The “INMerge” Innovation Summit, with IDDA as a key partner, concluded successfully.
This year, the “INMerge” Innovation Summit, with the Innovation and Digital Development Agency (IDDA) as a key partner, brought together over 5,000 participants, 150 speakers, 100 startups, and more than 80 venture funds. With IRIA’s support, the summit hosted important discussions on investment and took significant steps toward the development of the innovation ecosystem.
On the first day of the summit, a highly significant decision was made for the development of Azerbaijan’s venture capital ecosystem. IDDA and the “White Hill Capital” venture fund established a new venture financing company to increase financial accessibility for local startups. During the ceremony, attended by numerous investors and ecosystem representatives, it was announced that this agreement would support the expansion of White Hill Capital’s activities in Azerbaijan.
IDDA’s Chairman, Farid Osmanov, participated in a panel discussion on the first day titled “Bridging Industry and Academia: Human Capital for the Fourth Industrial Revolution.” In his speech, he highlighted IDDA’s efforts to develop skills increasingly in demand in the modern labor market, particularly the country’s ICT workforce potential. Osmanov emphasized that the key success metric of initiated educational programs is the employability of graduates and their achievements in startup creation.
On the second day, an investment vertical supported by IRIA officially launched. The Head of IRIA’s Investment and Scaling Department, in his opening remarks, provided detailed information on the accessibility of venture capital in Azerbaijan in recent years, the steps taken by the “Caucasus Ventures” fund created with IDDA’s support, and the new venture financing company established through strategic partnership with White Hill Capital. He emphasized the importance of venture capital resources for the development of the startup ecosystem: “In mature ecosystems, rapidly growing startups have achieved success thanks to venture capital. Our goal is to create broad opportunities to diversify this sector in our country.”
Throughout the day, various presentations and panel discussions were held in the investment vertical with the participation of regional and global venture funds, angel investors, and startup founders. Discussions highlighted the importance of strengthening synergy between regional startup ecosystems and the role of venture capital in national economic growth.
It is worth noting that the “INMerge” Innovation Summit is being held in Azerbaijan for the fifth consecutive year. Each year, the summit brings together numerous startups, investors, renowned speakers, and executives from global companies, making it the largest innovation summit in the region.
