When you think of Kyrgyzstan, most people think of mountainous landscapes rather than tech startups. And yet, in early June 2026, Tomáš Siviček, the manager of international cooperation at the Innovation Center of the Ústí nad Labem Region, headed to Bishkek, the capital of this Central Asian country, for the KIT Forum, the largest technology conference in the region. He attended not only as a participant, but also as a speaker. And he returned with concrete results.
A startup country in the middle of Asia
Kyrgyzstan may not be the first place that comes to mind when you think of innovation. But those who visit will quickly change their minds. The country is on a clear growth trajectory, building, modernizing, and the tech community there is young, ambitious, and surprisingly open to cooperation with the West.
The center of the Kyrgyz innovation ecosystem is the High-Tech Park, a private entity with the status of an economic zone that functions as a base for technology companies and startups. It was through it that the memorandum of cooperation with ICUK was created some time ago, which this year's trip followed.
The KIT Forum itself is worth mentioning. It was a well-organized event with a diverse mix of speakers, from Japanese and Georgian ministries to UN staff and local startups. The winner of the startup competition took home $15,000 and a trip to Silicon Valley. The atmosphere was more reminiscent of a dynamic European tech event than what one would expect from Central Asia.
Solar energy from Bishkek to the Ustka region?
One of the most interesting meetings Tomáš had was with Ren-Elektra, a company developing an artificial intelligence-driven platform that can use NASA satellite data to calculate where and how to effectively install solar panels, from a single family home to entire industrial areas. The goal is to deliver a project within 15 minutes and implement it within 7 days.
The company is currently preparing to expand into Latin America, but has explicitly expressed interest in cooperating with Czech engineers. Specifically, they are looking for an expert in modeling and setting up artificial intelligence for energy processes. Tomáš promised to connect with energy companies from the Ústí nad Labem region. Who knows, maybe something interesting will be created here.
New partnerships right on the spot
Right at the conference, Tomáš signed a memorandum of cooperation with Profi.pro, a company that develops software for digitalizing companies, including solutions for the construction industry. ICUK will connect it with Stavario, a Czech company that has passed through its incubator and has a similar focus in the field. An introductory meeting is in the works.
It was also interesting to meet Oscar and Sons Group, which combines consulting activities with the development of its own products. From fresh food storage systems to a platform for monitoring water resources to a tool for designing factories with the help of artificial intelligence. The company is interested in participating in European research programs and is planning to open a branch in Ireland.
When the whole world is dealing with the same thing
One of the strongest moments of the conference was the topic of technological independence, literally the day after the European Union presented its strategic package in this area. A coincidence that gave the discussions an unexpected boost.
Tomáš spoke with the team of the AiRUN project, a Kyrgyz initiative aiming to build its own large-scale language model for the needs of state administration and public services. Small nations and minority languages are poorly represented in current global artificial intelligence models, and Kyrgyzstan wants to change that.
A proposal appeared on the table on how the project could grow beyond its original borders and become a supra-regional initiative with the support of the European Union, involving countries from Central Asia, Central Europe, the Balkans and the Baltics. Potential Czech partners included names such as the Czech Technical University, the prg.ai initiative or the research company BottleCap AI.
Czech school in Kyrgyz classrooms
The program also included a round table with representatives of Kyrgyz universities and the Ministry of Education on the topic of how to sensibly incorporate artificial intelligence into teaching and how to prepare teachers and students for it. The experience of the Jan Evangelista Purkyně University in Ústí nad Labem aroused interest and opened the way for further cooperation. And this does not have to stop at sharing experiences with artificial intelligence - student exchange stays or joint research projects that could connect Kyrgyz schools with universities in the Ústí nad Labem are also on the table.
What does this mean for the Ústí nad Labem Region?
Tomáš's trip to Kyrgyzstan was not an exotic getaway. It was work and it brought results. New partnerships, opportunities for Czech companies, and an open discussion about cooperation where few people seek it.
In the future, ICUK is considering a soft-landing program for selected innovative companies from Central Asia that are looking for a base for expansion into the European Union.
Innovation knows no boundaries and this journey has proven that.
