Astana to Host the BaiQymyz 2026 International Gastronomy Festival
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The BaiQymyz 2026 international cultural and agricultural gastronomy festival, dedicated to kumis, Kazakhstan's traditional fermented mare's milk, will take place on 11-12 July at the Qazanat Hippodrome in Astana, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said.
Organisers expect 60,000 to 70,000 visitors. Around 50 kumis producers from Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan and Russia's Republic of Sakha (Yakutia) will take part. In the future, organisers aim to develop the festival into an internationally recognised brand comparable to Germany's Oktoberfest.
The festival's main event will be the international "Best Kumis" competition, offering a prize fund of 45 million tenge. Winners will be selected in the BaiQymyz 2026, Yem Kumis, and People's Choice categories. The Grand Prize winner will receive a car.
During the two-day festival, visitors will be able to sample a wide variety of kumis, attend an exhibition of Kazakhstan's native horse breeds, take part in a pedigree horse auction, and explore a traditional crafts fair.
The programme will also feature an exhibition of works by renowned Kazakh artists, concerts by popular domestic performers, and a closed art auction.
Sporting events will include competitions in kokpar, audaryspak, kyz kuu, baige horse racing, show jumping, shogen (equestrian polo), horseback Quidditch, tazy sighthound contests, and a children's rodeo.
In addition, the festival will host a book exhibition devoted to horse breeding, kumis production, traditional Kazakh cuisine, nomadic civilisation, and ethnography.
According to the organisers, BaiQymyz 2026 aims to promote Kazakhstan's kumis culture, preserve national traditions, support horse breeding, and strengthen the country's appeal as a tourist destination.
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Caspian Sea Action Week Brings Together Volunteers From Eight Countries in Mangystau
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Caspian Sea Action Week 2026, an international volunteer initiative, has concluded in Kazakhstan’s Mangystau region, the Ministry of Culture and Information said.
The event brought together participants from eight countries: Kazakhstan, Azerbaijan, Russia, Iran, Turkmenistan, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan and Kyrgyzstan.
They included government officials, international experts, environmentalists, volunteers and youth leaders.
The week featured the "One Caspian - One Future" expert session, the international Caspian Clean Challenge environmental marathon, the opening of the Friendship Alley, and a series of environmental, cultural and youth events.
One of the main events was the international Caspian Hackathon, where participants presented projects focused on environmental protection and sustainable development. The creators of the best projects received awards at the closing ceremony.
Participants were also introduced to "Volunteers of the World," an international volunteer anthem, for the first time.
The international week of action to preserve the Caspian ecosystem began in Aktau on Aug. 7. The initiative brings together volunteers and international organizations to protect the Caspian Sea ecosystem and promote environmental cooperation.
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Google Brings AI-Powered Sign Language Translation to Smartphones
Google DeepMind has introduced a new sign-language-to-text model designed to help Deaf and hard of hearing users communicate through their phones, bringing sign language AI to consumer products for the first time, Qazinform News Agency correspondent reports.
The model, called SL2T, powers sign-to-text dictation in Gboard and Live Transcribe on Pixel 11, initially supporting American Sign Language (ASL) to English. Google said more devices and sign languages will follow.
The technology allows users to sign anywhere they would normally type. They can use it to search the web, draft messages and documents, or ask Gemini to complete tasks. In Live Transcribe, users can sign responses during conversations instead of typing them.
Unlike spoken language transcription, sign language translation requires AI to understand independent languages with their own grammars and vocabularies, as well as complex movements involving the hands, arms, torso, head and face.
SL2T was trained on more than 100,000 hours of data covering over 50 sign languages, with about a quarter of the data in ASL. Google said training across different languages, dialects and proficiency levels helps the model learn shared structures.
For privacy, the system does not send raw camera footage to the server. An on-device model tracks points on the signer’s body, and only the resulting geometric coordinates are sent for translation. The original video can then be discarded immediately.
The company developed the system with members and organizations from the Deaf community, including through user studies and the AI Sign Language Advisory Committee.
SL2T is currently available in Gboard and Live Transcribe on Pixel 11 at no additional cost. Google said it plans to expand the technology to additional sign languages and develop sign language generation capabilities.
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Jastar Day Youth Festival Draws 3,000 Participants in Astana
Astana hosted the JASTAR DAY festival dedicated to International Youth Day. The event brought together about 3,000 young people from across Kazakhstan, Kazakhstan Today reports.
The festival was attended by Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Culture and Information Aida Balayeva, Astana Deputy Akim Talgat Rakhmanberdi, and representatives of government agencies and youth organizations.
Balayeva read out an address by Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev marking International Youth Day.
The president noted that sweeping reforms are underway across all areas of the country and that supporting young people remains one of the government’s key priorities.
"Supporting young people will always remain one of our government’s key priorities. New schools, sports facilities and development centers are being built across the country. Large-scale projects are being implemented, and talented young people are receiving comprehensive support. The Tauelsizdik Urpaktary grant is a clear example of this," the address said.
The festival included an awards ceremony for the Tauelsizdik Urpaktary grant. This year, the authors of 30 projects in science, culture, information technology, media, business and civic engagement received funding. Each winner was awarded a certificate for 3 million tenge to implement their project.
The Tauelsizdik Urpaktary grant was established at the president’s initiative in 2021 to support talented young people. Since the program was launched, 153 young Kazakhstanis have received the grant.
JASTAR DAY also featured talks by speakers working in leadership, media, technology, the arts and social initiatives.
The festival concluded with a concert featuring Kazakh performers Ersultan Omar, DANIAL, Yerkebulan & Bauyrzhan, and other artists.
International Youth Day is observed annually on Aug. 12. It was proclaimed by the U.N. General Assembly in 1999 following a recommendation by the World Conference of Ministers Responsible for Youth, held in Lisbon in 1998.
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AI Uncovers Decades-Old Errors in Chemistry Data
For decades, chemists have relied on handbook values for a molecule’s boiling point to identify substances and plan processes such as distillation. But an artificial-intelligence model has revealed that some trusted numbers in one reference database have been wrong all along, Nature reports.
Sebastian Pios, a theoretical chemist at Zhejiang Lab in Hangzhou, China, was using an AI system to predict the boiling points of several molecules when it began producing values that clashed with long-accepted entries in a 75-year-old reference database. At first, he thought the model was wrong. But when he manually checked the original literature, he found that the reference data were wrong, not the AI model.
In two other cases, Pios’s AI model spotted errors in older papers and reference books - mistakes that have made their way into the scientific canon. One was a typo in a paper; another was incorrect values of century-old boiling-point measurements. Both errors are likely to have caused researchers using the database "a lot of trouble", says Pios.
Pios is one of a growing number of scientists using AI as a tool for auditing scientific knowledge.
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Kazakhstan’s Cultural Moment: Comic Con Astana Draws Record Crowds and Global Talent
Kazakhstan is increasingly becoming a venue for major international events at the intersection of technology, sport and culture. In recent months, the country - and Astana in particular - has hosted a series of events involving representatives from dozens of countries and thousands of participants, ranging from artificial intelligence competitions to major sporting and cultural projects.
The international multisport tournament Games of the Future 2026 recently concluded in the capital. It is one of the most prominent projects in phygital sports, combining traditional and digital disciplines.
A distinctive feature of the tournament is its combination of physical and virtual stages. International teams competed in eight disciplines combining real-world sports with digital technologies. The total prize fund amounted to $4.65 million.
The competitions were held at four sports venues in Astana. A total of 528 pieces of gaming equipment and more than 500 gaming stations were used, while 800 volunteers were involved in organising the event.
According to the organisers, hosting the tournament enabled Kazakh specialists to gain experience in esports, IT, television broadcasting, engineering, logistics and security.
At the same time, Kazakhstan is strengthening its position in science and education. The International Olympiad in Artificial Intelligence (IOAI) 2026 was held in Astana from 2 to 8 August, bringing together participants from more than 100 countries and providing a platform for the exchange of knowledge and technological developments.
The Olympiad attracted additional attention following an announcement by Telegram founder Pavel Durov. He said he would provide more than $106,500 in prizes for participants who achieved the best results. According to Durov, the organisers are already in contact with Telegram representatives to arrange the transfer of prize money to the winners.
Political analyst Gaziz Abishev explained how such international projects can influence Kazakhstan's image and strengthen its position on the global stage. In his view, such initiatives can also serve as instruments of "soft power".
"Those who come to humanities and technical Olympiads are not ordinary people, not average school pupils or students, but most likely leaders in their fields. And when these brightest students from the best schools in their countries come to Kazakhstan and spend several days here, Kazakhstan is added to their list of countries they have visited. Of course, some people are indifferent to the countries they visit, while others remember them fondly. And even those who think they are indifferent still retain some kind of impression," the political analyst said.
According to Abishev, the impact of such events may become apparent years later. He believes that the personal experience of spending time in Kazakhstan can influence the attitudes of participants who later go on to occupy leading positions in their respective fields.
"They go on to become leaders in politics, leaders in technology corporations and leaders in start-ups. Not all of them, but some do. And they are more receptive to new start-ups from Kazakhstan. They understand Kazakhstan better and are more favourably disposed towards it when shaping corporate policy. They project a positive attitude towards Kazakhstan," the expert said.
At the same time, Gaziz Abishev noted that a single Olympiad cannot have a significant impact on the country's international image. However, a series of such events can gradually become part of a broader soft power architecture that Kazakhstan, like other countries, uses to strengthen its position on the international stage.
Meanwhile, the cultural agenda is also maintaining momentum. One of the most prominent international events was Comic Con Astana 2026. The festival, which expands the geographical reach of its participants each year, brings together fans of film, gaming and contemporary pop culture, while also attracting international visitors to Astana.
This year, the festival hosted four international headliners for the first time: Nikolaj Coster-Waldau, Paul Anderson, Iñaki Godoy and Taz Skylar. The actors met fans, took part in Q&A sessions and held autograph and photo sessions.
Game of Thrones star Nikolaj Coster-Waldau praised the warm welcome he received in Kazakhstan and said he would like to return to the country to visit Mangystau.
Paul Anderson, known for his role as Arthur Shelby in the television series Peaky Blinders, described Comic Con Astana as the best Comic Con he had ever attended.
The programme also featured an international cosplay competition with a prize fund of 20 million tenge. The festival also included concerts and meetings with bloggers, artists, cosplayers and content creators.
The scale of the event was also reflected in attendance figures. Comic Con Astana 2026 attracted more than 16,000 people on its first day alone, setting a record for the festival.
Against the backdrop of these events, a clear trend is emerging: Kazakhstan is strengthening its presence on the global agenda not only through economics and politics, but also by developing new industries, international communications and platforms that bring professional communities together.
Major sporting, technological, educational and cultural events attract participants and visitors from different countries, expand international contacts and give foreign audiences an opportunity to become more familiar with Kazakhstan. Taken together, such projects are becoming an additional tool for promoting the country and shaping its image abroad.
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More Than 380,000 Children to Start First Grade in Kazakhstan in New School Year
More than 380,000 children are expected to start first grade in Kazakhstan in the new school year. Around 320,000 children have already been enrolled in schools, representing approximately 84% of the projected total, the Ministry of Education of Kazakhstan said.
Around 296,000 children will attend state schools, while another 23,000 are expected to study at private schools. About 191,000 first-graders have been enrolled in urban schools and around 128,000 in rural schools. Nearly 4,000 of those enrolled are children with special educational needs.
More than 71% of future first-graders have chosen classes taught in Kazakh, over 26% have opted for Russian-language classes, and around 2.5% will study in classes taught in other languages. More than 2,000 children from other ethnic groups have also enrolled in Kazakh-language classes.
The largest number of first-graders is expected in the Turkistan Region, with more than 50,000 children. More than 35,000 are expected in the Almaty Region, 33,000 in Astana, more than 31,000 in Almaty and more than 29,000 in Shymkent.
Applications will be accepted until 31 August 2026. Parents can submit applications through the eGov.kz portal, the eGov Mobile app or directly to their chosen school. According to the Ministry of Education, around 84% of applications have been submitted online.
The ministry has advised parents not to delay submitting their documents.
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Caspian Sea Day Marked on 12 August
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Caspian Sea Day is observed on 12 August. The date marks the entry into force of the Tehran Convention, the Framework Convention for the Protection of the Marine Environment of the Caspian Sea. The document came into force 20 years ago, on 12 August 2006, Kazakhstan’s Ministry of Ecology and Natural Resources said.
To mark Caspian Sea Day, Kazakhstan held the international Caspian Sea Action Week 2026 volunteer initiative. It brought together delegations from Azerbaijan, Russia, Iran and Turkmenistan, as well as representatives from Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan, along with volunteers, environmental activists, experts and young people.
The week began on 6 August. During the first two days, participants discussed modern environmental monitoring technologies and research conducted by Caspian littoral states.
On 8 August, the international Caspian Clean Challenge environmental marathon was held in Aktau, with the participation of Kazakhstan’s Vice Minister of Ecology and Natural Resources, Mansur Oshurbayev. Volunteers cleaned the coastline and collected and sorted waste. On the same day, the Caspian Region Volunteers’ Friendship Alley was inaugurated. More than 80 trees were planted there, and a time capsule containing messages for future generations was buried.
On 9 August, participants held the Bozzhyra Clean Up environmental campaign in the Bozzhyra tract, clearing the natural area of litter.
On 10-11 August, the international Caspian Innovation Lab hackathon was held. Participants developed projects aimed at preserving the ecosystem of the Caspian region and presented them to experts. Environmental volunteers and experts also discussed ecological issues at an open event held in a TED-style format.
The week concluded with the international Caspian Talks volunteer summit, where the winners of the hackathon were awarded and current environmental challenges were discussed.
Caspian Sea Action Week 2026 brought together environmental campaigns, scientific discussions and volunteer projects aimed at preserving the Caspian Sea.
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Kazakhstan Plans Nationwide Library Card System
Kazakhstan plans to create a unified national digital platform for libraries and introduce a single library card, Almaz Myrzakhmet, head of the Book Industry Department at the Committee for Archives, Documentation and Book Industry of the Ministry of Culture and Information, said at a press conference at the Central Communications Service.
The creation of a unified digital platform for libraries was previously instructed by the president. It will bring together information on books held by libraries across different regions and allow users to check how many copies are available.
The platform is also expected to include a system through which authors will be able to submit their works.
According to Myrzakhmet, proposals for implementing the project have already been submitted to the government.
"We already had an information system in place. Last year, we added Abai’s heritage to it in digital format and made it available to readers. Going forward, the functions of the Unified Platform will also be defined in the new Law ‘On Library and Book Publishing Activities.’ Abai’s heritage will be presented on the platform as a separate module. New works will also be added to the platform in the future with the permission of their authors," he said.
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