Asror Arabjanov on the work of the first IT hub in Central Asia in Silicon Valley and supporting startups

Silkroad Innovation Hub is a key platform for networking, knowledge exchange, and partnership development among IT professionals, entrepreneurs, and innovators in Silicon Valley. One of the co-founders of the Hub, Asror Arabjanov, spoke at our live stream. We are sharing the most interesting insights in text format.

Asror Arabjanov, Co-founder of Silkroad Innovation Hub

How It All Started

My co-founder, Aset Abdualiev, had long harbored the idea of creating a hub for startups from our region. He talked about it many times, and last year we decided it was time to take action. We found real estate for the hub in Palo Alto, discussed partnerships, and launched.

What Is Silkroad Innovation Hub

Silkroad Innovation Hub is a hub and platform for startups from Central Asia located in the heart of Silicon Valley, in the city of Palo Alto. It is a space that brings together ideas, concepts, and people, particularly founders from Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Azerbaijan, Tajikistan, Mongolia, and Turkey.

There are already similar examples in the world, such as the Nordic Innovation Hub or the Korean Innovation Hub. A Japanese innovation hub has recently opened. All of them are funded by state budgets. This is our key difference: Silkroad Innovation Hub is a private initiative.
We collaborate with development institutions and government agencies, such as Astana Hub in Kazakhstan, IT Park in Uzbekistan, and the Innovation Development Agency in Azerbaijan.

On Challenges

Recently, Harry Tan, CEO of Y Combinator, spoke at our hub. He explained that building a business model based on community is a difficult task, especially in the early stages. Y Combinator developed in the same way: initially, they simply provided quality education, but now it is a popular brand with a community of 8,000 alumni who can offer each other their products and ideas.

Finding a location, negotiating leases, and handling other technical processes were part of the process, primarily managed by my co-founder. However, maintaining the daily operations of the hub proved more challenging. Our team consists of only two people. We work using Agile methodology, without strict division of responsibilities. No one says, “You are responsible for this, so you do it.” Instead, we strive together toward our set goals.

On Achievements

Last year, we organized participation by startups from our region at the largest TechCrunch Disrupt exhibition. 14 startups from Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, and Mongolia took the stage on the main stage for the first time.

We hosted over 100 events, including Central Asian Big Tech Day and Mongolian Tech Day. Top-tier speakers have presented at the hub, including John Hennessy, known as the “godfather” of Silicon Valley, Chris Cox, Chief Product Officer at Meta, and many others.
Every event holds great significance for me. We held days dedicated to introducing representatives of specific countries. We were already familiar with the Uzbek and Kazakh communities, but it was pleasant to meet the Azerbaijani community. We were happy to host an event for the Mongolian delegation.

We connect people with one another. Previously, an Uzbek working at Google might not have known a Kazakh working at the same company. Recently, we held a major event—Central Asian Googlers—bringing together representatives from the entire region. We hope that, thanks to this, we will soon see new projects that will become unicorns.

Collaboration with Silkroad Innovation Hub

Silkroad Innovation Hub is a community based on ideas and principles.

The first principle is: be the giver, give first. Everyone should give more to the community than they take from it.

The second principle is: go big or go home. If you do not strive for significant results and do not think on a large scale, then Silicon Valley is not for you.

The third principle is: change and be the change. You must be ready to change yourself and to change others.
Members of Silkroad Innovation Hub are talented and successful individuals who work in top tech companies or have sold their businesses for millions of dollars. We do not charge membership fees. The main requirement is that everyone contributes.

We are partners in the Hero Training program, organized by Astana Hub and Draper University. For five months, we host participants. They gain access to our events and resources, as well as training sessions and workshops.

Development Plans

The main goal is to ensure the hub’s sustainability by developing a financial model that covers rent and other expenses.

As the community grows, we are considering expansion. We are working on a venture fund that will provide initial financial support to entrepreneurs from our region in Silicon Valley.

We will continue to host various events, such as the monthly Unicorn Battle. We are considering organizing hackathons to identify IT talent among our compatriots.
We are also working on attracting new countries that are not yet well-integrated into our community, such as Turkey or Georgia.