The delegation of Startup Estonia and the “Garage 48” Acceleration Center, established upon the initiative of the Estonian government, got acquainted with the “INNOLAND” Incubation and Acceleration Center of the State Agency for Public Service and Social Innovations under the President of the Republic of Azerbaijan.
Wide information on operating Co-working, Incubation, Acceleration and IT Training, as well as the startups residing within the center, was delivered to the guests.
Then, the Memorandum of Collaboration was signed between parties.
The Memorandum of Cooperation involves the establishment of an entrepreneurial support ecosystem as well as the creation and development of investor opportunities in the relevant regions for local technology startups. Furthermore, it covers the adoption of mutually agreed measures such as an effective exchange of incubation and acceleration programs and exchange of information on the attraction of local and foreign investors and etc.
According to the agreement reached within the memorandum signed with the "Startup Estonia" Center, the initial assessment of the regional applications sent to the “Startup Estonian Visa” program will be implemented in Azerbaijan. Startups applied to the relevant program from the regional countries such as Russia, Georgia, Mongolia, Iran, and Afghanistan will be initially assessed by the “INNOLAND” Incubation and Acceleration Center. Only startups that have successfully completed the initial stage will be able to move to the next stage of the program. This will play a significant role in attracting regional start-ups and projects to our country and increasing the success potential of the startup ecosystem.
The “Startup Estonian Visa” Program was established in 2017 on the joint initiative of the Estonian Startup Committee and the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Estonia. The main goal of the program is to facilitate the entry of successful startups and projects of non-EU countries to Estonia. Thus, successful startups sent their applications to the “Startup Estonian Visa” Program are provided with a special code through which the applicants and their team members may obtain a permit to live up to 5 years in Estonia.
"INNOLAND" Incubation and Acceleration Center of the State Agency for Citizen Services and Social Innovations under the President of Azerbaijan will start a Joint Acceleration Program with AzerGold CJSC. The goal is to bring together the precious metal industry's most emerging startups to stimulate inter-industry innovation, increase the effectiveness of processes and establish a new standard for this industry in Azerbaijan and the region.
The startups eligible for this batch can be focused on:
optimizing processes
enhancing capabilities
enhancing skills
utilizing leading technologies
within the precious metal industry and provide solutions that can be adapted to the needs of AzerGold CJSC.
Along with innovative solutions for the precious metal industry, startups can offer solutions suitable for AzerGold’s organizational needs including:
Mining
Industrial
Geology
HR
Database / Digitalization
Legal
Finance
Ecology
HSE, etc
Criteria
Other than being relevant to AzerGold CJSC’s activities, the selection criteria include:
1.Team: Minimum 2 People (No solo founders)
2. Minimum physical full-time presence on-site 1 Team member with good knowledge of English
3. Product: Developed or are developing a minimum viable product (MVP), Proof of concept
4. Market: Identified market and target segments
5. Pitch Deck needed
6. Qualification and experience in the field of precious metals will be considered as a big advantage
7. Research for export opportunities and readiness to enter new markets
For registration: https://forms.gle/8YqYx6mh6d1J7sXd8
“INNODOST” – Innovation and Startup Program. Organized by the "Volunteer DOST" program and in partnership with the "INNOLAND" Incubation and Acceleration Center, the “INNODOST” 3-module program was successfully completed within the framework of the “Volunteer Clubs” project. Under the presentation of Nijat Amiraslanov, Director of the "INNOLAND" Incubation and Acceleration Center, training sessions were held over 3 days as part of the modules. Participants gained valuable knowledge about the innovation ecosystem, creative thinking, startup development, and entrepreneurship skills.
Polygraf AI, which has grown through INNOLAND, has achieved a remarkable success!
Selected as the winner of the “Road to TechCrunch Battlefield 200” competition organized by the Silkroad Innovation Center, Polygraf AI stood out among more than 400 startups from Central Asia, the Caucasus, and Turkey, earning a direct ticket to the TechCrunch 2025 finals!
This achievement continues the company’s streak of successes. Previously, Polygraf AI had also won the SXSW Pitch and SummerFest Tech competitions held in the USA.
The platform protects organizations’ data security, detects deepfake audio and fake content, and prevents confidential information from leaking into AI tools.
We sincerely congratulate the team and wish them even greater victories in the future!