Daniel
commonplays.com
When it comes to international centers of technology and innovation, certain cities probably come to mind. San Francisco, London, Tokyo.
What about Yerevan, Armenia?
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A small yet dynamic country, Armenia is constantly evolving. As one Armenian told us, “You can wake up in the morning in Los Angeles and everything is the same. But you won’t feel this way in Armenia. Here you can create waves.”This year in Yerevan, 2,000 attendees from more than 70 countries discussed topics like smart cities, healthcare, and fintech at WCIT 2019, the World Congress on Information Technology.
It was a tremendous event for Yerevan, and we could sense the significance for the city.
The central idea of WCIT this year was decentralization – how in today’s world of technology and connectivity, any place can become a center.
This was fitting, as during our week in Armenia it showed us how it’s developing into a true center of innovation.
A strong global network of talent
Armenians are spread out across the world, and there is also a strong community of “repats,” people who return to the country after living abroad.
At WCIT, speakers came from across tech and media, including many from Armenia and the Armenian diaspora.
Alexis Ohanian of Reddit, Serj Tankian from the band System of a Down, and even Kim Kardashian West gave their thoughts on how technology is changing the way we live our lives, and showed their excitement in engaging the Armenian community.
Alexis and Serj announced a new digital platform to connect Armenians across the world. Additionally, Serj revealed a new concert in Armenia planned for next year, and Alexis met with co-founders from women-led startups in Armenia, giving advice to the newest generation of entrepreneurs.
Kim documented her travels to Armenia for her show Keeping Up with the Kardashians, bringing more awareness to the country. She visited PicsArt, an image editing app started by Hovhannes Avoyan in Armenia, and hinted at a potential new fragrance in her perfume line inspired by Armenian flowers.
We were also told that Yerevan has an eager and talented pool of people in the tech field, and we could feel that in the energy and enthusiasm of WCIT’s attendees, organizers, and volunteers who were from Armenia.
An organization that empowers Armenian’s small towns
In many countries, children in small towns don’t have the same access to resources that those in larger cities do. We visited COAF, the Children of Armenia Fund, who works to fill that gap in Armenia. Founded by Garo Armen in 2003 after visiting a struggling village, the nonprofit organization holds more than 30 after-school programs that students can enroll in. Classes range from engineering, marketing, and languages to yoga, dance, and theatre. After two years, students become SMART Citizens.
The COAF SMART Center has created a center for learning and innovation in the community of Lori. At the center, students and parents can gather and connect not only with one another, but also with accomplished teachers and guest speakers. For villages who are far from the SMART Center, COAF has established SMART Rooms in schools, which themselves become mini centers for innovation.
COAF gives kids outside of the big cities their own platform. Famous singers, actors, designers, and even the Armenian PM and President have gone to the COAF SMART Center to share their knowledge and experience. Flora, a team member at COAF, told us how meaningful it is for rural communities to be recognized in this way. “It’s important that celebrities in Armenia are coming to them, and not just visiting the capital,” she explained. COAF is making sure children across Armenia grow up feeling empowered.
A creative technology learning center for students
We also visited TUMO, an organization that provides teenage students with skills in art and technology. At the flagship center in Yerevan, 15,000 students go to TUMO after school, taking classes in animation, music production, graphic design, game development, and more. The board includes Serj Tankian as well as Katherine Sarafian of Pixar, and successful artists and entrepreneurs are brought in often (Kanye West visited in 2015).
Students at TUMO experiment with different mediums, collaborate with one another, and utilize what they’ve learned in their personal and professional endeavors. Some even go on to teach at TUMO. Alex, who started a band called Pyramidz with his friends at TUMO, now passes on his knowledge to younger students. It’s an appreciation for the tools that TUMO that inspires him and others to give back. “I learned everything I know about music here,” he explained.
At TUMO, there is a strong focus on self-learning skills, which is then complemented by workshops and labs. This curriculum design is based on the theory of loose parts. Coined by an architect named Simon Nicholson, the concept states that kids need to be provided with the building blocks to create. It is better to involve kids in the process of making something, rather than giving them finished materials. As a result, there is a lot of opportunity for artistry at TUMO.
At WCIT, TUMO held a booth to share its mission with attendees, and CEO Marie Lou Papazian spoke as well. With its education model, TUMO hopes to supplement the school system in Yerevan and a few other cities to help make Armenia’s youth more creative and innovative.
A variety of innovative companies
We learned about the established and rising companies pushing boundaries in Armenia’s tech and innovation space. The companies span a wide range of industries, from Ucom (a telecommunications company that sponsored WCIT) to All.Me (a new digital network) to ServiceTitan (a home service software and app).
PicsArt has an office in Yerevan and is seemingly beloved there. Co-founder Hovhannes Avoyan spoke about his experiences in starting the company and running a platform with such an active community. The company emphasized its focus on allowing users to engage in storytelling.
The Armenian State Symphony Orchestra performed a concert composed by AI in real-time – a first for the world. The orchestra was conducted by founder Sergey Smbatyan, and consisted of people from all of the previous countries who hosted WCIT.
WineWorks, founded by Vahe Keushguerian, is a winery with a mission to promote the wine industry in Armenia. According to Vahe, Armenia, which was the site of some of the earliest wine production, is neither of the New World nor of the Old World, but of the “Historic World.” The winery works to revive ancient Armenian grape varieties, and also holds a winery incubator for many small winemakers. Vahe believes that innovation is exciting, especially in an old industry, and invests a significant amount of time and money into experimenting with new wines.
With its passionate people and organizations, Armenia is showing how it’s becoming a place of innovation and how today, anywhere can be a center.
