A highlight of the visit was the signing of a memorandum of cooperation between Astana Hub and Tumo Ventures. This document outlines a strategic partnership to establish a TUMO Center for Creative Technologies within the National Center for Artificial Intelligence in Kazakhstan. The agreement was signed by Tumo Ventures CEO Pegor Papazyan and Astana Hub CEO Magzhan Madiyev.

The National Center for Artificial Intelligence in Astana, announced by Kazakhstan’s President in his State of the Nation Address on September 2, 2024, will play a pivotal role in developing the country’s digital economy. Open to schoolchildren, students, researchers, and entrepreneurs, the center will feature a flagship school for creative technologies and artificial intelligence, designed for middle and high school students. Tumo Ventures, known for its innovative educational programs in tech and creative technologies, has been selected as a strategic partner in the creation of this school.

During the visit, President Khachaturyan and the Minister of Digital Development and Communications toured Astana Hub’s innovative ecosystem. As the largest technology park in Central Asia, Astana Hub is actively fostering tech ecosystem growth, supporting startups, and training highly qualified specialists. Currently, the park is home to over 1,500 tech companies, more than 400 of which have foreign partners. Astana Hub residents benefit from a wide range of opportunities, including business scaling programs, tax and visa incentives, and access to educational resources and advanced infrastructure.

Several Armenian companies are also among Astana Hub’s residents, including AI DIAGNOSTIC, which develops AI-based software to detect medical pathologies in CT/MRI images; Gen2B, the developer of Gen2Chat, an AI-based chatbot for personalized communication across various online channels; and AI Bot Solutions Ltd, which created the Electronic Doctor project aimed at diagnosing and preventing diseases.

Since its founding in 2018, Astana Hub’s residents have achieved impressive milestones, including $819 million in IT exports, ₸274.6 billion in attracted investments, the creation of more than 28,000 jobs, and a total income of ₸1.1 trillion.

President Khachaturyan was introduced to leading Kazakhstan's startups within Astana Hub, each demonstrating globally scalable, innovative solutions. These included CodiPlay, a gamified platform for teaching programming to schoolchildren; Alaqan, a contactless payment system that uses palm vein recognition; ArlanBiotech, a company developing AI-based nanobodies; Higgsfield AI, a platform for creating videos powered by artificial intelligence; and OGames, a mobile game developer known for the popular Car Parking Multiplayer project. Additionally, the global tech company inDrive, a platform for transportation and urban services operating in 750 cities across 46 countries, was presented.

For reference:

The "International Tech Park of IT Startups "Astana Hub" Corporate Fund (hereinafter referred to as Astana Hub) is the largest tech park in Central Asia. Astana Hub’s mission is to foster an ecosystem that supports tech businesses, trains tech talent, and develops startup projects.

The TUMO Center for Creative Technologies is a free educational program that empowers teenagers to direct their own learning. The program includes independent learning activities, master classes, and project labs in 15 key learning areas.

TUMO Centers in Armenia:

• Yerevan
• Dilijan
• Gyumri
• Stepanakert

There are 19 TUMO Boxes operating in 19 cities across Armenia.

TUMO centers are located in the following cities around the world:

• Paris
• Beirut
• Tirana
• Berlin
• Zurich
• Mannheim
• Coimbra
• Kyiv
• Lyon

TUMO’s program is organized around 15 learning areas, allowing teens to create personalized learning paths based on their interests and needs:

• Animation
• Game Development
• Filmmaking
• Web Development
• Music
• Writing
• Drawing
• Graphic Design
• 3D Modeling
• Programming
• Robotics
• Motion Design
• Photography
• New Media
• Generative AI