders can deliver more orders.

Arsalan Akhtar, president and co-founder of Cygnis, acknowledged the existing low local demand for AI services, but emphasised the significant pressure from the international market, leading to a paradigm shift for major IT companies.

He said Pakistan’s top IT firms currently have 20% to 30% of AI-based services in their export portfolios.

During the summit, Habibullah Khan, CEO of Penumbra, shared insights from a recent report involving a client that raised over $100 million in a private equity fund. He pointed out that while some companies claim to utilise AI, they tend to focus more on offering low-cost services rather than addressing tangible business challenges.

In contrast, Indian firms take a different route, actively engaging with customers to understand their specific issues—such as non-performing loans and onboarding complications—and develop AI-based solutions for them, he added.

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“This proactive approach enables them to provide tailored solutions, thus attracting more customers,” Khan explained.

He was of the view that effectively communicating the benefits of AI to business leaders is crucial to harnessing its full potential and not missing out on invaluable opportunities.

“Incorporating AI into business models could yield substantial advantages—failure to do so may result in lost opportunities,” Khan asserted, emphasising the need for a more solution-oriented approach to AI in Pakistan’s evolving economy.