SparkLabs, Mirae Asset launch fund targeting Central Asia startups

SparkLabs and Mirae Asset have partnered with Kazakhstan’s Qazaqstan Investment Corporation and Uzbekistan’s IT Park Ventures to establish the SparkLabs Mirae Silk Road Fund I LP, a venture capital vehicle focused on Series A and later-stage startups across Central Asia. The fund, managed jointly by Mirae Asset Venture Investment and SparkLabs, will target companies with proven business models preparing to scale internationally, with an emphasis on AI-native businesses. Initial capital for the fund is set at $2 million, with scope to increase to $10 million. Qazaqstan Investment Corporation and IT Park Ventures are expected to participate as anchor investors.

"Higgsfield becoming Kazakhstan's first unicorn was a turning point," said Aslan Sultanov, co‑founder and General Partner of SparkLabs Mirae Silk Road. "It showed that a world class AI company can be built in Central Asia."

The agreement was signed in Seoul during state visits by the presidents of Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan to South Korea and coincided with the first Central Asia–Republic of Korea Summit. The signing week also saw South Korea and Kazakhstan enter commercial agreements valued at $18.95 billion. Under the fund’s mandate SparkLabs and Mirae Asset will support portfolio companies seeking expansion into South Korea, the United States and the Middle East and North Africa.

SparkLabs has a global investment track record, having invested in more than 600 startups across six continents since 2013. Mirae Asset Venture Investment is part of Mirae Asset Financial Group, which manages more than $845 billion in assets across 18 markets. Qazaqstan Investment Corporation operates as Kazakhstan’s national fund of funds under Baiterek National Managing Holding and participates in 19 funds with combined capitalization of $2.8 billion. IT Park Ventures functions as the venture arm of Uzbekistan’s state technology park and is considering staged participation as an anchor limited partner, subject to legal, regulatory and corporate approvals.

Fund focus and regional context

The Silk Road fund will be sector-agnostic but prioritizes AI-native companies—startups where artificial intelligence is central to both product and business model. Portfolio companies will be selected from Series A onward, with preference for those that have demonstrated traction and are primed for cross-border growth. The arrangement includes plans for a SparkLabs office at IT Park in Tashkent to facilitate deal flow and support international expansion.

• Initial capital: $2 million, expandable to $10 million.
• Target stages: Series A and later-stage startups.
• Geographic focus: Central Asia, with expansion support to South Korea, the US and MENA.
• Anchor participants: Qazaqstan Investment Corporation and IT Park Ventures (staged participation).

The fund’s launch follows visible milestones in the regional tech ecosystem: Higgsfield, an AI video generation company founded by Yerzat Dulat and Alex Mashrabov, crossed a $1 billion valuation in 2025 to become Kazakhstan’s first tech unicorn. Sultanov highlighted demographics and policy as tailwinds, noting that "more than half of Central Asia’s population is under 30 and governments across the region are investing in AI," while international venture capital into the region remains limited compared with established markets.

Outlook: With institutional partners backing the vehicle and targeted support from SparkLabs and Mirae Asset for market entry, the Silk Road fund aims to channel later-stage capital into Central Asian startups prepared for global expansion. Its success will hinge on the fund’s ability to scale portfolio companies into markets such as South Korea, the United States and MENA, and to build on recent regional momentum exemplified by Higgsfield and growing state-led technology initiatives in Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan.