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Armenia & KarabakhInternational

AI Is the Future, and Armenia Is Placing a Big Bet on It

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The Armenian Mirror-Spectator
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YEREVAN — In October 2024, during the 28th World Congress on Innovation and Technology (WCIT2024), one of 17 tech events held in Armenia that month, the global tech community gathered around a small nation in the Caucasus that is making ambitious steps to establish itself as a global technological center.

SpaceX and Tesla CEO Elon Musk sent a message to the attendees, expressing his intention to introduce Starlink in Armenia, while many international companies like Adobe, BostonGene, and NVIDIA have already joined Microsoft, IBM, Cisco and others in opening branches in Armenia. Adding to the discourse, David Yang, a Silicon Valley-based serial entrepreneur and founder of ABBYY envisioned the creation of an “AI City,” an ecosystem equipped with a multi-modal data bank that would attract scientists from around the world.
But why Armenia? How can it emerge as a destination for innovation?

Generation AI: Armenia’s Unique Approach to AI Education

While many countries continue to debate the integration of AI into school curricula or limit their focus to AI literacy, Armenia is taking a bolder approach. The country is already piloting an educational program called Generation AI allowing high school students to study advanced mathematics and computer science, with a strong emphasis on Python programming and AI fundamentals, coupled with career guidance and mentoring to prepare students for specialized studies and careers in the field. This initiative represents the first phase of a multi-layer program aimed at establishing a comprehensive educational framework that spans from high school through doctoral levels.

Leading countries in AI like the UK, US, South Korea, and Japan have already introduced AI programs to nurture young talents, and China has gone even further introducing AI education in schools. Armenia’s example, however, underscores a different type of approach, whereby non-governmental organizations can conceive – and private-public partnerships can implement – systemic changes at the institutional level.

The cooperation agreement between the Foundation for Armenian Science and Technology (FAST), a think tank established by prominent members of the Armenian diaspora to help strengthen Armenia’s innovation ecosystem, and the Ministry of Education, Science, Culture and Sports of Armenia officially heralded the start of Generation AI – Armenia’s first national-level educational and career pipeline for AI researchers and innovators in 2023. Currently, the program is being piloted in 15 schools across seven of Armenia’s ten regions, benefiting 540 students and positioning the country as a future leader in AI talent development. Here is where the country turns its small size into a strategic advantage which enables the country to experiment with innovative educational models on a national scale. This approach facilitates cost-efficient implementation while maintaining effectiveness, manageability, and scalability, thereby positioning Armenia as an ideal environment for testing innovative educational initiatives. In a complex educational landscape, where reforms often require significant time and resources to adopt and societal resistance can pose substantial risks, Armenia possesses the flexibility to adapt and refine its programs in response to the rapidly evolving technological landscape.

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Building on Strong Foundations

Armenia’s legacy as a tech hub and center of engineering talent dates back to the Soviet era, when the country ranked second among Soviet republics in the production of electric machines and had factories making early computers, automated control systems, radio electronics, space communication devices, and more. This legacy was anchored by institutions like the Mergelyan Institute in Yerevan, which became a hub where the USSR’s first general-purpose computers were developed in the early 1960s. Today FAST operates on this very site, continuing Armenia’s tradition of innovation with the Generation AI program and combining its rich history, culture for education and academic strengths to contribute to the rapidly evolving technological landscape.

Studies, such as the World Bank report (2020), emphasize Armenia’s comparative advantages in mathematics and the natural sciences, underscoring its capacity for cultivating an AI-ready workforce. In 2017, the country outpaced global averages (0.32 in ICT and 0.36 in NSMS) in producing graduates (0.38 per 1,000 tertiary graduates from ICT-related courses and 0.6 per 1,000 graduates in NSMS) in natural sciences, mathematics, and statistics, outperforming many regional competitors. This demonstrates a persistent strength in scientific education that connects to its Soviet-era roots.

Since 2016, the role of women in STEM in Armenia has undergone significant change, with female participation not only catching up to but in some cases surpassing that of men. The considerable increases in participation were seen among women in higher education programs for mathematics and statistics at state institutions, where women make up 54 percent of students and 59 percent of graduates. In 2022, women also dominated the biological sciences, accounting for 81 percent of students and 71 percent of chemistry students. This development marks a sharp shift from 2016, when men still outnumbered women in mathematics programs, indicating how rapidly the landscape is changing.

When compared to UNESCO data (2020), where globally only 28 percent of women are enrolled in tertiary-level STEM programs, Armenia stands out, with 44 percent female representation in these fields. In addition, Forbes (2020) also reports on the growth of Armenia’s tech sector, noting that it has seen consistent double-digit growth, with 30 percent of whom are women, while the global average doesn’t exceed 20 percent. These trends highlight a critical opportunity for Armenia to capitalize on its growing female talent in STEM.

One more notable feature of Armenia is its ability to draw on a wide range of talent from both within its borders and across its extensive global diaspora. With a population of just 3 million within its borders and a diaspora of 7 to 10 million spread across the globe, Armenia is uniquely positioned to cultivate the best of global knowledge and expertise. Prominent figures like Dr. Noubar Afeyan, founder and CEO of Flagship Pioneering, co-founder and chairman of Moderna, and David Yang, a Silicon Valley entrepreneur behind ABBYY, Newo.ai, and Morfeus.ai, exemplify the caliber of Armenian talent making difference worldwide. Furthermore, the achievements of Nobel laureates of Armenian descent — including Daron Acemoglu, who was recently awarded the Nobel Prize in Economic Sciences, as well as Ardem Patapoutian, honored with the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine and Emmanuelle Charpentier, recipient of the Nobel Prize in Chemistry in 2021 and 2020 — highlight the diaspora’s intellectual and scientific reach. While challenges remain in aligning the diaspora around a common vision for Armenia’s future, commitment to homeland is important characteristics defining Armenian diaspora, alongside a growing consensus on the necessity of science and technology for the country’s progress. Transforming Armenia into an AI hub could be the crucial link that strengthens this relationship and fully capitalizes on its global potential.

The Armenian Mirror-Spectator

This synergy — betting on local talent, a historical legacy of education and innovation, and a unified vision in diaspora-Armenia collaboration — opens space for the country’s transformation, where the size of a nation matters far less than the scale of its ambition.

What’s Next

Over the next few years, FAST plans an expansion of its educational program, aiming to extend its reach to 45 high schools across Armenia and engage over 85 percent of the nation’s students. To drive this initiative forward, the foundation will host two Advance Armenia Galas, one in Paris at the Automobile Club de France on November 16 — home to the largest Armenian diaspora community in Europe — and another in Los Angeles on December 6, which boasts the largest Armenian community in the Americas. These events aim to bring together the vast expertise of diaspora and global visionaries uniting support to transform Armenia’s bold vision into lasting global influence in the AI-driven future.

The Parisian Advance Armenia Gala will gather figures from the Armenian diaspora and global visionaries committed to enhancing AI education like François-Xavier Bellamy a prominent member of the European Parliament. Dr. Afeyan will be among the distinguished speakers, along with health tech visionary Jean-Charles Samuelian, co-founder and CEO of Alan and co-founder and Board Member of Mistral AI, both internationally recognized leading firms in technology and innovation.

Arnak Dalalyan, a professor of Statistics at ENSAE Paris, the director of CREST, and Advisory Board member of the Generation AI program, highlighted the critical need for accessible AI education in Armenia: “Attending the upcoming gala is a great opportunity to share knowledge and expertise. By investing in our human capital and developing globally competitive AI innovators, we can collectively foster a new generation equipped with the competencies critical for Armenia’s success in an AI-driven world.”

The gala will include a dinner, a fundraising auction and musical performances, with proceeds directly benefiting the Generation AI High School Project.

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