Amazon’s Project Kuiper has signed an agreement with Kazakhtelecom, the country’s largest telecom operator, to provide high-speed satellite internet across Kazakhstan. The deal was announced during the UN General Assembly in New York, co-hosted by Amazon, the ITU, and the UN Office for Outer Space Affairs.
Under the partnership, Kazakhtelecom will use Project Kuiper’s low Earth orbit (LEO) satellite network to extend connectivity to households, schools, businesses, and communities across the nation. Lisa Scalpone, Project Kuiper’s Head of Worldwide Consumer, highlighted this as Kuiper’s first partnership in Central Asia and the Caucasus, with support from Kazakhstan’s sovereign wealth fund, Samruk-Kazyna.
Project Kuiper’s system relies on a constellation of interconnected satellites using high-speed optical links to form a space-based mesh network, complemented by ground infrastructure of antennas, fibre, and internet points. Amazon has already launched more than 100 satellites and is ramping up deployment for its initial service rollout.
While Kuiper’s entry is seen as a key step in bridging Kazakhstan’s digital divide, it joins a competitive field. Chinese operator Shanghai SpaceSail Technologies tested its satellite broadband in Almaty earlier this year, and SpaceX’s Starlink is preparing to officially launch services in Kazakhstan before year-end.
