EVN Disrupt: Recent Episodes
EVN Report
EVN Disrupt is a podcast covering the tech sector and start-up ecosystem in Armenia. We interview founders, investors, and other members of the community to keep you up to date with what’s going on with the global Armenian tech community.
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The post Sargis Karapetyan: The Tech Community’s Role in Armenia’s Future appeared first on EVN Report.
Avetik Grigoryan, the CEO and Co-Founder of Bazoomq Space Research Laboratory, and Masis Komrokian, the Technical Director of Space Programs at the Center for Scientific Innovation and Education (CSIE), join us to discuss the upcoming launch of Hayasat-1. Developed in a partnership between Bazoomq and CSIE, Hayasat-1 is a CubeSat. Grigoryan and Komrokian explain what CubeSats are, their uses, and the current trends in satellite technologies. We also talk about the development process of Hayasat-1 and its potential implications for the future of Armenia's space industry. Finally, we discuss the importance of popularizing science and space in Armenia and explore why this is significant.
The post Avetik Grigoryan & Masis Komrokian: Building Satellites in Armenia appeared first on EVN Report.
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In this episode, Narek Aslikyan, co-founder and CEO of Armenian Code Academy, provides insight into the Armenian tech industry's talent infrastructure. He explains how the Academy prepares individuals for employment in both technical and non-technical roles. We also discussed what is required to create employment opportunities outside Yerevan, and the strategies to encourage various stakeholders to expand into different regions of Armenia.
The post Narek Aslikyan: Armenia’s Talent Infrastructure appeared first on EVN Report.
Gevorg Karapetyan, the co-founder and CTO of Zero, joins us to discuss the development of generative AI solutions for augmenting knowledge workers. We explore the company’s platform, Hercules, which delivers generative AI solutions for enterprise customers and the productivity benefits it brings. Gevorg also shared his thoughts on the challenges and opportunities in building sustainable and defensible businesses in the era of foundational AI models, as well as the future of co-pilots for knowledge workers.
The post Gevorg Karapetyan: The Last Mile of AI Product Deployment appeared first on EVN Report.
In this episode, Davit Baghdasaryan, the co-founder and CEO of Krisp, discusses how his start-up has grown to be a leader in the voice productivity AI space. He shares his thoughts on AI product development in the age of large AI models, and what the newest developments are in the field of voice AI. Davit also talked about his journey of founding BigStory VC, an early-stage venture capital fund in Yerevan and Bazoomq, a non-profit space research lab where Davit is an advisor.
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Suzanna Shamakhyan, Vice President of Strategic Programming at the Foundation for Armenian Science and Technology (FAST), joins us to discuss the organization’s initiatives to improve education and science in Armenia. She breaks down how the current poor state of the country’s education system can be viewed as an opportunity to pilot innovative new solutions. We also discussed FAST’s new Generation AI program, which aims to bring artificial intelligence education to high schools in Armenia.
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In this episode, Khachatur Virabyan, the co-founder and CEO of Stylebit, discusses all things design systems. He breaks down how design systems are built, and how Stylebit helps companies track design system metrics such as adoption. Khacatur also spoke about how modern AI systems enable non-technical people to interact with engineering systems through natural language interfaces. He also shared his entrepreneurial journey and the path to finding a product idea that could gain traction in the marketplace.
The post Khachatur Virabyan: Scaling Design Systems appeared first on EVN Report.
Hamlet Azarian, CEO and founder of Azarian Growth Agency (AGA) joins us to discuss validating start-up ideas, gaining traction, and scaling companies. Azarian breaks down the data-driven approach AGA takes to growth marketing, and what metrics they track to ensure that start-ups reach their growth goals. We also discussed AGA’s upcoming initiative called “Growth Academy” that aims to teach growth marketing in Armenia.
The post Hamlet Azarian: How to Grow a Start-up appeared first on EVN Report.
In this episode, Mikael Matossian, principal at Tetra Tech, discusses Armenia’s energy sector and the progress of clean technologies adoption. We examine the current state of Armenia’s energy production and evaluate several initiatives that aim to expand the share of energy derived from renewable sources in the country. Matossian provides insight into the significance of renewable energy adoption in addressing climate change and offers an overview of global trends and advancements in renewable technology.
The post Mikael Matossian: Clean Tech and Armenia’s Energy Sector appeared first on EVN Report.
Hayk Margaryan, the CEO of the National Center for Innovation and Entrepreneurship (NCIE), joins us to discuss initiatives to facilitate technology transfer in Armenia. Margaryan also speaks about the scope of NCIE’s mission, and what plans the center has for the near future. Lastly, we discussed the Mars Simulation Mission, which is scheduled to take place in Armenia in spring of 2014.
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The post Hovakim Zakaryan: Drug Discovery With Reinforcement Learning appeared first on EVN Report.
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The post Gevorg Poghosyan: Exploring the World of Social Enterprises appeared first on EVN Report.
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The post Gor Nazaryan: Bringing Tech Education to the Regions appeared first on EVN Report.
The post Hayk Chobanyan: Positioning the Armenian Tech Sector Globally appeared first on EVN Report.
The post Ashot Vardanyan: Building AI While Embracing the Unorthodox appeared first on EVN Report.
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The post Raffi Kassarjian: The Armenian Tech Sector in 2022 appeared first on EVN Report.
The post SpaceTech denMACH: Building at the Intersection of IoT & Space appeared first on EVN Report.
The post Leonid Kirakosyan: Turning Armenia Into an Innovation Hub appeared first on EVN Report.
Earlier this year, the Armenian Government announced a new subsidy program to help attract top talent to the country. The program will subsidize anywhere from 20%-70% of the salaries of graduates from top 400 universities or people who have 10 years of work experience at leading global companies. The program was developed jointly by the Investment Council of Armenia and the Ministry of Economy. Hovsep Patvakanian, head of the Investment Council, joins us to discuss the impact he hopes this program will have, and what other legislative proposals they are currently working on. Hovsep also shared with us his take on Armenia’s economic growth in 2022.
The post Hovsep Patvakanian: Attracting Top Talent to Armenia appeared first on EVN Report.
Artem Harutyunyan, the co-founder and CTO of Bardeen, joins us to discuss how his company helps automate browser-based workflows. Bardeen raised a $15.3 million Series A round this year to grow their engineering and AI teams. Artem also shared with us his thoughts on the importance of students from Armenia having opportunities to study at universities abroad, emphasizing the perspective shift that comes from being exposed to new environments, and how they are able to impact Armenia positively when they return to the country.
The post Artem Harutyunyan: Automating Tasks With Bardeen appeared first on EVN Report.
Dr. Lucy Abgaryan, the co-founder and CEO of GrittGene Therapeutics, a biotech company based in Los Angeles, California, joins us to discuss how her company is working to find treatments for Myotonic Dystrophy, a rare genetic disorder that causes progressive muscle loss and weakness. Lucy also shared with us her experience in trying to find opportunities to work with the local Armenian biotech industry.
The post Dr. Lucy Abgaryan: Finding Treatments for Myotonic Dystrophy appeared first on EVN Report.
Arsen Stepanyan, the co-founder and CEO of Orders.co, joins us to discuss what challenges and opportunities there are in building software as a service (SaaS) solutions for the restaurant industry. Orders.co is a Los Angeles-based order and menu management system for small- and medium-sized restaurants. We also discussed Arsen’s efforts to build a team for his company in Armenia, and what lessons he’s drawn from his experience.
The post Arsen Stepanyan: Building SaaS Solutions for the Restaurant Industry appeared first on EVN Report.
This week on EVN Disrupt we are continuing our series of podcasts from the Science and Technology Convergence Conference. Once again, we have two guests on this week’s podcast. Our first guest is Ashot Papoyan, a biotech executive who is the Chief Operating Officer at Biosim and CEO of Elm Tree Research. Our second guest is Haig Eskandarian, a microbiologist at the University of California, San Francisco. With our two guests we spoke about experimental biology and commercializing science findings in the biotech industry.
The post Ashot Papoyan and Haig Eskandarian: Biotech and Experimental Biology appeared first on EVN Report.
This week on EVN Disrupt we are continuing our series of podcasts from the Science and Technology Convergence Conference. We have two guests on this week’s podcast. Our first guest is Viken Douzdjian, the managing partner at Argonoutic Ventures. He shared with us his perspective on the Armenian venture capital ecosystem and how he sees the future of venture funding for the Armenian startup ecosystem. Our second guest is Levon Budagyan, the founder of Waveye. Levon is one of the early members of the Armenian tech scene. We discussed with him how the tech industry in Armenia has evolved over the last decade, and the problems they’re working to solve with WaveEye.
The post Viken Douzdjian and Levon Budagyan: Venture Funding and Radar Technology appeared first on EVN Report.
This week on EVN Disrupt we are launching a new series of podcasts that were recorded with guests and participants of the Science and Technology Convergence Conference that took place on September 28-29, 2022. Our first guest of the series is Dr. Mary Papazian, the former president of San Jose State University. We discussed the evolving role of the university today, and her thoughts on Armenia’s higher education ecosystem.
The post Dr. Mary Papazian: The Role of the University Today appeared first on EVN Report.
This week on EVN Disrupt, Marina Aghayan, the co-founder of AIP Tech and Fact Industries, joins us to discuss the potential that 3D printing has for solving real-world problems. AIP Tech is an Armenian company that 3D prints devices for the medical and aerospace industries. AIP Tech volunteered to help veterans of the 2020 Artsakh War with varying bone injuries with customized 3D implants to help them return to normal life.
The post Marina Aghayan: 3D Printing Devices for the Medical and Aerospace Industries appeared first on EVN Report.
This week on EVN Disrupt, Stepan Aslanyan, the co-founder and CEO of Hexact, joins us to discuss the problems they are working on solving by building no-code business intelligence tools. We also discussed Stepan’s long business career in Armenia and his thoughts on the country’s business culture.
The post Stepan Aslanyan: Accelerating Business Intelligence appeared first on EVN Report.
Zareh Zurabyan, the head of the Americas division at eLabNext, a European biotech company, joins us to discuss problems the biotech industry is currently working to solve. Zareh describes who the different players in biotech ecosystems are and what trends he is seeing in the industry in 2022. We also discussed his efforts to mentor Armenian start-ups and his thoughts on Armenia’s biotech scene.
The post Zareh Zurabyan: Understanding the Biotech Ecosystem appeared first on EVN Report.
This week on EVN Disrupt, Karen Vardanyan, a founding partner at FormulaVC, joins us to discuss their firm’s investment strategy and what early stage start-ups they’re seeing in the Armenian ecosystem. We also discussed what the current global economic situation means for Armenian start-ups, and what the future of the venture capital space in Armenia may look like.
The post Karen Vardanyan: Start-up Financing in 2022 appeared first on EVN Report.
This week on EVN Disrupt, Manana Hakobyan, the founder and CEO of DataPoint Armenia, joins us to discuss the importance of data-driven culture, and how her organization is working to accelerate the development of data science in Armenia.
The post Manana Hakobyan: Developing Data-Driven Culture in Armenia appeared first on EVN Report.
Karen Gyulbudaghyan, the founding partner at Strategic Values Ventures, a strategic advisory firm for global startups, joins us this week to discuss what it takes to build a successful start-up ecosystem. We also spoke about the impact of the Berkeley Skydeck start-up accelerator program, and the Armenian start-ups that have successfully gone through the program.
The post Karen Gyulbudaghyan: Crafting Ecosystems appeared first on EVN Report.
Aram Kocharyan, the CEO and co-founder of Layerswap, joins us this week to discuss his start-up that optimizes transferring crypto assets from layer-1 to layer-2 networks. Aram shared his journey from a self-taught junior engineer to building a company that has successfully raised investments and closed deals with multi-billion dollar companies. We also discussed a new project that Aram and his colleagues have started to conduct cryptography research in Armenia.
The post Aram Kocharyan: Accelerating Blockchain Technology appeared first on EVN Report.
Liana Karapetyan, an associate at SmartGateVC and the director of Hero House Angels, joins us this week to discuss angel investing opportunities in Armenian start-ups. The Hero House Angels program allows individual investors from around the world to be connected with the Armenian start-up ecosystem and make investments. We also discussed Armenia’s ecosystem's trajectory as the number of start-ups in the country grows.
The post Liana Karapetyan: Angel Investing in Armenia appeared first on EVN Report.
This week on EVN Disrupt, Arek Der-Sarkissian from Hero House Glendale joins us to recap the 2022 Armenia Tech Trip, a program that brings tech professionals from the Diaspora to Armenia to familiarize them with the country’s tech sector. During the program participants visit the offices of Armenia’s leading tech companies and participate in networking events with members of the industry. We also discussed Hero House Glendale, a start-up hub in Southern California.
The post Arek Der-Sarkissian: Armenia Tech Trip appeared first on EVN Report.
Our guest this week on EVN Disrupt is Chinar Movsisyan, the founder and CEO of Manot, a start-up that helps companies using artificial intelligence identify where their models may fail when users use them in the real world. We also discussed Chinar’s experience as a PhD student, and how effective a path graduate school is for building deep tech start-ups.
The post Chinar Movsisyan: Enabling Better Real-World AI appeared first on EVN Report.
Hovsep Patvakanyan, the CEO of Invest in Armenia, joins us today to discuss the investment climate in Armenia, and the recently launched Investin.am platform which allows investors to invest in Armenian companies. We also discussed what aspects of Armenia’s economy are attractive for investment, and what reforms are necessary to continue attracting interest from investors.
The post Hovsep Patvakanyan: Armenia’s Investment Climate appeared first on EVN Report.
Albert Poghosyan, the founder and Chief Dean of BuildUp Bootcamp, joins us this week to discuss how his organization attempts to prepare junior and mid-level professionals in Armenia’s tech sector for more senior roles. We discussed the project-based curriculum that BuildUp has developed, and what outcomes they are seeing with their first cohort of students.
The post Albert Poghosyan: Building Up Early Career Tech Professionals appeared first on EVN Report.
This week on EVN Disrupt, Naré Gevorgyan and Sargis Karapetyan join us to speak about their start-up, Embry Tech. We discussed their experience building a wearable product company, their move into the Web3 space with Motearn, how they incentivize their users to live more active lives, and how they envision the future of wearable technology.
The post Motearn by Embry: Combining Wearable Tech with Web3 appeared first on EVN Report.
Tania Sahakian, the regional director for DISQO in Armenia, joins us this week on EVN Report to discuss how DISQO established their office in Armenia in 2018, and how they have grown to a team of over 130 people in the country. We also spoke about the training programs that DISQO runs, and what is needed to fulfill Armenia’s tech sector’s talent needs.
The post Tania Sahakian: Establishing DISQO in Armenia appeared first on EVN Report.
Over the last year, the term "metaverse" has become increasingly prevalent in media and culture. This week on EVN Disrupt, Taron Khachatryan, the CEO and founder of Knoxlabs, a virtual reality equipment company based in Los Angeles, joins us to speak about the current state of virtual reality technology, and what the future of the metaverse may look like.
The post Taron Khachatryan: Entering the Metaverse appeared first on EVN Report.
Tigran Shahverdyan, the co-founder and Chief Technology Officer of Robomart, joins us this week on EVN Disrupt to discuss how Robomart is attempting to make fresh produce more accessible through their "store-hailing" platform. We also discussed the future of self-driving vehicles, and Gituzh's initiatives to advance science in Armenia.
The post Tigran Shahverdyan: Building Autonomous Systems appeared first on EVN Report.
This week on EVN Disrupt, Lilit Nersisyan, a bioinformatician and the founder of the Armenian Bioinformatics Institute (ABI), joins us to discuss the field of bioinformatics, its role in the world today, and what ABI is working on. We also discussed science commercialization, and the biotech industry.
The post Lilit Nersisyan: At the Intersection of Biology and Tech appeared first on EVN Report.
Mikayel Khachatryan, the CEO and co-founder of Wirestock, joins us this week on EVN Disrupt to talk about how his company allows users to sell photos, vectors and videos online through multiple marketplaces at once. We also spoke about Wirestock’s experience in raising their seed round last year, and what they have planned for the future of the company.
The post Mikayel Khachatryan: Enabling Creators to Sell Their Content Across the Web appeared first on EVN Report.
Gevorg Poghosyan, the CEO and co-founder of reArmenia, and board member Armine Mkrtchyan, join us this week on EVN Disrupt to speak about reArmenia, a crowdsourcing platform that encourages collaboration on a variety of projects in Armenia. We also spoke about the recent developments regarding regulating equity crowdfunding in Armenia, and how it can encourage more investment in Armenian companies.
The post Gevorg Poghosyan & Armine Mkrtchyan: Encouraging Collaboration Through the reArmenia Platform appeared first on EVN Report.
Hrant Khachatrian, the founder and director of YerevaNN, a machine learning research lab, joins us this week on EVN Disrupt to tell us the story of how YerevaNN was built at a time when there was very little machine learning activity in Yerevan. We also spoke about the state of scientific research in Armenia and what is needed to significantly develop and boost research activity in the country.
The post Hrant Khachatrian: Building a Research Lab From the Ground Up appeared first on EVN Report.
The first guest of the newly launched Creative Tech podcast series, "EVN Disrupt" is Ashot Arzumanyan, a partner at SmartGateVC, a venture capital fund focusing on early stage start-ups. We discussed the Armenian start-up ecosystem, how it has evolved over the last four years and what we can expect from the Armenian tech sector in the near future.
0:00 Introduction/
0:52 Founding of SmartGate VC/
3:50 Tim Draper's investment in SmartGate/
8:28 Evolution of Armenia's start-up ecosystem/
15:55 Rise of product companies in Armenia/
19:04 Recent investments in Armenian start-ups/
29:26 Hero House LA, Diasporan start-ups/
35:19 Challenges/
37:58 Future of SmartGate and the ecosystem
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