In an unprecedented development, a groundbreaking competition titled “Road to Battlefield” has been launched, opening a direct pathway for Central Eurasian startups to enter TechCrunch’s highly prestigious Startup Battlefield. This marks the first time in history that the region—comprising Azerbaijan, Georgia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Mongolia, Tajikistan, Türkiye, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan—is being provided this unique opportunity to gain global visibility on a Silicon Valley stage.
The initiative, led by Silkroad Innovation Hub and supported by TechCrunch and Freedom Holding, involves an extensive multi-stage competition designed to identify the most promising early-stage ventures from the region. It begins at the national level, narrowing contenders until the most innovative and robust startups are selected to advance to a regional final. The top three startups chosen in this final phase will go on to represent Central Eurasia at TechCrunch Startup Battlefield 2025 in San Francisco.
Asset Abdualiyev, founder and CEO of Silkroad Innovation Hub, expressed enthusiasm about elevating their partnership with TechCrunch. He stressed that, after several years showcasing Central Eurasian startups through special exhibition pavilions at TechCrunch Disrupt, the region is ready to prove its entrepreneurs can be highly competitive globally.
Central Eurasia’s rapidly evolving startup ecosystem presents substantial untapped potential on the global stage. With a dynamic young population base of approximately 100 million people and producing over 200,000 STEM graduates each year, it has steadily become home to around 7,000 active startups across key technology sectors. Investment interest has surged dramatically in recent years, with venture funding in Central Asia and the South Caucasus regions multiplying nearly sixfold. In 2023 alone, total investments reached approximately $110 million, while the first half of 2024 witnessed a further acceleration to around $150 million.
Additionally, the region is beginning to produce significant commercial success stories illustrating its growing maturity. Notable examples include AI firm Higgsfield, valued at over $100 million, and Uzum from Uzbekistan, which recently achieved unicorn status following a substantial $114 million funding round, reaching a valuation of $1.16 billion. Global companies, including Telegram and ride-sharing business inDrive, have recognized the region’s potential and positioned key operations within Central Eurasia.
Despite such achievements, awareness and investment penetration remain limited among global venture capitalists. This regional competition aims to redress that oversight and bring long-overdue attention by connecting the area’s startups directly to influential networks of prominent investors and tech leaders in Silicon Valley.
Local entrepreneurial ecosystems have signaled strong support for the Road to Battlefield initiative. Magzhan Madiyev, CEO of Kazakhstan’s Astana Hub, highlighted the tangible progress startups from his country have made through independent accelerator programs in the US market, emphasizing that the new competition platform will greatly enhance their opportunities for even broader exposure and global scaling.
The event organizers have assembled an impressive network of regional accelerators and innovation organizations, including IT Park Uzbekistan, Future Laboratory (Georgia), Sabah Hub and Azerbaijan’s Innovation and Digital Development Agency, IT Park Mongolia, Accelerate Prosperity (Kyrgyzstan), IT Park Dushanbe (Tajikistan), and Startup Centrum (Türkiye). Abdulakhad Kuchkarov, CEO of IT Park Uzbekistan, specifically described the initiative as aligned precisely with their regional development objectives, underscoring its significance for promoting Uzbek startups globally.
Freedom Holding, the event’s primary private-sector supporter, reaffirmed its ongoing commitment to fostering regional technology and innovation by providing mentorship, investor connections, and worldwide exposure. Marlen Sikhayev, an adviser at Freedom Finance Global PLC, emphasized how strongly the firm believes in the region’s entrepreneurial promise, positioning Central Eurasia alongside global innovation leaders.
The competition itself unfolds over several clear-cut stages. National online competitions from July 21 to August 10 will identify promising ventures within each participating country. Following national rounds, the regional finals on August 15 will spotlight the top 20 startups vying for one of three exclusive places at Startup Battlefield. The February-to-March period includes intensive preparation through structured weekly webinars. Ultimately, the three winning startups from the region will travel to San Francisco for four days of TechCrunch Disrupt—scheduled for October 26 to 29, 2025—where they will participate in the globally recognized Startup Battlefield 200 event.
Winning teams will receive significant support beyond mere exposure, including free airfare for two representatives, up to two weeks of accommodations, comprehensive access to networking and investor events, dedicated startup exhibition spaces, and extensive media and branding opportunities geared at maximizing their visibility.
Eligible startups must be at early stages of development, possess an operational minimal viable product, have limited global media exposure, and be based in one of the nine qualifying Central Eurasian countries. This structured approach ensures the platform caters specifically to ventures with high growth potential but fewer opportunities to reach global financing networks and industry champions.
For more than fifteen years, TechCrunch Disrupt and Startup Battlefield have fostered significant global startups, giving rise to over 50 unicorns. Companies such as Trello, Dropbox, Mint, N26, and Forethought AI—having raised combined investments over $32 billion—are notable alumni of the program. Each year, the Startup Battlefield competition attracts thousands of applicants, with 200 startups chosen to gain unparalleled exposure and compete head-to-head for a top prize of $100,000 and the prestigious Disrupt Cup trophy.
For the rising entrepreneurial communities within Central Eurasia, the launch of the “Road to Battlefield” represents an extraordinary turning point and provides potentially transformative opportunities. By creating a direct link between the region’s vibrant startup communities and Silicon Valley’s influential investors, the competition marks the first significant step toward fully integrating the region’s pioneering ventures into the global innovation landscape.
Applications for the Road to Battlefield program are currently open and will remain available until their deadline of July 15, 2025.