Kazakh Startup Higgsfield Becomes AI Unicorn, Signaling Nation’s Tech Aspirations
When Kazakh AI startup Higgsfield announced an $80 million funding round this month, its valuation soared past $1.3 billion, officially granting it “unicorn” status. For Silicon Valley observers, it marked another chapter in the ongoing boom in AI. But for Kazakhstan, a country seldom spotlighted in global tech circles, the milestone carries broader significance: the emergence of a homegrown company with global reach and competitiveness. Higgsfield was co-founded by 29-year-olds Erzat Dulat and Alex Mashrabov. The startup focuses on AI-generated video tools tailored for marketing and social media use and currently reports annual revenue of $200 million. Remarkably, the company reached $10 million in recurring revenue within just a few weeks, a rare achievement, even in the fast-paced AI sector. Leading venture capital firms, including Accel, GFT Ventures, and Menlo Ventures, cited this momentum as a key factor behind their investment. Rather than competing directly with giants like OpenAI or Google, Higgsfield leverages existing AI models to build practical tools for businesses. Its platform targets marketers, creative agencies, and social media professionals, an expanding segment that some analysts believe could rival traditional entertainment industries like Hollywood in both scale and value. The company’s success has not gone unnoticed by Kazakhstan’s leadership. President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev recently met with Dulat and Murat Abdrakhmanov, founder of the venture capital platform MA7 Ventures, to discuss artificial intelligence’s role in government, economic development, and national tech strategy. Tokayev praised Higgsfield as a model of Kazakh innovation with global potential and reaffirmed the country’s goal of becoming a launchpad for IT companies that can scale internationally without relocating abroad. Dulat noted that roughly 95% of Higgsfield’s workforce is Kazakh, highlighting the strength of the country’s domestic talent pool. He also expressed readiness to partner with the government on workforce development and AI-focused education initiatives. Abdrakhmanov emphasized that building a strong venture capital ecosystem is essential to Kazakhstan’s technological future and argued that the country is well-positioned to play a greater role in global investment networks. The meeting reflects a broader shift among emerging tech economies: instead of serving merely as consumer markets, they are increasingly aiming to foster globally competitive companies while retaining talent and intellectual property at home. [caption id="attachment_43381" align="aligncenter" width="936"] Higgsfield’s team @digitalbusiness.kz[/caption] Nonetheless, challenges remain. The AI-generated video market is highly competitive. Higgsfield plans to scale its team from 70 to 300 employees by year’s end, a move that will test its organizational capacity. Regulatory and ethical concerns around synthetic media also remain unresolved. Still, Higgsfield’s rapid rise underscores that AI innovation is no longer confined to traditional power centers like Silicon Valley, Beijing, or Europe. It offers a compelling example of Kazakhstan’s growing ambition to establish itself as a meaningful player in the global technology economy. For U.S. investors and tech analysts, it’s a reminder that the future of AI may be shaped as much by emerging markets as by established ones.
