The International Innovation Cluster Astana Hub, in collaboration with Google for Startups and the Almaty city administration, has announced the start of applications for the seventh batch of Silkway Accelerator – a flagship intensive growth program for tech startups at the Product-Market Fit and Scale stages.
Teams from Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan, Kazakhstan, Turkmenistan, Azerbaijan, Georgia, and Mongolia are invited to participate. Applications are open until April 30 on the platform astanahub.com.
Kazakhstan is the first and only country in Central Asia where an acceleration program is implemented in collaboration with Google for Startups. This year, the program will be held in Almaty for the first time at the Almaty Hub. The relocation of the accelerator to the southern capital reflects the city’s role as one of the main business centers of the country with an active entrepreneurial environment and growing IT community, as well as expands the ecosystem’s geography.
Silkway Accelerator has already established itself as one of the key tools for scaling startups in the region. Over four years of the program’s implementation, 1470 applications have been received. Of these, only 73 startups were selected and completed the acceleration. Program graduates have collectively attracted more than $48 million in investments, and their total valuation has exceeded $500 million. The scaling geography covered markets in the UAE, Turkey, the USA, and other countries.
Graduates demonstrate sustainable growth and entry into international markets. Among them are startups from Tajikistan:
● zypl.ai – develops software for fintech, telecom, retail, and manufacturing.
The key product is zypl.score, an ML solution for credit scoring, automating the issuance of microloans by financial institutions. The startup attracted $4.6 million in investments and reached a valuation of $35 million. The solution has already secured loans worth more than $60 million and is used in the MENA and Southeast Asian markets.
The project became the winner of the Silkway Accelerator program and was recognized as AI Startup of the Year at the Digital Bridge Awards 2023.
● epsilon3.ai – an AI platform for government agencies: forecasting, anomaly detection, and workflow automation. It is used in energy, industry, territorial and housing planning.
The startup attracted $240,000 in investments, operates in six markets, and is an implementation partner of the national AI-GOV initiative of the Ministry of Industry and New Technologies of Tajikistan.
The Silkway Accelerator program is designed for 12 weeks and is aimed at teams with a ready product focused on growing key metrics, entering new markets, and scaling the business.
Participants receive comprehensive support: free accommodation and office in Almaty for non-resident and international teams, access to Google Cloud resources of up to $100,000 and Google Workspace services, as well as guidance from a personal development manager. Throughout the program, teams work with experts who help improve the product and accelerate growth.
“Kazakhstan is one of the few markets in the region where the startup ecosystem has been systematically developing for several years: infrastructure has been formed, acceleration programs are in place, and there is access to funding and international initiatives. Today’s key challenge is not creating new tools, but improving the quality of startups and their ability to scale.
According to our experience, the main deficit is not in ideas or access to resources, but in the ability to go through the market entry stage and build scalable models. Silkway Accelerator works precisely at this stage – when a startup already has a product, but the key task becomes growth,” noted one of the leading trackers of the Silkway Accelerator program, Evgeny Frolov.
The acceleration concludes with Demo Day, where finalists present their solutions to a target audience of investors – venture funds, business angels, and strategic partners. The most promising startups are shortlisted by Astana Hub Ventures with the opportunity to attract investments.
For more details about the program and to apply, follow the link: Silkway Accelerator 2026.
Reference:
Google for Startups is an international program supporting entrepreneurs, launched by Google in 2011. It unites more than 50 coworking spaces and accelerators in 125 countries and provides practical tools for startup development.
Astana Hub is the largest international innovation cluster of IT startups in Central Eurasia. More than 2000 IT companies are registered in the ecosystem, including about 500 with foreign participation.
Almaty Hub is a branch of Astana Hub in the city of Almaty. It contributes to the development of the IT community, supports startups, and fosters an entrepreneurial environment. It provides access to programs, knowledge, and resources of the Astana Hub ecosystem.
