{"id":257076,"date":"2026-08-12T15:02:00","date_gmt":"2026-08-12T15:02:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/entertainment.runfyers.com\/index.php\/2026\/08\/12\/silkroad-innovation-hubs-road-to-battlefield-competition-continues-techcrunch\/"},"modified":"2026-08-12T15:02:00","modified_gmt":"2026-08-12T15:02:00","slug":"silkroad-innovation-hubs-road-to-battlefield-competition-continues-techcrunch","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/entertainment.runfyers.com\/index.php\/2026\/08\/12\/silkroad-innovation-hubs-road-to-battlefield-competition-continues-techcrunch\/","title":{"rendered":"Silkroad Innovation Hub\u2019s Road to Battlefield competition continues | TechCrunch"},"content":{"rendered":"<p> <br \/>\n<\/p>\n<div>\n<p id=\"speakable-summary\" class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" href=\"https:\/\/road2battlefield.com\/\" target=\"_blank\">The Road to Battlefield competition<\/a>, organized by <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" href=\"https:\/\/silkroadinnovationhub.com\/\" target=\"_blank\">Silkroad Innovation Hub<\/a> in partnership with TechCrunch, Freedom Holding, Astana Hub, IT Park Uzbekistan, is now in its second year. Its purpose hasn\u2019t changed since it launched: Give founders across Central Eurasia a direct route to <a href=\"https:\/\/techcrunch.com\/startup-battlefield\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">TechCrunch Startup Battlefield 200<\/a> during <a href=\"https:\/\/techcrunch.com\/events\/techcrunch-disrupt\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">this year\u2019s Disrupt from October 13 \u2013 15 in San Francisco.<\/a><\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cFor two years now, together with our partners, we\u2019ve been organizing Road to TC Startup Battlefield to give founders in our region a direct line to the top VCs and global ecosystems, one they didn\u2019t have before at this scale,\u201d said Asset Abdualiyev, founder and CEO of Silkroad Innovation Hub. \u201cThere\u2019s a lot of talent here the world hasn\u2019t found yet, and that\u2019s exactly who we\u2019re looking for, founders and ideas from every corner of the region who haven\u2019t had their moment.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><a href=\"https:\/\/techcrunch.com\/sponsor\/silkroad-innovation-hub\/road-to-battlefield-puts-central-eurasia-on-silicon-valleys-map\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">The program\u2019s first year<\/a>, 2025, drew 485 applications from 27 countries, the largest startup pitch event the region had seen at the time. Three startups came out of it to represent Central Eurasia on the global stage: Polygraf AI (Azerbaijan\/U.S.), Surfaice (Kazakhstan\/U.S.), and Investbanq (Singapore\/U.S.).<\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio\">\n<p>\n<iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"Final Round - Road to TechCrunch Startup Battlefield\" width=\"696\" height=\"392\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/Tzkc0O5MZp4?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe>\n<\/p>\n<\/figure>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">This year, applications jumped to 726 from 39 countries, which is up nearly 50% in submissions and a dozen more countries than last year. This is a record for the program, spanning Central Asia, the Caucasus, the Middle East, Eastern Europe, and South Asia. Founders pitched online in front of 47 judges from eight countries, drawn from top VC firms, major tech hubs, and founders who\u2019ve scaled their own companies, alongside an AI judge, AI-Dana, as independent jury.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">What makes the competition worth watching now, in its second year, is its trajectory. Central Eurasia is now producing one of the fastest-growing startup pipelines in emerging markets, and the numbers back it up.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">National rounds for Road to Battlefield 2026 ran online from July 6 to 20. Twenty-two startups came out of it, and they\u2019ll now head to a regional final on August 12. From there, judges will narrow the field to three finalists who\u2019ll represent the region at TechCrunch Startup Battlefield 200.<\/p>\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-meet-the-road-to-battlefield-finalists\">Meet the Road to Battlefield finalists<\/h2>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Those 22 finalists are MoliyAI (Uzbekistan), Sino AI (Uzbekistan), Deepen (Uzbekistan), Fermopolis (Uzbekistan), Oqim App (Uzbekistan), Cerberus (Uzbekistan), Soup (Kazakhstan), CortexAI (Kazakhstan), Scano (Kazakhstan), 4sell.ai (Kazakhstan), WeGlobal AI (Kazakhstan), ZhanCare.AI (Kazakhstan), Kapt\u0131n Kapt\u0131n (T\u00fcrkiye), Pocket eSIM (T\u00fcrkiye), SeaDar (Azerbaijan), Telagri (Georgia), Admyra (U.S.), Soulward (Kyrgyzstan), Suriy (Mongolia), MVSxAI (Qatar), Looq (Japan), and Defensive Pedal (Romania).<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan each have six startups in the regional final, a clear sign that these two now stand as the region\u2019s largest startup ecosystems.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cWe\u2019re seeing steady growth in AI products, especially from Kazakhstan and Central Eurasia, and that tracks exactly with our vision,\u201d said Magzhan Madiyev, CEO of Astana Hub. \u201cThis progress reflects the strengthening of our innovation ecosystem and the tremendous work being done across it. At Astana Hub, our mission is to nurture the next generation of globally competitive founders ready to scale into markets like the U.S., and it\u2019s inspiring to see many of them take the stage, compete internationally, and move one step closer to the world\u2019s leading startup stage.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">In fact, AI dominates the applicant pool: 609 of the 726 startups, roughly 84%, are building AI products, underscoring how quickly the technology has become the default starting point for founders in the region.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cFor founders from Uzbekistan and across Central Eurasia, entering international markets is becoming part of their strategy from the very beginning, as more startups build products with the potential to compete and scale globally,\u201d said Azamat Karamatov, CEO of IT Park Uzbekistan. \u201cThis reflects the region\u2019s shift toward a more connected and competitive innovation ecosystem. For IT Park Uzbekistan, the priority is to strengthen the pathways that connect high potential startups with international investors, customers, expertise, and leading technology ecosystems. Road to TechCrunch Startup Battlefield contributes to this effort by giving founders from our region the opportunity to participate in TechCrunch Disrupt and the Startup Battlefield stage in the U.S., gain global exposure, build valuable international connections, and engage directly with one of the world\u2019s leading technology markets.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The competition\u2019s youngest applicant is just 14, and 89 of the 726 applicants, including seven founders from Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan, are under 18. Most applicants are early stage, too: 41.6% at MVP and 38.6% pre-seed, with 14.7% at seed and 4.7% still at the idea stage.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Behind the competition is a wide network of regional partners, supported by leading regional innovation hubs and accelerators across Azerbaijan, Bulgaria, China, Georgia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Moldova, Mongolia, Qatar, Tajikistan, T\u00fcrkiye, and Uzbekistan: Accelerate Prosperity, Activat VC, Ardventure, Bilkent Cyberpark, Bili\u015fim Vadisi, Caucasus Ventures, CEVF, Doha Business Consulting, Future Laboratory, Future Unicorns, Global Tech Weekend Tbilisi, Hello Tomorrow T\u00fcrkiye, IT Park Dushanbe, IT Park Mongolia, Khan Tengri Innovation Hub, MOST, Nazarbayev University, SABAH Angels, SABAH Fund, Silkroad Angels, Sofia Tech Park, Startup Moldova, Stanbase, StartupCentrum, and Terricon Valley, with regional media support from TheTech.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">This year brought some new stakes to the table, too:<\/p>\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li class=\"wp-block-list-item\">An $100,000 investment prize pool, split $50,000, $30,000, and $20,000 across the top three finalists, is being funded jointly by Astana Hub Ventures, IT Park Ventures, and Silkroad Innovation Hub.<\/li>\n<li class=\"wp-block-list-item\">The top three winners will get up to $100,000 in OpenAI API credits split the same way, while the rest of the Top 22 finalists will each walk away with $10,000 in OpenAI API credits.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cWe\u2019ve been supporting the ecosystem from the very beginning, and this year is no exception,\u201d said Marlen Sikhayev, adviser to the president of Freedom Holding Corp. \u201cWhat stands out most is how much of it is being driven by AI, solutions built right here in Kazakhstan and across our region that are no longer staying local. They\u2019re being shown to the world, on the same stage as the biggest names in tech. That\u2019s exactly what we set out to support when we backed this initiative, and it\u2019s exactly what keeps us backing it.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The three eventual winners will also get a fully paid trip and accommodation to TechCrunch Startup Battlefield 200 in San Francisco, along with access to a network of more than 1,000 founders spanning 39 countries.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p><em>When you purchase through links in our articles, <a href=\"https:\/\/techcrunch.com\/techcrunch-affiliate-monetization-standards\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">we may earn a small commission<\/a>. This doesn\u2019t affect our editorial independence.<\/em><\/p>\n<p><br \/>\n<br \/><a href=\"https:\/\/techcrunch.com\/2026\/08\/12\/silkroad-innovation-hubs-road-to-battlefield-competition-continues\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Source link <\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The Road to Battlefield competition, organized by Silkroad Innovation Hub in partnership with TechCrunch, Freedom Holding, Astana Hub, IT Park Uzbekistan, is now in its second year. Its purpose hasn\u2019t changed since it launched: Give founders across Central Eurasia a direct route to TechCrunch Startup Battlefield 200 during this year\u2019s Disrupt from October 13 \u2013 [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":257078,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[14],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-257076","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-tech"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/entertainment.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/257076","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/entertainment.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/entertainment.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/entertainment.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/entertainment.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=257076"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/entertainment.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/257076\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/entertainment.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/257078"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/entertainment.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=257076"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/entertainment.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=257076"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/entertainment.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=257076"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}