Registration is now open for the “Pre-seed and Seed Investment Readiness” program.

The program aims to prepare startups that already have a product and their first paying customers for investment in a short period of time and connect them directly with selected VCs. The process will be carried out through individual mentorship, a deep analytical approach, and the support of the AnalyzeWare platform.

A total of 5 startups will be selected. Within the program, they will shape their investment valuation, financial approach, and strategy over a period of 2–4 weeks. Notably, the selected startups will participate without any membership fee and will receive 12 months of free access to the AnalyzeWare Strategy package.

Application deadline: 14.02.2026

Registration link: https://forms.gle/BQBJ9fuxJoMU8TSr7

The “Demo Day” event of the IV “TUSI” incubation program, implemented by the “Innovation Center” of the State Agency for Public Service and Social Innovations under the President of the Republic of Azerbaijan, within the framework of the “Skills for the Future” project, has been held.

The objective is to strengthen human capital in the field of innovation and promote innovative activities in education. At the same time, creating conditions for the development of students’ innovative ideas and directing them toward invention and startup activities are among the key priorities.

The event was attended by Ulvi Mehdiyev, Chairman of the State Agency; Firudin Gurbanov, Deputy Minister of Science and Education; Orkhan Mammadov, Chairman of the Board of the Small and Medium Business Development Agency; Bakhtiyar Aslanbayli, Vice President for Communications and External Affairs for the Caspian Region at bp; as well as rectors of higher education institutions in the country.

Within the framework of the event, a Memorandum of Understanding on “Cooperation in the Formation and Development of an Innovation Environment in Universities” was signed between the State Agency and newly joined institutions — Azerbaijan Medical University, Azerbaijan State Pedagogical University, and the Academy of the State Customs Committee.

Afterwards, the guests ознакомились with the projects of the startup teams.

During the event, speeches by officials were delivered, and a video highlighting the work carried out within the project was presented.

Sixteen startup teams that successfully completed the IV “TUSI” incubation program presented their projects. Based on the jury’s evaluation, the top three projects were granted the opportunity to become residents of the INNOLAND Incubation and Acceleration Center. The first-place winner also earned the right to participate in the “Take Off Istanbul” startup summit.

Detailed information was provided about the upcoming V “TUSI” incubation program. Through intensive training covering 10 main topics and 34 sub-modules, the program offers participants extensive opportunities for building startups, systematically developing ideas, and integrating into the innovation ecosystem.

Since 2021, cooperation has been established with 15 higher education institutions within the framework of the project; more than 300 startup ideas have been submitted by over 3,000 students. With the support of more than 130 trained university mentors, 29 startup teams have been formed and have presented their projects at “Demo Day” events.

To date, four startups formed within the “Skills for the Future” project have attracted a total of 310,000 AZN in investment.

On January 10, 2019, Memorandum of Understanding was signed between INNOLAND Incubation and Acceleration Center, Next Step Innovation Center and SUP Startap Accelerator.

The memorandum covers joint cooperation on the promotion of Incubation and Acceleration projects, the provision of co-working services, and the conduct of educational programs for startups. It also includes an exchange of information and involvement in the organization of other mutual events to attract local and foreign investors.

The importance of the incubation service in establishing a sustainable startup ecosystem in our country, as well as the role of the acceleration service in shaping new national startup brands outside the country.