From outsourcing to homegrown technology: Armenia launches new RISE forum

Armenia is taking the next step in developing its technology sector, aiming to shift from being a country that supplies engineering services and R&D for global corporations to becoming a state with its own high-tech products, manufacturing, and exports. This is the goal set by the organizers of the new RISE forum, powered by Silicon Mountains.

On June 3–4, the forum will take place at the Karen Demirchyan Sports and Concert Complex in Yerevan, bringing together leading Armenian tech companies, research centers, and engineering teams.

The organizers describe the forum not simply as a technology exhibition, but as an attempt to build a full domestic chain — from science and research to finished products and industrial production.

Armen Baldryan, President of the ICT Employers’ Union, said that some significant products already exist in Armenia, and that within a few years the country should become a serious exporting nation.

He explained that the main goal of RISE is not only to showcase the achievements of Armenian companies, but also to help them connect with each other, find common ground, and begin collaborating. He emphasized the importance of closing the full production loop — science, innovation, research and development, and engineering — so that truly significant Armenian products can emerge.

“It is time to become a country of its own products”

The event is held with the support of the Ministry of High-Tech Industry of Armenia, which, according to organizers, has effectively doubled the project’s organizational budget.

Minister of High-Tech Industry Mkhitar Hayrapetyan said that the country’s entire technology sector needs to shift its development model.

He noted that in recent decades Armenia has positioned itself well as a technological country in the region, but that it is now time to move from being primarily a provider of tech services to a country that creates, manufactures, and exports its own products. He said this is how the government sees Armenia’s future position on the global technology map.

This idea is increasingly common within Armenia’s IT sector. In recent years, the country has developed a strong engineering base: international companies have opened R&D centers in Armenia, local teams have worked for global markets, and Armenian specialists have become part of the international tech industry. However, a significant share of the intellectual property and added value created in Armenia has flowed out of the country.

Baldryan also acknowledged this, saying that Armenia has many healthy “cells” that have been working for the global IT industry, including large company offices and small Armenian startups, but that the results of this work have ultimately gone into the global economy. He said the sector’s new goal is to encourage the creation of full-fledged Armenian products.

From defense to cybersecurity

Despite a clear emphasis on the defense industry, the organizers stressed that RISE is a much broader platform.

The forum will bring together three main areas:

• defense industry
• engineering solutions
• cybersecurity

According to the organizers, the focus is not on abstract ideas but on concrete results of Armenian engineering.

Eduard Musayelyan, Executive Director at the Union of Employers of Information and Communication Technologies (UEICT), said they wanted to physically demonstrate what Armenian intellect is capable of. He added that the exhibition will include not only local companies but also international corporations operating in Armenia and establishing R&D centers there, bringing their research and development culture into the country.

Particular attention is being paid to finished products. Organizers emphasized that only the results of Armenian engineering work will be presented at the exhibition.

More than 40 local companies are expected to participate, and the forum is projected to attract over 10,000 visitors, with more than 1,000 participants expected in the business segment.

Why defense has become a central theme

In recent years, the defense-industrial sector has become one of the fastest-growing segments of Armenia’s high-tech industry. After the 2020 war, the government officially declared the development of the military-industrial complex a strategic priority.

Against this backdrop, RISE also serves as a platform to demonstrate how Armenian engineering can operate not only in traditional IT outsourcing, but also in more complex technological fields — from electronics and unmanned systems to cybersecurity and applied engineering.

At the same time, the organizers are careful not to position the forum exclusively as a defense-related event.

Musayelyan explained that RISE is not only about the military-industrial complex, but also about engineering, innovation, cybersecurity, and the latest achievements of Armenia’s tech sector.

Silicon Mountains expands beyond Yerevan

The RISE forum is a new direction within the Silicon Mountains ecosystem, one of Armenia’s largest technology initiatives.

RISE stands for Research, Innovation, Science and Engineering.

The organizer is the Union of ICT Employers of Armenia (UEICT), founded in 2015. Today, it brings together more than 130 companies employing over 30,000 people.

Since 2019, UEICT has been organizing the annual Silicon Mountains tech summit, which has grown into one of the country’s largest industry platforms. Over the years, the series has hosted more than 100 speakers and over 6,000 participants.

In recent years, the project has expanded beyond the capital: in 2024, the forum was held in Gyumri for the first time, and in 2025 at the COAF SMART Center in the Lori region.

Now the organizers have decided to expand the format further by introducing a separate spring event, RISE, under the slogan “We Are Our Mountains: Rise.”

“We Are Our Mountains: Rise”

This slogan has become the central metaphor of the forum. It references both the well-known Armenian symbol “We Are Our Mountains” and the idea of technological ascent.

Organizers say they aim to create a long-term platform where Armenian companies can not only showcase their developments but also build full production chains inside the country — from research to mass production.

For Armenia, this is not only an economic issue but also a matter of technological independence, competitiveness, and the ability to retain its engineering talent and expertise within the country.

The underlying message of RISE, according to organizers, is that Armenian technological thought is capable not only of producing services for the global market, but also of creating competitive, homegrown products.