Seventy-nine of the most competitive projects advanced to the semifinals, and 14 were selected for the final round: eXpace Technology, Hemo.Labs, YAYA, MoonAI, flection.ai, CYBERPACK.AI, OpenSpot, Mirai Tech, Oina AI, AIGINEER, NeuroGuard AI, MacDent, MindShield and WeGlobal AI. They were joined by TrustExam AI, the winner of the AI Sana Generative Pitch.
“Once again, Astana Hub Battle has confirmed its status as a key stage for IT entrepreneurs in the region. We see that startups from Central Eurasia are already building competitive solutions in artificial intelligence, healthcare, education, fintech and other fields. These projects contribute to the knowledge economy, create jobs and set new milestones for the industry. It is important for us not only to support entrepreneurs but also to spark interest in technology among young people, showing that IT and AI are where future opportunities lie. I want to express my gratitude to all our partners and sponsors — through our joint efforts, this event has become possible,” said Magzhan Madiyev, CEO of Astana Hub.
The winners of Astana Hub Battle 2025 were announced in seven categories. The first five key categories shared the main prize fund — $25,000 each.
Best Social Impact: The winner was WeGlobal.AI, an EdTech startup using AI for student career guidance and psychological support. The prize was presented by Arsen Tomsky, founder and CEO of inDrive.
Discovery of the Year: The award went to MindShield, a mobile app and bracelet for early diagnosis of Parkinson’s disease. The prize was presented by Zhaslan Madiev, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Artificial Intelligence and Digital Development of Kazakhstan.
Exponential Growth: The winner was TrustExam AI, which helps government agencies, universities and testing centers combat fraud and improve academic integrity. The prize was presented by Pavel Durov, founder and CEO of Telegram.
Ticket to the Future (SAFE from Astana Hub Ventures): The winner was Moon.AI, which has developed an AI-based operating system for SMEs with digital employees that work 24/7. The prize was presented by Magzhan Madiyev, CEO of Astana Hub.
MA7 Award (from MA7 Ventures): The winner was Mirai Tech, a DeepTech startup creating AI-powered wearable sensors for sports and rehabilitation with autonomous energy supply. The prize was presented by Murat Abdrakhmanov, founder of MA7 Ventures.
A special grant from Kazakhtelecom in the form of $25,000 worth of GPU resources was awarded to MacDent — a cloud-based ERP/CRM platform for dental clinics and medical centers. The prize was presented by Bagdat Mussin, Chairman of Kazakhtelecom.
The Yandex Qazaqstan Startup Spotlight Award went to flection.ai — a web platform offering AI-based therapeutic games for post-stroke rehabilitation that uses a regular webcam to track hand movements. The prize was presented by Zhanar Makhambetova, CMO of Yandex Cloud in Kazakhstan and Central Asia.
“We did not raise investment; instead, we built the business and developed the startup on our own. Today we feel incredibly confident and ready to enter new markets. Our next steps involve scaling to the United States, Canada and the United Kingdom. We have already signed a contract with a major organization in the UK, and in the future we plan to serve up to 4 million people there annually. Our startup is five years old, and this victory at Astana Hub Battle confirms that we are moving in the right direction,” shared Nurali Sarbakysh, founder of TrustExam AI and winner of Astana Hub Battle 2025.
Astana Hub Battle is designed for startups with a ready product at the MVP or PMF stage. This year, applications were submitted by startups from Kazakhstan, Tajikistan, Russia, Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan, Azerbaijan, Mongolia, the USA and the UAE.
A reminder that from October 2 to 4, Astana is hosting Digital Bridge 2025 — the largest technology and AI event in Central Eurasia, bringing together global industry leaders, investors, experts and startups.
This year, the forum was made possible thanks to the support of our partners and sponsors. All expenses are covered through sponsorship funding.
The general partner of the forum is Freedom Bank Kazakhstan — an innovative bank offering digital financial products and services to individuals and businesses.
Gold partners — Kaspi.kz, Yandex Qazaqstan and Kazakhtelecom.
Silver partner — Transtelecom.
Bronze partners — BI Group, Baiterek National Managing Holding, Eurasian Bank, Ozon, Tengizchevroil.
Innovation partner — inDrive.
Information partners — CITIX, Musan Group, EcoGenMedia, MYD, Visit Astana.
Seventy-nine of the most competitive projects advanced to the semifinals, and 14 were selected for the final round: eXpace Technology, Hemo.Labs, YAYA, MoonAI, flection.ai, CYBERPACK.AI, OpenSpot, Mirai Tech, Oina AI, AIGINEER, NeuroGuard AI, MacDent, MindShield and WeGlobal AI. They were joined by TrustExam AI, the winner of the AI Sana Generative Pitch.
“Once again, Astana Hub Battle has confirmed its status as a key stage for IT entrepreneurs in the region. We see that startups from Central Eurasia are already building competitive solutions in artificial intelligence, healthcare, education, fintech and other fields. These projects contribute to the knowledge economy, create jobs and set new milestones for the industry. It is important for us not only to support entrepreneurs but also to spark interest in technology among young people, showing that IT and AI are where future opportunities lie. I want to express my gratitude to all our partners and sponsors — through our joint efforts, this event has become possible,” said Magzhan Madiyev, CEO of Astana Hub.
The winners of Astana Hub Battle 2025 were announced in seven categories. The first five key categories shared the main prize fund — $25,000 each.
Best Social Impact: The winner was WeGlobal.AI, an EdTech startup using AI for student career guidance and psychological support. The prize was presented by Arsen Tomsky, founder and CEO of inDrive.
Discovery of the Year: The award went to MindShield, a mobile app and bracelet for early diagnosis of Parkinson’s disease. The prize was presented by Zhaslan Madiev, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Artificial Intelligence and Digital Development of Kazakhstan.
Exponential Growth: The winner was TrustExam AI, which helps government agencies, universities and testing centers combat fraud and improve academic integrity. The prize was presented by Pavel Durov, founder and CEO of Telegram.
Ticket to the Future (SAFE from Astana Hub Ventures): The winner was Moon.AI, which has developed an AI-based operating system for SMEs with digital employees that work 24/7. The prize was presented by Magzhan Madiyev, CEO of Astana Hub.
MA7 Award (from MA7 Ventures): The winner was Mirai Tech, a DeepTech startup creating AI-powered wearable sensors for sports and rehabilitation with autonomous energy supply. The prize was presented by Murat Abdrakhmanov, founder of MA7 Ventures.
A special grant from Kazakhtelecom in the form of $25,000 worth of GPU resources was awarded to MacDent — a cloud-based ERP/CRM platform for dental clinics and medical centers. The prize was presented by Bagdat Mussin, Chairman of Kazakhtelecom.
The Yandex Qazaqstan Startup Spotlight Award went to flection.ai — a web platform offering AI-based therapeutic games for post-stroke rehabilitation that uses a regular webcam to track hand movements. The prize was presented by Zhanar Makhambetova, CMO of Yandex Cloud in Kazakhstan and Central Asia.
“We did not raise investment; instead, we built the business and developed the startup on our own. Today we feel incredibly confident and ready to enter new markets. Our next steps involve scaling to the United States, Canada and the United Kingdom. We have already signed a contract with a major organization in the UK, and in the future we plan to serve up to 4 million people there annually. Our startup is five years old, and this victory at Astana Hub Battle confirms that we are moving in the right direction,” shared Nurali Sarbakysh, founder of TrustExam AI and winner of Astana Hub Battle 2025.
Astana Hub Battle is designed for startups with a ready product at the MVP or PMF stage. This year, applications were submitted by startups from Kazakhstan, Tajikistan, Russia, Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan, Azerbaijan, Mongolia, the USA and the UAE.
A reminder that from October 2 to 4, Astana is hosting Digital Bridge 2025 — the largest technology and AI event in Central Eurasia, bringing together global industry leaders, investors, experts and startups.
This year, the forum was made possible thanks to the support of our partners and sponsors. All expenses are covered through sponsorship funding.
The general partner of the forum is Freedom Bank Kazakhstan — an innovative bank offering digital financial products and services to individuals and businesses.
Gold partners — Kaspi.kz, Yandex Qazaqstan and Kazakhtelecom.
Silver partner — Transtelecom.
Bronze partners — BI Group, Baiterek National Managing Holding, Eurasian Bank, Ozon, Tengizchevroil.
Innovation partner — inDrive.
Information partners — CITIX, Musan Group, EcoGenMedia, MYD, Visit Astana.
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