July 9, 2024 - In a landmark event for the region, The Central Asia Tech Summit x Startup World Cup Central Asia x Mongolia Economic Forum (Summit), was organized in collaboration with Exponential Zaisan Partners, Pegasus Tech Ventures, and Nomadic Minds on July 9th at Chinggis Khan Museum, converged to create a powerful platform for advancing the startup ecosystem in Central Asia. This triad of influential gatherings highlighted the region's burgeoning potential and set the stage for future growth and success in its vibrant and innovative community.

Leading corporations and venture capital funds have come together to support the event’s debut in Central Asia, contributing to the growth and development of the region's startup ecosystem. Synergy Fund Solution has stepped in as the gold sponsor, while MahoneyLiotta, Khan Bank, and Nippon Koei have joined as bronze sponsors, each playing a vital role in fostering local innovation and entrepreneurial success.

For the first time in Mongolia, the Startup World Cup featured a prestigious lineup of global investors and renowned entrepreneurs who shared their insights on stage. The event was inaugurated with opening remarks by H.E. Uchral Nyam-Osor, Minister of Digital Development & Communications, and H.E. Richard Buangan, US Ambassador to Mongolia. The keynote speeches included:

• Gema Gerelsaikhan, Managing Partner of Exponential Zaisan Partners, addressed "How to Develop a Startup Ecosystem: Central Asia & Mongolia."
• Bill Reichert, Chief Evangelist & Partner of Pegasus Tech Ventures, unveiled "Top 10 VC Secrets For Entrepreneurs From Emerging Countries."
• Lorenzo Thione, Managing Partner of Gaingels, spoke on "Building Disruptive Products in the Era of AI."
• Francesco Cracolici, Managing Partner of Nomadic Minds, offered insights on "From Inception to Exit: How to Sell Your Business."
• Bat-Ireedui Jargalsaikhan, CEO of Gund Investment, discussed the "Post-Seed Investment Environment in Mongolia."

These expert presentations provided invaluable guidance and strategic advice for the region's emerging startup community. 

In a compelling panel discussion titled “How to Build a World-Class Company,” a diverse group of experts shared their invaluable insights and strategies for creating and sustaining high-performance organizations. The panelists included Lorenzo Thione, Managing Partner of Gaingels, Milan Reinartz, Co-Founder & CEO of NonPublic, Daniel Royu, Head of Public Policy, Tik Tok, Masayuki Sakata, Manager, Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu & Francesco Cracolici, Managing Partner of Nomadic Minds. 

In a dynamic and insightful panel discussion titled “From Seed to Success: Global VC Insights & Trends,” venture capitalists and investment experts converged to share their perspectives on navigating the complex world of startup investment. The panelists included Bill Reichert, Chief Evangelist & Partner of Pegasus Tech Ventures,  Gema Gerelsaikhan, Managing Partner of Exponential Zaisan Partners, Rebecca Fannin, Founder of Silicon Dragon Ventures, Bat-Ireedui Jargalsaikhan, CEO of Gund Investment & Francesco Cracolici, Managing Partner of Nomadic Minds. 

The summit aimed to spotlight and support the most promising startups in the region. Over 121 innovative startups from across Central Asia submitted their applications, highlighting the extraordinary talent and potential within the region. From these, the top 20 startups from Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Mongolia, and Uzbekistan were selected to present their groundbreaking ideas.

The top 20 startups included:

• After School (Mongolia)
• CerebraAI (Kazakhstan)
• Dolon (Kazakhstan)
• Enji.AI (Kyrgyzstan)
• Ethelia (Kyrgyzstan)
• InvestBanq (Kazakhstan)
• Mel.Store (Kazakhstan)
• MyStory (Kyrgyzstan)
• Neolingo (Mongolia)
• Nomadic Bear Games (Mongolia)
• Ondo Space (Mongolia)
• Qala AI (Kazakhstan)
• Rock Rigid (Kazakhstan)
• SEM (Mongolia)
• Smart Contract (Mongolia)
• STS Foods (Mongolia)
• Sug'urta Bozor (Uzbekistan)
• TASS Vision (Uzbekistan)
• Tezbor (Uzbekistan)
• Tok Tok (Mongolia)

The competition was intense, but ultimately, four standout startups emerged as winners:

1st Place: CerebraAI  

CerebraAI is a digital diagnostic company that successfully uses Generative AI to detect acute ischemic stroke within minutes using non-contrast CT, enabling community hospitals to quickly diagnose and treat stroke patients in the critical time window. The product is already in use by 700+ physicians at 49 hospitals.

2nd Place: Rock Rigid

An end-to-end AI-assisted production data verification platform before it is too late. It consists of modules for the creation of mathematical twins of energy plants/fields and AI modules to enforce calculations with data-driven approaches. Our primary customers are oilfields, gas fields, and refineries. In particular, we have multi-year contracts in 3 giant oil fields in the Caspian Basin, and 2 clients in MENA, while scaling to the North Sea and North America this year.

3rd Place: InvestBanq and ONDO Space 

InvestBanq is an AI-powered digital wealth management platform for affluent investors. Our solution offers investors a values-centric AI and traditional advisory-led access to equities, bonds, funds, PE/VC and other alternatives and (eventually) digital assets, all from a single interface that enables smooth onboarding and further empowers clients via cutting-edge reporting and analytics tools and proprietary alpha generation and value scoring algorithms.

ONDO Space LLC, a pioneering Mongolian company, was founded to revolutionize connectivity solutions. We aim to provide affordable connectivity to underserved communities and offer industrial IoT connectivity through our LEO satellite constellation and our affiliate, ONDO Mobile LLC. In early 2023, ONDO launched Mongolia’s first two commercial 0.5U satellites into orbit, with plans to establish a constellation of 176 satellites by 2026.

The standout winner of the summit, Cerebra AI, will join over 100 global finalists at the Startup World Cup Grand Finale in San Francisco on October 4, 2024, where they will compete for a $1,000,000 investment prize. Additionally, all four finalists will have the opportunity to attend the We Make Future 2025 event in Italy.

The summit not only showcased the entrepreneurial spirit of Central Asia but also provided a valuable platform for startups to network with peers, investors, and industry leaders. This event highlighted the region’s potential to emerge as a significant player in the global startup ecosystem.

Exponential Zaisan Partners, an early-stage fund focused on Central Asia and Mongolia and backed by notable investors like Tim Draper, played a key role in organizing the event. The fund has been instrumental in introducing various startup initiatives in the region, including the Founder Institute and Startup World Cup from Silicon Valley, the MonJa accelerator program, and the Mongolian Angel Investment Club.

The Central Asia Tech Summit, Startup World Cup Central Asia, and Mongolia Economic Forum marked a pivotal advancement in the region’s startup landscape, signaling a promising trajectory for continued growth and success in its vibrant and innovative community.

Source: XZP Fund