The stage of national qualifying rounds for Road to TechCrunch Startup Battlefield 2026 has concluded.

On July 20, 2026, the National Qualifying Rounds of the largest startup competition in Central Eurasia — Road to TechCrunch Startup Battlefield 2026 — concluded. Over the course of two weeks, the Silkroad Innovation Hub team conducted daily pitch sessions, during which founders from Central Eurasian countries and beyond competed for a spot in the next stage of the world’s most prestigious startup contest — TechCrunch Startup Battlefield.

This year, the competition achieved record-breaking results: 726 startups from 39 countries submitted applications, including founders from Central Asia, the Caucasus, the Middle East, Eastern Europe, South Asia, and other regions.

380 startups advanced to the pitch sessions, where they were evaluated by 46 members of the international jury — representatives of leading venture capital funds, major global technology hubs, regional partners of Road to Battlefield, as well as founders of successful startups who have built and continue to scale their own companies.

The rounds were conducted in the format of live online pitch sessions: two rounds were held daily. During each session, selected startups from the respective countries presented their projects to the jury, which evaluated them based on six criteria:

— the problem and the proposed solution

— market potential

— product and innovation

— team strength

— business model

— quality of presentation and clarity of communication.

Road to Battlefield is implemented with the support of its main partners — Freedom Holding Corp., TechCrunch, Astana Hub, Astana Hub Ventures, IT Park Uzbekistan, IT Park Ventures, OpenAI for Startups, The Tech, and Silkroad Innovation Hub. The competition’s national tracks are also supported by a network of regional partners in Azerbaijan, Bulgaria, Georgia, Kazakhstan, Qatar, Kyrgyzstan, Moldova, Mongolia, Tajikistan, and Turkey: Accelerate Prosperity, Activat VC, Ardventure, Bilişim Vadisi, Bilkent Cyberpark, Caucasus Ventures, Doha Business Consulting, Future Laboratory, Future Unicorns, Global Tech Weekend Tbilisi, Hello Tomorrow Türkiye, Innovation Media Services, IT Park Dushanbe, IT Park Mongolia, Khan Tengri Innovation Hub, MOST, Nazarbayev University, SABAH Angels, SABAH Fund, Silkroad Angels, Sofia Tech Park, Startup Moldova, StartupCentrum, and Terricon Valley.

The results of the National Rounds will be announced shortly after July 20 — stay tuned for updates on the competition’s official channels.

What’s next: Regional Final

The top 20 startups from the national rounds advance to the next stage — the Regional Final, which will take place online on August 12, 2026. There, the strongest teams will compete for three winning spots and a place at TechCrunch Startup Battlefield 200 in San Francisco.

This year’s prize package

The three finalists will share an investment prize fund of $100,000, as well as receive a fully funded trip to San Francisco to participate in TechCrunch Startup Battlefield 200 and a booth at the TechCrunch Disrupt 2026 exhibition area for all three days of the event. Participants also gain access to OpenAI for Startups credits, as well as access to an international community of over 1,000 founders from 39 countries and an official certificate signed by TechCrunch and Silkroad Innovation Hub.

Watch the pitches

All national online rounds, as well as the upcoming Online Regional Final on August 12, will be available live on the YouTube channels Silkroad Innovation Hub and
The Tech
Recordings of all pitch sessions from the national rounds are also available there.