Silicon Valley of Armenia: How the Technological Ecosystem of Yerevan Works

In 2025 and 2026, Armenia received two artificial intelligence factories, a U.S. export license for the supply of advanced NVIDIA chips, and a new tax regime for technology companies valid until the end of 2031.

What the numbers say

The number of active companies in the technology sector reached 12,026 in 2025, compared to 8,396 the previous year. In 2017, there were 650, representing an 18.5-fold increase. The number of employees grew from 21,541 in 2024 to 41,431 in 2025. The sector’s turnover exceeded one trillion drams, compared to 915.8 billion drams the previous year and 306.04 billion drams in 2017. The industry’s export volume grew 5.2 times compared to 2017.

According to StartupBlink, Armenia ranks 55th in the global startup ecosystem index, with ecosystem growth of 16.2% in 2025. 

From January 1, 2025, to December 31, 2031, tax incentives are in effect for the high-tech sector. Companies from the High Technology Registry can choose one of two regimes: a 1% turnover tax instead of corporate income tax for annual turnovers up to 115 million drams, or a general regime with a 10% personal income tax rate on salaries of employees engaged in research and development, double deduction of IT specialists' salaries, and reimbursement of 60% of personal income tax for new employees. In both cases, at least 90% of revenue must come from high-tech activities. The conditions are described in the PwC overview.

Key companies and sectors

Picsart. The first unicorn to emerge from Armenia. The company was founded by Ovaness Avoyan, with development taking place in Yerevan. In August 2021, the platform raised $130 million in a Series C round led by SoftBank Vision Fund 2 at a valuation exceeding $1 billion, with total funding reaching $195 million. At the time of the deal, Picsart had over 150 million monthly active users in 180 countries and more than 800 employees, according to the company press release.

Synopsys. The American software developer for chip design entered Armenia in 2004. Today, Synopsys Armenia employs over 1,000 people, with two offices in Yerevan and one in Gyumri. This is one of Synopsys’ largest sites outside the United States, as stated on the company website. Areas of work include electronic design automation, design for manufacturing, and semiconductor intellectual property.

ServiceTitan. The company was founded in 2007 by Ara Madetsyan and Vage Kuzoyan, with its headquarters in Glendale, California. The Yerevan office opened in 2019. Revenue for the 2024 fiscal year was $614 million. On December 12, 2024, the company went public on Nasdaq under the ticker TTAN, offering 8.8 million shares at $71 each and raising $625 million.

Gecko Robotics. Jake Lusararyan’s company, working in industrial robotics, raised $125 million in a Series D round in 2025 at a valuation of $1.25 billion. 

Artificial Intelligence and Data. SuperAnnotate, founded in 2018 by Tigran and Vahan Petrosyan, develops a platform for labeling and preparing training data, with total investments of $75.1 million according to PitchBook. Krisp works on noise cancellation and speech processing for calls and serves over 3,000 businesses. Podcastle focuses on audio generation and processing, Renderforest on video production automation, 10Web on website creation, and SoloLearn on programming education.

Investors. SmartGateVC, Big Story VC, and several angel networks operate in the country. Big Story VC was founded by the co-founders of Krisp, Picsart, and 10Web. A detailed breakdown of funds and investors can be found in our article.

Artificial Intelligence Factories

Firebird. On August 8, 2026, the company launched the region’s largest artificial intelligence factory in Razdan, north of Yerevan. Attendees at the opening included Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan, Kazakh Vice Prime Minister Zhaslan Madiev, U.S. Chargé d’Affaires ad interim in Armenia David Allen, and NVIDIA founder Jensen Huang. Construction of the first phase took just over six months. The operational DC-1 cluster includes 6,144 NVIDIA B200 accelerators with a total power of 15 megawatts.

The data center was built on the NVIDIA DSX reference platform with Dell PowerEdge servers. Schneider Electric provided the energy infrastructure, Vertiv the cooling system, and Team Telecom Armenia the fiber optic network with a capacity of up to one terabit per second. According to NVIDIA, Firebird plans to deploy over 70,000 Blackwell and Rubin graphics processors and 300 megawatts of power in Armenia by the end of 2027. The first phase was valued at $500 million, and the second at $4 billion. One of the first clients of the facility was Perplexity; NVIDIA announced its intention to invest in the company, which had previously received investment from CoreWeave.

In April 2026, the Ministry of High-Tech Industry and Firebird signed a five-year agreement worth $25 million, under which the government allocated 957.8 million drams, or approximately $2.6 million, for the purchase of computing power. By the end of the first half of 2026, Firebird entered the list of Armenia’s largest taxpayers for the first time, contributing 823 million drams, or approximately $2.2 million, to the budget.

Eleveight AI. In July 2026, the company opened a data center in the village of Gagarin using NVIDIA Blackwell B300 chips—the first such facility in Armenia and the South Caucasus. Investments in the first phase amount to up to $120 million. Details are available in our article.

Education and Development Institutions

TUMO. A center for creative technologies for teenagers aged 12 to 18, offering free education. The main center is located in Yerevan, with branches in Dilijan, Gyumri, and other cities in Armenia, as well as in Paris, Berlin, Beirut, Tirana, and Astana.

Plug and Play. In late 2025, the American accelerator Plug and Play registered a legal entity in Armenia, Plug and Play Yerevan. The first 26-week acceleration program started in 2024, selecting 20 startups.

DigiTec. The country’s largest technology conference, organized by the Union of Advanced Technology Enterprises. In 2026, it will take place from November 20 to 22 at the Meridian Exhibition Center in Yerevan.

Sevan Startup Summit. A tented business forum on the shores of Lake Sevan. In 2025, it involved over 250 startup teams from 40 countries.

What to see in the city

Engineering Town. A complex housing prototyping laboratories, machine shops, and engineering companies. Open daily from 9:00 to 19:00.
Address: 21 Bagrevand Street

Museum of Science and Technology. The only museum in Armenia dedicated to the history of engineering thought: industry, inventions, early computing machines, and a model of the ROT-54 radio-optical telescope. The Space Museum is located in the same building. Opening hours: Monday to Thursday from 11:00 to 18:00, Friday from 11:00 to 16:00; closed on Saturday and Sunday.
Address: 25 Bagrevand Street

Mergelyan Institute of Mathematical Machines. Opened in June 1956 at the initiative of academicians Viktor Ambartsumian, Artashes Shaginyan, and Andronik Yosefyants, it became the country’s first institute in the field of computing. The first director was mathematician Seryozha Mergelyan, after whom the institute is still named. Since 1964, under the leadership of Grachya Ovsapyan, it developed and mass-produced the “Nairi” family of machines.
Address: 3 Akopakopyan Street

TUMO Center for Creative Technologies. A building in Tumanyan Park, constructed between 2003 and 2010. The center is open daily from 10:00 to 19:00.
Address: 16 Alabyan Street

Impact Hub Yerevan. A coworking space near the “Zoravar Andranik” metro station, a venue for meetups and educational sessions for the local startup community. Open 24/7.
Address: 80 Tigran Mets Avenue