Pakistan faces compliance risks due to missing binding artificial intelligence laws

Pakistan approved its National AI Policy on July 31, 2025, but the country still lacks a binding artificial intelligence law or an enacted data protection statute, Digital Pakistan reported. The absence of primary legislation leaves local technology startups operating without formal legal frameworks for data privacy and algorithmic accountability. [1]

Digital Pakistan reported that the federal cabinet signed off on the policy framework, which establishes six pillars and sets a goal to train one million professionals by 2030. However, the government has not created an enforcement body with statutory authority, nor has it established a legal definition for high-risk systems or statutory liability for automated harms. [1]

According to Digital Pakistan, the legislative gap leaves startups without clear rules regarding user consent for training artificial intelligence models on local user data. Without a statutory data protection framework, technology companies face regulatory uncertainty while attempting to scale operations locally and internationally. [1]