One of the country's main IT conferences, beetech conf by QazCode, was held in Almaty. The event brought together more than 1,000 participants from different regions of the country, bringing together representatives of the IT community, including developers, specialists, startups and industry enthusiasts.

The conference was organized by three companies: QazCode, a Kazakhstani IT company engaged in the implementation of solutions based on generative artificial intelligence; Beeline Kazakhstan, a digital operator leading in the number of subscribers in the country; and DAR, an IT product company implementing projects in the field of education, fintech and other areas.

The central theme of the conference was artificial intelligence. The conference was one of the first in Kazakhstan, almost entirely focused on AI. Technical aspects, ethical issues, challenges and opportunities that AI represents for the Kazakh and global markets were discussed during the reports and discussions.

Presentations were made by international and Kazakhstani experts from leading companies, including Apple, Kolesa Group, Yandex Qazaqstan, Indriver, Beeline Kazakhstan, Verigram, QazCode and others.

Big Tech Experience: How AI/ML products are built

Eldan Abrashim, an Apple engineer, spoke about how AI/ML products are built at Apple and Microsoft. In the report, he shared his experience in creating thoughtful pipelines, rolling out models, and engineering compromises that Big Tech cannot do without. Real-world cases were presented where a single mistake could affect hundreds of millions of users and described practices to help avoid this. Special attention was paid to the key engineering skill required to work in large technology companies.  Yeldan also gave advice to those who seek to get into Big Tech.:

"The interview there consists of five or more stages. They test not only hard skills, but also soft skills - the ability to communicate, work in a team, and adapt. Our developers in Kazakhstan are technically strong, but soft skills are often underestimated. But an interview is one thing, but daily work in an international environment is quite another," the speaker shared.

Agile methodologies and the impact of AI

Special attention in the conference program was also paid to the General direction - a combination of engineering and management approaches. One of the speakers of this section was Anton Zotin, an Agile expert with experience at Mercedes-Benz in Germany.

In his speech, he touched upon the key differences between the original Agile concept and how it is often implemented in corporate practice. The speaker shared his vision of how to apply agile methodologies in modern conditions and noted the importance of direct communication between development teams and users. According to him, with the development of AI, the importance of Agile approaches will only increase: "Today everyone is talking about AI, and this is not surprising. As it develops, many highly specialized tasks will be automated, so it is especially important for specialists to develop new business thinking and flexibility in their work."

New format: Speed-mentoring

An innovation of the conference was the "Speed-mentoring" format, which allowed participants to receive advice from leading experts from various industries in a short time. Among the invited guests are Maya Batyrbekova, an expert in digital transformation and IT management in large businesses; Asem Bolatzhan, CEO of Women In Tech and Adviser to the Minister of Digital Development of the Republic of Kazakhstan; Abylai Aikeev, project manager at international FMCG corporations; Madiyar Khamzanov, Director of AI/ML/Data Science, and others.

Consultations were conducted by appointment through a special application, which helped the participants to plan meetings effectively. Many noted that the format not only provided practical advice, but also helped to better understand how to solve professional problems.

The experts emphasized that Speed-mentoring is an important tool for developing the IT community and supporting aspiring professionals, opening up new opportunities for sharing experiences and expanding professional relationships.

“The main thing at any conference is networking, because people come specifically for communication, and this is especially true for IT specialists. Knowledge sharing has traditionally been strongly developed in the IT community: developers do not perceive each other as competitors, but willingly share insights and experiences in order to develop a professional community together,” Asem Bolatzhan emphasized.

The participants of the format also noted that the IT market needs new specialists, and the development period from junior to middle specialist has been greatly shortened. Therefore, conferences such as beetech conf by QazCode are an important part of the development of the technology sector.

Real-world experience: exporting Kazakhstani IT products

An important place at the conference was occupied by the issue of Kazakhstani companies entering the international market. The leading technology company QazCode presented its experience, with a presentation by its CEO Alexey Sharavar.

He spoke about the transformation of the internal IT department of an international corporation into an independent business and the promotion of three key products - large language models (for example, KazLLM), digital content and billing systems. These solutions are being successfully implemented in the CIS countries, Europe, the Middle East and Southeast Asia.

According to Alexey, Kazakhstan's expertise has great potential and can benefit companies abroad. However, recognition at the international level has so far been held back by the weak perception of specialists from the region. In this regard, he called on colleagues from Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan and other Central Asian countries to unite and jointly develop the industry.

QazCode has been involved in the organization of the conference for several years, contributing to the development of the professional community.

A space for industry development

The mission of the organizers is to create conditions for the growth of talents and strengthen expertise in the IT sector. Beetech conf 2025 has become a platform for the exchange of knowledge about modern tools, technologies and methods. The event brought together specialists, contributing to the development of the industry and the professional community. For newcomers, the conference has become a great opportunity for growth thanks to networking and expert support.