VEON Ltd. announced a strategic cooperation agreement with sovereign AI firm MeetKai, under which the company’s software arm QazCode will develop and train next‑generation large language models for use across VEON’s five frontier markets – Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Ukraine, Pakistan and Bangladesh.
The partnership will enable VEON to deploy locally governed, culturally fluent AI services, including QazCode’s agentic AI application Aventa, in the languages spoken in each market. MeetKai’s sovereign‑AI platform allows the models to be trained on local data and fine‑tuned in native languages, ensuring compliance with data‑sovereignty regulations and giving VEON a competitive edge in regions where data localization is mandatory.
VEON’s Digital Operator 1440 and AI1440 strategies aim to engage customers throughout the day with locally relevant digital services. By adding sovereign‑AI capabilities, the company can deepen customer engagement, increase share of wallet in frontier markets and accelerate the creation of national AI stacks that respect regulatory requirements. The partnership aligns with VEON’s goal of expanding its digital service portfolio and positioning the company for future growth in AI‑driven services.
VEON’s Q3 2025 financial results provide a solid foundation for this investment. Revenue rose to $1.11 billion, an increase of 19.7% year‑over‑year, while EBITDA surged to $207 million, a 47.0% margin. The growth was driven by strong demand for digital services, particularly in the company’s core markets, offsetting headwinds in legacy product segments. The robust financial performance signals that VEON can fund the development of AI capabilities without compromising its core operations.
Lasha Tabidze, Chief Digital Operations Officer, emphasized that the partnership “reinforces VEON’s commitment to delivering AI in local languages and empowers customers with culturally relevant digital experiences.” He added that the collaboration will accelerate the rollout of AI‑powered services across the company’s markets, creating new revenue opportunities and enhancing customer loyalty.
The partnership positions VEON to differentiate itself from traditional telecom operators, potentially unlocking new product launches in education, healthcare and agritech. By leveraging QazCode’s expertise in under‑resourced languages and MeetKai’s sovereign‑AI platform, VEON can offer AI agents that understand local dialects and comply with data‑localization laws, giving it a first‑mover advantage in frontier markets.
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