Iran to License Three Artificial Intelligence Operators Within One Month

Iran's Ministry of Information and Communications Technology is preparing to grant preliminary regulatory approvals to three domestic artificial intelligence operators within the next month, Minister Sattar Hashemi announced. Speaking before the parliament's Planning and Budget Commission, Hashemi highlighted the government's pivot toward private-sector engagement to accelerate technological deployment.

Addressing legislative officials, Hashemi underscored the economic rationale behind relying on private enterprise, noting that state financial and technical resource constraints necessitated outside partnerships. Following comprehensive feasibility reviews and a national public call for tenders, several private firms submitted bids to establish specialized AI operating infrastructure, with three emerging as finalists.

"Due to resource limitations, the Ministry of Communications has shifted toward maximizing the capacity of the private sector to develop artificial intelligence infrastructure," Hashemi stated during the parliamentary session. He emphasized that the forthcoming preliminary agreements will empower these three selected commercial operators to construct processing backbones and deploy AI services nationwide.

The initiative signals Tehran's broader strategy to establish sovereign digital frameworks and advance technological autonomy through commercial mechanisms. Once granted operational agreements next month, the trio of enterprises will begin rolling out the foundational digital and hardware infrastructure required to scale artificial intelligence capabilities across Iran's public and private sectors.