Lahore — The University of Management and Technology (UMT) has offered the Punjab government free access to its artificial intelligence-based tutoring and career-guidance technology, in an announcement made at the university’s 29th convocation and reported on November 1, 2026. The move comes as Punjab prepares the formal launch of its AI Vision 2029 plan later in November.
What happened?
UMT Chairman and President Ibrahim Hasan Murad made the offer while addressing the university’s 29th convocation, where 4,363 students received degrees across four sessions. He said the university’s AI technology could give students and graduates across Punjab round-the-clock academic assistance and career counselling, beyond conventional classroom hours, and could later be extended to other universities as a wider digital support network.
Punjab Chief Minister’s Adviser on Artificial Intelligence Ali Dar said at the same event that the provincial government would formally launch Punjab AI Vision 2029 in November and keep integrating artificial intelligence into government systems and public services. The agenda has been described as a six-pillar strategy aimed at transforming governance and service delivery, and the province has already set up an AI-enabled Delivery Unit as part of the initiative.
Key details
- 4,363 degrees were awarded at UMT’s 29th convocation: 3,570 bachelor’s, 21 master’s, 723 MS/MPhil and 49 PhD degrees, along with 62 gold and 68 silver medals.
- UMT’s offer covers its AI-based tutoring and career-guidance system, free of charge to the Punjab government, with students able to access help outside classroom hours.
- Punjab AI Vision 2029 aims to make Punjab South Asia’s most AI-enabled province by 2029.
- An AI fellowship programme in collaboration with UMT has also been proposed, connecting the province’s government AI work with university expertise and student training.
- UMT also announced Rs100 million in additional scholarships for students from Balochistan, taking its scholarship support for Balochistan students over the past decade to Rs572 million.
What it means for people in Pakistan
If Punjab takes up the offer, students at public institutions could get free, round-the-clock AI tutoring and career advice — help with studies and job choices that does not depend on a teacher being available. For a province preparing a full AI strategy, it is also an early test of whether university-built AI tools can move into public services quickly, rather than staying on campus.
Source: https://academiamag.com/news/umt-convocation-2026-ai-takes-centre-stage/
