How is Armenia trying to build the silicon valley in the Caucasus

In Armenia, technological education begins early.

At a three-storey government school in the outskirts of Yerevan, the Armenian capital, the nine-year-old Slavic shows his invention-a box with three LED lights.

“He learned how to control it and programming language. You can see the code before him,” says Maria, 21 -year -old technology coach, who leads the class.

Next to them, Eric and Nark 14 -year -old displays their smart model that monitors the temperature and automatically controls fans through the mobile phone application.

Other children enthusiastically display their inventions: games, robots, applications and smart home projects.

Eleven -year -old Arakil carries his model of cardboard with a cloudable washing rope.

“I made my mother’s work easy, and part of the device is set on the surface, and another is a engine,” he says. “When it rains, the line goes below the surface to keep the clothes dry.”

These young inventors attend the chapters of the engineering laboratory, where they learn programming, robots, coding, 3D and more modeling.

The program started in 2014, called Armath, which translates into English as “root”. Today there are 650 Armath Laborators in schools throughout Armenia.

The initiative was created by a business organization called Union of Advanced Technology Enteprises (UAT), which represents more than 200 high -tech Armenian companies.

“The vision is that we want to see Armenia becoming a technical center of technology that provides the maximum values ​​of Armenia and the world,” says Sarkis Karabtian, CEO of UTE.

In his spacious and open office in Yerevan, he says that there are now about 4000 technical companies in Armenia.

Armath is part of the UATE’S Eduction and Workforce Development program. Mr. Karabtian says the program is the most successful partnership between the public and private sectors in the country.

“We raise capital spending from the private sector, we go to schools, create Armath laboratories, and excel the equipment,” he says. “The government, the Ministry of Education gives us a budget of $ 2 million (1.5 million pounds) annually to pay the salaries of coaches.”

There are now more than 600 trainers and 17,000 active students.

“The goal is that there is 5,000 of the most talented children who decide to become engineers every year,” says Karabtian.

Armenia is a non -coastal country with a population of 2.7 million, and the smallest in the South Caucasus region, and its borders were closed with neighboring Azerbaijan and Turkey for decades due to the unmuntent regional conflicts.

Unlike its neighbors, Armenia does not have natural resources or access to the sea. But during the Soviet era it was the center of mathematics and computer science.

In 1956, the Yerevan Institute for Scientific Research for Sports Machines in Armenia was established by 1960, which developed a computer of the first generation.

Today, the country is using its legacy with ambition to turn itself into a technical force in the Caucasus.

There was some success already. Picsart, a web site in photo editing and video that works for Amnesty International, was launched in Armenia in 2011. Its value is today that the company of the same name, which has a double headquarters in Yerevan and Miami, is worth $ 1.5 billion.

KRISP, which makes audio processing programs and Titan service, which provides other Armenian success programs.

Meanwhile, an annual report says that Armenia is the best country in the party conference area in which a company is launched, and put it in The 57th place in the world. This compares with Georgia in 70th, and Azerbaijan in 80.

Among the decisive factors in promoting the technological development of Armenia is the global diaspora in the country – about 75 % of the world’s estimated Armenians, and people of Armenian origin, living elsewhere.

This global community provides important links, especially in the American technology industry. In the United States, there are up to 1.6 million of Armenian origin, focusing on California.

Samelf Khachikyan, the SmartGate Program Manager, is a California -based investment capital company and Armenia focuses on technical investments.

He says that if you look at the best 500 companies in the United States, “You will definitely find at least one or two of the Armenians” in the meeting hall or management level below.

Mr. Khashikyan explains how his Armenian entrepreneurship company helps create operations in the United States.

“Imagine an Armenian startup, two young men decide to go to the United States to try to work there, and they have no links, and there is no knowledge of culture how it works.

“It will be difficult, very difficult. We help them, it’s like a missile launch, the first second is the most difficult.”

SmartGate takes Armenian founders to Silicon Valley and Los Angeles for intense networks with American companies and investors.

But many Armenian startups test their products first in their local market.

Irina Ghazaryan, is the founder of an application called Dr. Yan who changes how the Armenians reach health care by enabling them to easily book appointments with doctors.

Mrs. Ghazaryan was previously working in designing products and websites on the web when she helped in the fact that she came from a family of doctors, and she identified a market gap. “Patients were unable to find the appropriate doctors, and doctors had endless calls.”

The app works on a subscription form, where doctors are pushing on the platform, and there are plans to expand.

“We are growing at least 25 % revenue month after the month,” added Ms. Gazarian. “We are almost in Armenia and this gives us the power to start expanding to other markets, such as Uzbekistan.”

The Ecological System of Technology in Armenia received an unexpected payment in 2022 after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Thousands of Russian information technology specialists have left their country, and many chose to settle in Armenia.

Meanwhile, the American NVIDIA giant transferred its Russian office to Armenia.

Vasili, Russian Information Technology Adviser, moved to Armenia in 2023. “Armenia was the most friendly for people from Russia to help them move, adapt, etc.,” he says.

It is estimated that the Russian IT community in Armenia ranges from 5,000 to 8,000 people. This flow said that he filled the important skills gaps in the technology sector in Armenia, in areas such as data processing, cybersecurity and financial technologies.

However, Vasily says that Armenia can be expensive and that the country needs to reduce the tax burden on IT companies if it wants to remain in the country.

However, optimism is generally high over Armenia’s future technology. Samville Khasikyan expects the sector to flourish. It refers to the Titan service, which floats on the New York Stock Exchange last December, and is now worth more than $ 10 billion.