Nournews: The latest Global AI Index offers a precise picture of countries’ real standing in the future-shaping race of artificial intelligence — a competition that is no longer merely technological but now determines each nation’s share of the emerging order of power, economy, and digital security. According to the report, countries are classified into four tiers: “Unchallenged Superpower,” “Global Competitor,” “Elite Club,” and “Starters and Followers.” In this framework, only the United States occupies the top tier with a perfect score of 100, while China, with a score of 54, is recognized as its only serious challenger.
What is critically important for Iran, however, is the status of regional countries and their place in this global system. The data shows that Saudi Arabia, with a score of 20, and the UAE, with a score of 17, both fall into the Elite Club; even Turkey, with a score of 11, has surpassed Iran. This trend reflects the region’s deliberate and accelerating investment in AI as an economic and geopolitical engine.
Iran, meanwhile, ranks 60th out of 83 with a score of 7 out of 100—a figure not only below the global average of 13.3 but also one that creates a significant gap with regional rivals. It indicates that Iran is still in the early stages of AI ecosystem maturity. This weak performance—despite the country’s notable human capital, research capacity, and infrastructure—highlights deep gaps in data governance, technological investment, organizational readiness, and the ability of the digital governance system to keep pace with global transformation.
According to the chart provided, Iran’s distance from leading regional countries is substantial: Saudi Arabia scores 20, the UAE 17, and Turkey 11. These numbers show that for Iran to reach the Elite Club, it must at least double its current score—a goal achievable only through structural reforms, leveraging open data, developing research centers, and attracting large-scale investment.
The key issue is that AI competition is rapidly becoming a tool of geopolitical influence in the region. Saudi Arabia and the UAE, through their 2030 visions, have positioned AI as the engine of economic and security transformation; Turkey, drawing on its defense industry, has integrated AI into its national strategy.
If Iran does not embark on fundamental reforms, the current gap will not only persist but could become an irreversible technological divergence from its regional competitors — a divide that may ultimately carry profound economic, security, and political consequences for the nation’s future.