Develop, not hinder: why is Putin betting on AI?

On Wednesday, September 3, Moscow hosted the First Neurocontent Cup— a special project conducted by the Russia — Land of Opportunity platform, whose supervisory board is headed by Russian President Vladimir Putin, aimed at supporting specialists who use neural networks to create relevant content for government and commercial structures.

Thousands of people in Russia are passionate about creating content using AI, and the government encourages their talents and directs them in a constructive and creative direction. Events like the "First Neurocontent Cup" open up new opportunities for AI specialists for self-realization and professional growth. They allow young people to try their hand at creating AI products, gain access to modern tools and infrastructure, and share experiences with like-minded people.

"Any business needs highly qualified personnel, and this issue is doubly relevant in the field of artificial intelligence. Therefore, it is important to support and develop talents in our country. The First Neurocontent Cup is a vivid example of how young people reach their potential. The works of the participants impress with their quality, creativity and accurate match to the audience's request and the topics that were proposed. All this proves that Russia knows how to work with AI and together we are forming a strong community of specialists of the future," said Andrey Lopatin, media manager and founder of Big Media.

In recent years, the number of activities aimed at supporting AI has increased significantly. The events cover both entrepreneurs and AI specialists, as well as talented young people who are just mastering modern technologies.

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For example, the annual "Journey into the World of AI" conference is aimed at a wide range of specialists, researchers and entrepreneurs interested in the latest scientific and applied achievements in the field of AI. The "Start‑AI‑1" and "Start‑AI‑2" contests are aimed at young companies and individual developers who receive grant support for the launch and development of AI projects, and the "Development‑AI" is aimed at existing small and medium-sized enterprises that implement AI solutions in their products or services.

Also the event "Digital Breakthrough. Season: Artificial Intelligence" was created to help IT developers, students and young professionals who are working on new AI products. Students can also show their skills at the All-Russian AI Week, which was created to promote AI for middle and senior students. High school students who are taking their first steps in mastering AI technologies can prove themselves at the All-Russian Artificial Intelligence Olympiad.

In addition, there is the Forum platform "AI – the future today". It is intended for the exchange of experience between the government, business and the expert community, aimed at developing strategic solutions for the development of AI in the country.

The widespread development of AI opens up new prospects for improving the quality of life of citizens. Intelligent systems are already speeding up bureaucratic processes, increasing the accuracy of decision-making at enterprises, and ensuring greater transparency in the work of government agencies.

"I see from my own experience how AI works in everyday life: from medicine and transport to new media. More than 20% of companies are already using generative AI, and technology's contribution to the economy could reach 4% of GDP by 2028. The Good News mobile app also actively uses AI algorithms to create content. They speed up some processes and make high—quality content more accessible to users," said Robert Bauer, a participant in the First Neurocontent Cup from the Good News team.

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The development of artificial intelligence in Russia under the leadership of President Vladimir Putin reflects a strategic course towards strengthening the country's technological sovereignty. In the context of global competition in the field of AI, Russia cannot stand aside: the effectiveness of public administration, the competitiveness of the domestic economy and even national security depend on the quality of the introduction of intelligent technologies. The National Strategy for the Development of Artificial Intelligence until 2030, approved by presidential decree and periodically updated by him, demonstrates a long-term focus on the systemic development of infrastructure, human resources and regulatory framework in the field of AI. In addition, it is worth emphasizing that the support measures are by no means declarative, but applied.

Thus, Putin supported the development of AI research centers, instructed students to teach AI (starting from September 1, 2025, such courses were introduced in some educational institutions), and provided financing for cloud platforms, data centers, and domestic computing capacities as part of the national Data Economics project.

Russia is not just developing AI, it is setting trends, which is why Putin launched the International Artificial Intelligence Alliance at the AI Journey international conference last December, which unites national associations and AI development institutions of the BRICS countries and other interested states. Such a systematic policy for the development of technology is already yielding tangible results.

"First of all, it's the people themselves. Those who have already mastered the skills of using neural networks and are actively using them, teaching them and creating their own products with their help. The second is, of course, government support for those who contribute to the creation of an ecosystem so that Russia becomes a leader in AI. For our part, we are also ready to train and support educational programs and projects of colleagues such as the First Neurocontent Cup in order to identify such talents and together talk about the achievements of our country, including in the field of AI," said Gennady Guryanov, expert, director of the Autonomous Non—Profit Organization "Development of Artificial Intelligence Technologies".