The semifinals of Astana Hub Battle took place as part of the international technology forum AI & Digital Bridge 2026. A total of 50 startups presented their projects, with the jury selecting 14 teams to advance to the final. The total prize pool of Astana Hub Battle is $100,000. The final will take place on October 3.
Following the pitches, the jury selected 14 finalists who will continue competing in Astana Hub Battle 2026.
Astana Hub Battle 2026 Finalists:
- CYBERPACK.AI — an ecosystem for project-based and competitive learning designed to nurture a new generation of scientists and engineers.
- Aman — a security startup capable of detecting and preventing a threat within 8 seconds.
- MYupgrade — a live AI-powered translation service that delivers translated speeches directly to each participant’s phone.
- Hi Doctor — an AI-powered medical education platform featuring virtual patients that helps future doctors develop clinical reasoning and decision-making skills.
- Astana Dynamics — a developer of robots designed to detect defects at industrial facilities before they lead to accidents.
- BEST Vision — an AI platform that transforms real-world data into actionable insights and enables real-time decision-making.
- Spacelab — a developer of satellite communication antennas and modems for infrastructure monitoring and early warning of floods and wildfires, including in areas without cellular coverage.
- Welcome Video AI — a solution that turns hotel TVs into an information channel that helps guests discover the city.
- NCSpeech — a platform for collecting data to train AI through super apps in emerging markets.
- Pulsar AI — an AI scanner embedded in a speed bump that checks a vehicle’s underbody and exterior in three seconds and generates reports for banks, insurance companies, and automotive marketplaces.
- AuaSense — an intelligent air quality monitoring platform that transforms sensor data into analytics, forecasts, and solutions for urban environment management.
- M3TRIQ — an AI platform for protein and molecular design for biomanufacturing.
- Behype — an AI-native platform for running and scaling campaigns with influencers and content creators.
- Resti — an AI-powered solution for restaurant management.
A special prize from Khan Tengri Innovation Hub was also awarded during the semifinals — participation in the AI Capacity Building Training Program, which will take place in Shanghai from October 25 to November 7, 2026. The prize covers participation in the program and accommodation for two participants, with a total value of KZT 5.5 million. The special prize was presented by jury member Lyazzat Borankulova and awarded to M3TRIQ and Spacelab.
The total prize pool of Astana Hub Battle 2026 is $100,000. Winners will be selected in four categories:
- Impact Maker — the startup with the greatest impact;
- Market Shaper — the startup transforming its market;
- Growth Engine — the startup with the greatest growth potential;
- Investor’s Choice — the most investment-attractive startup.
The competition partners will also provide participants with additional opportunities. Kazakhtelecom will provide $25,000 worth of GPU resources, while Yandex Kazakhstan will provide KZT 10 million worth of cloud resources to support the development and scaling of startup projects.
The Astana Hub Battle 2026 final will take place on October 3. Fourteen startups selected during the semifinals will take the stage. Each team will have three minutes to pitch their project, followed by two minutes for questions from the jury. The finalists will be evaluated by Zhaslan Madiyev, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Artificial Intelligence and Digital Development of the Republic of Kazakhstan; Alex Mashrabov, CEO of Higgsfield AI; Bagdat Mussin, Chairman of the Management Board of Kazakhtelecom JSC; Timur Turlov, CEO of Freedom Holding Corp.; and Murat Abdrakhmanov, Founder of MA7.
AI & Digital Bridge 2026 was held as part of Kazakhstan’s Year of Digitalization and Artificial Intelligence and became the flagship international event of AI MONTH — a month-long series of events bringing together initiatives in artificial intelligence, digital technologies, entrepreneurship, and human capital development.
AI & Digital Bridge 2026 was organized by the Astana Hub International Innovation Cluster jointly with the Ministry of Artificial Intelligence and Digital Development of the Republic of Kazakhstan and the Akimat of Astana.
AI & Digital Bridge 2026 was funded through sponsorship contributions with the support of the forum’s partners.
Gold Partners: Freedom Bank, Kaspi Bank, Samruk-Kazyna JSC, Kazakhtelecom JSC.
Silver Partner: Halyk Bank.
Business Partner: Beeline Kazakhstan.
Bronze Partner: Yandex Qazaqstan.
Telecom Partner: Freedom Telecom Operations.
Technology Partner: Transtelecom JSC.
Official Airline Partner: Air Astana.
The semifinals of Astana Hub Battle took place as part of the international technology forum AI & Digital Bridge 2026. A total of 50 startups presented their projects, with the jury selecting 14 teams to advance to the final. The total prize pool of Astana Hub Battle is $100,000. The final will take place on October 3.
Following the pitches, the jury selected 14 finalists who will continue competing in Astana Hub Battle 2026.
Astana Hub Battle 2026 Finalists:
- CYBERPACK.AI — an ecosystem for project-based and competitive learning designed to nurture a new generation of scientists and engineers.
- Aman — a security startup capable of detecting and preventing a threat within 8 seconds.
- MYupgrade — a live AI-powered translation service that delivers translated speeches directly to each participant’s phone.
- Hi Doctor — an AI-powered medical education platform featuring virtual patients that helps future doctors develop clinical reasoning and decision-making skills.
- Astana Dynamics — a developer of robots designed to detect defects at industrial facilities before they lead to accidents.
- BEST Vision — an AI platform that transforms real-world data into actionable insights and enables real-time decision-making.
- Spacelab — a developer of satellite communication antennas and modems for infrastructure monitoring and early warning of floods and wildfires, including in areas without cellular coverage.
- Welcome Video AI — a solution that turns hotel TVs into an information channel that helps guests discover the city.
- NCSpeech — a platform for collecting data to train AI through super apps in emerging markets.
- Pulsar AI — an AI scanner embedded in a speed bump that checks a vehicle’s underbody and exterior in three seconds and generates reports for banks, insurance companies, and automotive marketplaces.
- AuaSense — an intelligent air quality monitoring platform that transforms sensor data into analytics, forecasts, and solutions for urban environment management.
- M3TRIQ — an AI platform for protein and molecular design for biomanufacturing.
- Behype — an AI-native platform for running and scaling campaigns with influencers and content creators.
- Resti — an AI-powered solution for restaurant management.
A special prize from Khan Tengri Innovation Hub was also awarded during the semifinals — participation in the AI Capacity Building Training Program, which will take place in Shanghai from October 25 to November 7, 2026. The prize covers participation in the program and accommodation for two participants, with a total value of KZT 5.5 million. The special prize was presented by jury member Lyazzat Borankulova and awarded to M3TRIQ and Spacelab.
The total prize pool of Astana Hub Battle 2026 is $100,000. Winners will be selected in four categories:
- Impact Maker — the startup with the greatest impact;
- Market Shaper — the startup transforming its market;
- Growth Engine — the startup with the greatest growth potential;
- Investor’s Choice — the most investment-attractive startup.
The competition partners will also provide participants with additional opportunities. Kazakhtelecom will provide $25,000 worth of GPU resources, while Yandex Kazakhstan will provide KZT 10 million worth of cloud resources to support the development and scaling of startup projects.
The Astana Hub Battle 2026 final will take place on October 3. Fourteen startups selected during the semifinals will take the stage. Each team will have three minutes to pitch their project, followed by two minutes for questions from the jury. The finalists will be evaluated by Zhaslan Madiyev, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Artificial Intelligence and Digital Development of the Republic of Kazakhstan; Alex Mashrabov, CEO of Higgsfield AI; Bagdat Mussin, Chairman of the Management Board of Kazakhtelecom JSC; Timur Turlov, CEO of Freedom Holding Corp.; and Murat Abdrakhmanov, Founder of MA7.
AI & Digital Bridge 2026 was held as part of Kazakhstan’s Year of Digitalization and Artificial Intelligence and became the flagship international event of AI MONTH — a month-long series of events bringing together initiatives in artificial intelligence, digital technologies, entrepreneurship, and human capital development.
AI & Digital Bridge 2026 was organized by the Astana Hub International Innovation Cluster jointly with the Ministry of Artificial Intelligence and Digital Development of the Republic of Kazakhstan and the Akimat of Astana.
AI & Digital Bridge 2026 was funded through sponsorship contributions with the support of the forum’s partners.
Gold Partners: Freedom Bank, Kaspi Bank, Samruk-Kazyna JSC, Kazakhtelecom JSC.
Silver Partner: Halyk Bank.
Business Partner: Beeline Kazakhstan.
Bronze Partner: Yandex Qazaqstan.
Telecom Partner: Freedom Telecom Operations.
Technology Partner: Transtelecom JSC.
Official Airline Partner: Air Astana.
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