Shafaq News

Iraqis are asking chatbots for homework help and running government errands through their phones— in a country where the power still cuts out most summer afternoons. Artificial intelligence has arrived well ahead of the infrastructure meant to carry it.

As Baghdad pushes its digital transformation forward, AI has become a test of whether Iraq can modernize its institutions fast enough to keep pace with a technology already reshaping the world. The country sits 107th in the Government AI Readiness Index 2025, and its problem is not access to the tools, but building the foundations to use them.

Readiness takes more than software. Countries reap AI's benefits only when reliable infrastructure meets clear regulation, capable institutions, and professionals who can fold the technology into daily operations without sacrificing security, accountability, or public trust. Iraq's score (40.91 out of 100) reflects weaknesses that run through its entire technological landscape. Government databases are fragmented, coordination between institutions is thin, and many public bodies still lack the digital plumbing that advanced AI requires.

Dr. Safad al-Shammari, head of the Baghdad Foundation for Digital Communication and a professor of digital media at the University of Baghdad, told Shafaq News that AI is already woven into daily life, "from smartphones and major institutions to warfare."

For al-Shammari, the pace of that change raises questions that reach beyond the technology. As machines take on work once considered uniquely human —writing, analysis, judgment— the debate over how people and technology coexist only intensifies. Yet he also sees real opportunity for countries trying to modernize. Smart systems, he noted, are already sharpening disease detection and treatment in healthcare, while AI-driven tools are tailoring lessons to individual students.

Read more: Brainpower and bytes: Iraq's race for AI supremacy

The Government AI Readiness Index grades countries on digital infrastructure, innovation capacity, human capital, and regulatory preparedness. Iraq lags on all four. Haider Najm al-Alaq, spokesman for Iraq's Communications and Media Commission, said successful adoption depends on modern technology, sound regulation, and professionals capable of managing systems that grow more complex by the year. “Getting there will demand investment in data centers, cloud computing, and telecom networks, along with expanded training and AI instruction built into the education system.”

Technology alone, though, will not decide the outcome.

Dr. Muslim Abbas, an academic and researcher in media and digital studies, argued that adoption hinges on how institutions work, not on the hardware they buy. Many Iraqi bodies still run on outdated administrative systems, he said, adopting AI through one-off initiatives rather than strategies designed to overhaul public administration. Platforms are multiplying, but without integrated databases and modern administrative structures, much of AI's promise stays out of reach.

That institutional weakness sits atop a shakier physical layer. For years, the government has widened digital governance through platforms like the Ur e-services system, which now delivers hundreds of services across ministries and state institutions. Paperwork, administrative procedures, and public transactions are steadily moving online as Iraq tries to close a long-standing gap in e-government.

The shift has coincided with a surge in connectivity. The Ministry of Communications counts 21.4 million internet subscribers, while mobile subscriptions have overtaken the country's population of 45 million, a measure of how completely Iraqis have come to depend on their phones.

But access has outpaced quality. Speeds remain uneven, especially outside the big cities. Figures from Ookla and DataReportal put Iraq's median fixed broadband between roughly 34 and 42 Mbps through 2025, with mobile speeds ranging from 36 to 56 Mbps. For ordinary users, that means slow downloads and dropped connections. For AI, it is a far steeper barrier.

Read more: Internet in Iraq: Snail-speed service, high costs, and digital divide

Advanced models run on enormous computing power and constant data processing. Training and operating them requires steady electricity, fast networks, industrial cooling, and data centers built to carry heavy workloads around the clock. Dr. Haider Shallal Metaab, an academic specializing in media studies, said weak infrastructure is among the main reasons Iraqi institutions have not gone further with AI.

"Limited data center capacity, cybersecurity vulnerabilities and gaps in communications networks continue to affect organizations' ability to manage large volumes of data and deploy advanced systems," he said.

Power is the chronic weak point, particularly in summer when demand spikes. Aging transmission lines and reliance on imported energy strain the grid further. "Even brief power interruptions can disrupt AI computations, affect data processing and increase operating costs, making reliable electricity as important to artificial intelligence as software itself," Metaab said. Without stable power and resilient networks, he argued, Iraq's AI efforts will stay boxed into a handful of institutional projects.

The foundation is not only physical. Iraq also has to grow the talent to run and advance these systems, and part of that work has started in its universities.

The University of Baghdad opened Iraq's first College of Artificial Intelligence for the 2025–2026 academic year, with programs in biomedical applications, AI systems engineering, big data, and data science. Interest has climbed fast; admission thresholds topped 96 percent in several departments.

Read more: Iraq’s higher education enters the AI era: Promise and obstacles

The appetite reflects a wider shift in a labor market tilting toward technology careers. Iraq has one of the region's youngest populations, nearly 60 percent of its roughly 45 million people are under 25, which keeps relentless pressure on the economy to generate skilled jobs for the graduates entering the workforce each year.

Producing graduates is only half the problem. Specialists, who spoke to Shafaq News, agree that broader adoption will also mean retraining the existing workforce, especially in government and in businesses expected to build the technology into their operations. Skills in data analysis, AI management, and cybersecurity will matter more as organizations move from experimenting with digital tools to depending on them.

For now, Iraq's economy still lacks a mature AI industry to absorb its graduates, and many of its most skilled professionals continue to leave for opportunities abroad. Startups in fintech, software, and digital services have grown, particularly in Baghdad and parts of the Kurdistan Region, where innovation hubs have gained ground in recent years. Even so, the ecosystem is small, only a few dozen startups are building AI products.

Adel al-Ghurairi, a professor of digital media at the University of Baghdad, told Shafaq News that AI, deployed well, could drive gains across industry, energy, and agriculture, supporting sustainable development and helping cut pollution. But he warned that automation cuts both ways: “heavier reliance on intelligent systems could erode traditional jobs and deepen digital unemployment, hitting hardest in the administrative and repetitive roles most exposed to it.

Read more: The new blackmail in Iraq: AI and the exploitation of women

Iraq's position comes into sharper focus alongside neighbors that have moved more aggressively to build AI ecosystems. Over the past decade, several Gulf states have treated the technology not as a standalone initiative but as a pillar of their economic and governance strategies, pouring money into infrastructure, regulation, and partnerships with global tech firms.

The United Arab Emirates has put AI at the heart of its economic diversification, backed by sovereign wealth, advanced infrastructure, and ties to companies like OpenAI and Nvidia; it ranked 13th globally in the 2025 index, the highest in the Middle East and North Africa. Saudi Arabia, 22nd, has invested heavily through its Vision 2030 agenda, while Qatar, 32nd, has leaned on research institutions, innovation hubs, and university partnerships.

The difference is not only money. These countries spent years assembling the infrastructure, institutions, and rules that AI adoption depends on. Iraq is still laying groundwork its neighbors finished long ago, work that will demand sustained investment, coherent policy, and long-term planning, along with stronger networks, more capable institutions, and a workforce able to put the technology to use.

"Artificial intelligence is advancing regardless of national readiness," OpenAI chief executive Sam Altman once observed. Iraq's task is to make sure the country advances with it, rather than watching from behind a grid that still can't stay on.

Written and edited by Shafaq News staff.