From May 15 to 17, 2026, the Global Tech Weekend international technology festival will take place in Tashkent. Over the course of three days, the city will transform into a vibrant innovation hub. More than 40 events will be held simultaneously across Tashkent. Over 120 local and international speakers will take the stage, bringing together thousands of startup founders, investors, engineers, and individuals driven by new ideas.
On the first day of the festival, May 15, the opening ceremony will feature the CEO of IT Park Uzbekistan, Azamat Karamatov. Additionally, GTW co-founder Nodo Ivanidze will address the audience with a welcome speech.
The program will include a series of thematic sessions featuring international speakers. Among them, Yasin Ehsan, startup scout at Andreessen Horowitz (a16z), will speak on “What YC and a16z Look for in Founders Today and How to Get There.” Sasha Skurikhin, representative of XFounders Accelerator, will share insights on how the global venture capital landscape is evolving.
The first day will also include key festival sessions. A fireside chat titled “From Monetization to Ecosystem: How UGC Platforms Are Becoming Full-Scale Business Models” will feature Tobin Ireland and Azamat Rakhmon-Zoda. In addition, the Better Future Demo Day and the “F*ckup Talks: How to Learn from Our Mistakes” session will be held. The day will conclude with a DJ set.
The second day of the festival, May 16, will focus on startups, artificial intelligence, and business transformation. Sessions such as “From Idea to Startup,” “How AI Technologies Are Changing the World Today,” “How Smart Investments Identify Opportunities in Advance,” “The Hidden Factors That Define Startup Success,” “From Strategy to Execution: Digital Transformation in Practice,” “Scaling Smart: Bootstrapping & Low-Cost Growth Strategies,” and “Building Without Borders” will take place.
Sessions on artificial intelligence and venture capital will feature international experts including Ethan Pierse, Audun Abelsnes, Olga Potaptseva, Nika Kokhodze, Nika Abashidze, and others.
On the third day, May 17, the festival will continue with a focus on youth and the startup ecosystem. Demo Day, VC Mixer, mentorship sessions, and closed networking formats with investors will also be organized.
Within the mentorship booths, participants will have the opportunity to receive direct guidance from international investors, accelerator representatives, and business experts. The program will also include the “Yoshlar Ventures & UzCombinator” session and the Plug and Play Batch 6 Demo Day, featuring Tobin Ireland and Tiago Valente. The final day will also include DJ sets and entertainment programs.
Organized in partnership with IT Park Uzbekistan, the Global Tech Weekend festival aims to strengthen Uzbekistan’s position as an international hub for technology and innovation, while supporting the development of the startup ecosystem and helping local projects reach global markets.
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