The “Grand Final” ceremony of the “Innostart” project, which was also held in the regions of Azerbaijan with the support of the Innovation and Digital Development Agency (IRIA) and the organization of the “SUP VC” company, took place. Out of 17 startups that reached the finals within the framework of the project, “Backlify”, “SaleX”, “Specdeaf”, “ImYen” startups were awarded a prize fund worth a total of 50 thousand manats.
Representatives of state institutions and private organizations, innovation experts, as well as startup founders participated in the “Grand Final” event. In his opening speech, Deputy Minister of Digital Development and Transport Samir Mammadov said that the “Online Azerbaijan” project implemented in Azerbaijan in the field of digital infrastructure construction in the past few years has created a strong foundation for innovations. He also emphasized that, in addition to “Innostart”, initiatives such as “ecomX” and “4ü1arada” have also given impetus to innovative development in the regions.
In his speech, IRIA Chairman Farid Osmanov drew attention to the importance of startups for the country's economy and spoke about the successes achieved within the framework of "Innostart". He said that in 2024-25, with the expansion of the scope of the project, innovation-oriented activities were carried out in 4 regions, 20 cities and districts. This year, 32 awareness-raising events, 8 hackathons, 8 incubation programs, and 4 regional "Demo Day" events were held within the framework of the project. In total, more than 2,000 people participated in all events.
A trainer and mentor training program was also implemented within the framework of the project. Thus, 18 new mentors were trained in this program. In addition, partnerships were established with central executive authorities, local self-government bodies, state and private organizations, non-governmental organizations, higher education institutions, vocational education centers, and regional representative offices were formed.
Then, the First Deputy Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Agency for the Development of Small and Medium-sized Businesses, Samir Humbatov, and the Executive Director of SUP VC, Rashad Eyvazov, made speeches.
The event continued with a video clip and presentation reflecting general and statistical information about the project, as well as presentations of startups, and graduates of the mentor training program were awarded certificates. At the end, the winners of the “Innostart” project were announced.
It should be noted that “Innostart” is a project implemented to strengthen the startup ecosystem in the regions of Azerbaijan. The goal of the project is to help students, young people and anyone interested in this field in the regions develop their innovative ideas, provide information about the startup ecosystem, support their transformation into successful startups, and encourage the formation of local communities.
