We tell you what the “President Tech Award” is, who will evaluate startups and how the prize fund will be distributed.

Where did it all start?

In February of this year, news about the President Tech Award competition appeared in the media of Uzbekistan. The corresponding resolution was adopted and signed by the Cabinet of Ministers of the Republic of Uzbekistan on February 15, 2023.

The President of the Republic of Uzbekistan Shavkat Mirziyoyev supported the initiative. At a meeting with the IT community at the Astrum IT Academy, the prize fund of the competition was announced to confirm that the ideas of young entrepreneurs will be supported!

What is the "President Tech Award"?

"President Tech Award" is a competition for the title of the best startup projects in the field of digital technologies. It will be divided into main and special direction.

The main direction will be held in the following categories:

• technologies based on artificial intelligence;
• digital technologies in the social sphere;
• technologies in the field of information and cyber security;
• entrepreneurship and financial technologies;
• computer and mobile games.

A special direction will be the Hackathon Grand Prix, which provides for the creation of a digital solution in 72 hours.

What inspired you to launch the competition?

Many different competitions have been and are being held in Uzbekistan to support youth initiatives. The largest of them is the mGovAward competition for the development of mobile applications in the field of public services among students and pupils of educational institutions, the prize fund of which has never exceeded $100,000. It became a prerequisite for the launch of a new competition.

For reference:

mGovAward was supported by the Ministry of Digital Technologies of Uzbekistan in cooperation with the Ministry of Government Affairs of the United Arab Emirates. The first mGovAward competition was held in 2019-2020, the second wave was launched in 2021, and the project came to an end in 2022. It was the mGovAward that was taken as the basis for the “President Tech Award”, with the only difference that the first one was held among students and was aimed at developing mobile applications for the state.

During the two waves of the program, more than 10,000 girls and boys, 92 universities and schools throughout Uzbekistan took part in the mGovAward.

Thanks to the competition, a community of mobile developers was launched, where participants consulted with each other, exchanged opinions and shared insights. The winners of the project are already integrating their solutions into government bodies, and the startup Don’t Waste took 2nd place in the Best Global M-Gov Award, organized by the UAE government as part of the World Summit of Governments. Interestingly, the President of Egypt himself awarded the team!

All stages of the "President Tech Award" were thought out following the example of mGovAward and other international competitions.

Where can I follow the stages of the competition?

To ensure transparency and openness of the competition, all stages will be held on a special portal - a website where all information about the competition will be posted. Participants will also interact with the organizers of the "President Tech Award" through this platform.

A special portal is a platform where everything is available. Here people will be able to gather in teams, choose their direction, and apply. The project can be finalized and the application can be sent again, but only until a certain time. Information about passing to the next stage or not passing will also be sent through a special platform. It will be possible to register on the portal through OneID.

How will projects be evaluated?

The winners of the main directions of the competition will be determined by public voting, and the winners of the hackathon (special direction) will be determined by an independent organization.

An independent company?!

Yes. The entire evaluation process will be carried out by a special independent company, which will be selected through a tender. She should have extensive experience working with startups, venture funds, work in business development, technical part, especially IT. The company will involve experts and specialists from various fields related to the start-up industry, and will ensure that the commission evaluates projects impartially and fairly. Voting will also take place on the portal.

The first stage will be held online, without the participation of the teams themselves, only on the basis of completed applications. In each main direction, 10 best projects will be determined.

In total, 50 projects will go to the next stage - Demo Day, where teams will pitch their projects to experts offline for several days. During the demo day, a special direction is planned - a hackathon. This will be a 72-hour challenge in which participants will have to develop a product to solve a problem. By the way, contestants are allowed to participate in one of the main areas and the hackathon at the same time.

Who gets paid how much?

According to the document, the competition will be divided into main and special areas, and the total prize fund will be $1 million.

There will be only one winning team in the hackathon, which will immediately receive a cash prize of $100,000.

For each category of the main direction, the prize fund will be distributed as follows: 1st place — $100,000; 2nd place — $50,000; 3rd place — $30,000.

In the main areas, the process will take longer. All teams will first receive 50% of the announced prize pool. After that, the KPI system will be introduced, based on the results of which the 2nd and 3rd tranches will be issued in the amount of 25%. They will be paid within a year. If the team does not achieve certain results and does not show its growth, subsequent tranches will not be paid, since the competition is aimed at the implementation of projects, which means that it is the projects and their implementation that will be funded.

What has already been done and what is to come?

Currently, work is underway to attract an independent international company that will evaluate projects. Work on the creation of a special platform, which will be available under the domain awards.gov.uz, is coming to an end. The launch of the platform is scheduled for the end of April.

Applications for the “President Tech Award” will start on May 1st and will end on July 1st. From 1 to 25 July there will be a preliminary selection of applications. Further, online evaluation of selected projects (from September 5 to October 5), offline evaluation (Demo Day, from November 5 to November 10) and determination and awarding of winners - from November 20 to December 25.

Persons under 30 years of age may participate. Only citizens of Uzbekistan can participate in the main directions. Foreign citizens and stateless persons who are employees of IT Park resident companies can also participate in a special (hackathon).

Link to source: https://it-park.uz/ru/itpark/news/chto-nuzhno-znat-o-konkurse-president-tech-award