A New York-based firm FF Venture Capital launched a $30 million fund to support Ukrainian-founded startups. The Blue & Yellow Heritage fund is reportedly the first Western venture capital fund focused exclusively on the Ukrainian startup market. Over the next five to 10 years, the fund will invest in 15-20 early-stage
Among the Ukrainian military, Elon Musk, the richest tech entrepreneur in the U.S., is often half-jokingly referred to as “Saint Elon.” The reason is Starlink, Musk’s satellite communication system that keeps many Ukrainians, most importantly the military, online despite power outages and Russia’s attacks on the country's
Since the beginning of Russia’s full-scale invasion, Ukraine has relied on foreign partners when it comes to space intelligence. Ukraine doesn’t have its own satellite in orbit. That is why it requests satellite imagery from its allies in order to track Russian troop movements and document Russia’s
There is a dilemma dividing Ukrainian society: whether to allow the country’s male tech specialists to temporarily leave the country during the war. Martial law, introduced on Feb. 24 and extended until Nov. 21, prohibits Ukrainian men between the ages of 18 and 60 from leaving the country, except
Nude photos are an art form with the power to raise money for the military. At least that is the philosophy behind the movement Teronlyfans, founded by Ukrainian artist Anastasiya Kuchmenko, 26, and Belarusian native Nastya Nasko, 23. Teronlyfans is a combination of two words – Ukraine’s territorial defense force,
In his native Belarus, 30-year-old tech entrepreneur Andrey Poznyak was once a political prisoner. He spent six months behind bars for protesting Belarusian dictator Alexander Lukashenko’s brutal crackdown on civil society following fraudulent elections in 2020. Poznyak later made his way to Ukraine, along with thousands of fellow techies,
The global crypto boom is over, which should have been bad news for Ukraine. Since the start of Russia's full-scale invasion, Ukrainian charities have raised more than $125 million in cryptocurrency donations to spend on military equipment or humanitarian aid. Another $1.2 million came from the sale of non-fungible
Hackers attacked one of Ukraine’s largest radio networks, TavrMedia, on July 21, broadcasting fake news about President Volodymyr Zelensky’s alleged health problems, according to Ukraine’s security officials. Unidentified hackers broadcasted reports that Zelensky was in an intensive care ward and that his duties were being temporarily performed
Unlike Ukraine's manufacturing plants, warehouses and stores, many of which lie in ruins, its IT sector has had much better luck. The tech industry reacted with lightning speed to the new reality dictated by Russia's all-out war against Ukraine. Early in the invasion and even before it, companies started to
On Feb. 8, the Diia City, a special legal and tax regime for IT businesses, came into force. With Diia City, the government wants to raise the share of the IT sector in the country's gross domestic product to 10% from the current 4%. As of Feb. 11, three days
Spanish food delivery service Glovo has signed an acquisition deal with the Ukraine-based grocery delivery service Zakaz.ua, Ukrainian tech media Ain.ua reported on Jan. 21. The companies didn't disclose the acquisition cost, but according to experts' estimates, the negotiations could have started at $15-20 million and shouldn't have
The U.S. cellphone chip manufacturer Qualcomm has acquired Ukraine-founded startup Augmented Pixels for an undisclosed amount, Forbes Ukraine reported on Jan. 15. Augmented Pixels, founded by Ukrainian Vitaliy Goncharuk, develops virtual and augmented reality software. The company hasn't yet published an official statement about the acquisition, but it changed
On New Year's night, Dec. 31, thousands of people flocked to Dubai downtown to see a futuristic laser show displayed on the walls of the world's highest building – Burj Khalifa. The company responsible for this show is Ukrainian Magic Innovations that claims that they are the first Ukrainians to have
Venture funding in Ukrainian startups hit an all-time high in 2021. Startups with Ukrainian founders attracted a record $1.5 billion from local and foreign investors in 2021, according to the Kyiv Independent’s estimates, compared to $577 million last year. The actual number could be even higher as dozens
The contemporary history of the post-Soviet countries in Eurasia is the history of resource-oriented economies. These countries used to export what they managed to mine or grow. But now, the situation is starting to change. Not because they are running out of resources – the Stone Age came to an end
When Ukrainian tech entrepreneur Dima Shvets was a child, he wanted to "get inside a movie" – become an actor or a favorite character. With the mobile app called Reface, which Shvets and his friends cofounded in 2020, his dream has finally come true. Reface uses technology called deepfake that allows
President Volodymyr Zelensky on Dec. 18 signed a bill creating a special taxation system for tech firms. Bill №5676, approved by the parliament on Dec. 14, is the second of three laws that are necessary to create the Diia City system. Diia City is a collection of tax, employment and
Ukrainian startup Awesomic has attracted $2 million of investment to grow its service, which matches web designers with online businesses, according to its co-founder Stacy Pavlyshyna. Awesomic wants to use the money to expand its team to 50 people and attract more designers to its website. Among the company's investors
From January 2022, Ukraine will apply a 20% tax on web-based services provided by foreign tech firms. According to the law, passed by parliament in June, foreign tech companies have to pay a 20% value-added tax, or VAT, for digital services they provide to local users. The law targets products
Ukrainian-Swiss startup Blocksport has raised $6 million in an initial coin offering, the company’s co-founder Volodymyr Liulka announced on Dec. 7. Investors included Chinese digital asset manager FBG Capital, the Dubai-based venture fund NewTribe VC, Mexican crypto platform MEXC, and Australian investors LVT Capital, among others. Initial coin offerings
How is Soviet leader Vladimir Lenin different from Pudge, a ghoulish hero from the hit game Dota 2? When they’re illustrated in the same style, framed by the same star wreathed in flame, perhaps not different enough to avoid legal problems in Ukraine. U.S. video game company Valve,
Ukrainian multimedia startup Pibox was accepted into the latest startup accelerator run by Techstars Toronto and raised $400,000 from Techstars, Adventures Lab, Globalive Capital, 70 Ventures and Presto Ventures. Pibox offers a platform making it easier for teams to work with multimedia files. According to the company's press release,
The 2023 census will be the first national census in Ukraine in over 20 years. The last one took place in 2021. Ukraine will be the second country in the world to collaborate with Apple on a national census after the U.S. Minister of Digital Transformation Mykhailo Fedorov has
With MySat’s kit, space enthusiasts can assemble small satellites, the so-called CubeSats, to learn how they work. It contains sensors, 3D-printed frames, microcontrollers and an HD camera. One kit costs nearly $98. The company will start shipments in March. In the future, it will allow users to launch homemade
The Ministry of Digital Transformation has added seven new social services to the state-owned Diia website on Nov. 29 Ukrainians can now use Diia to apply for state subsidies and a pension, as well as obtain digital documents like insurance, income certificates for retirees and work experience certificates. There are
Avenga announced the deal on Nov. 25. The company didn’t disclose how much it paid, however, Forbes Ukraine reported that Ukrainian investors estimated the purchase at nearly $20 million. This is Avenga’s second acquisition in Ukraine. Close to 700 of Avenga’s 3,000 tech specialists work in
Professional esports athlete Olexandr Kostylev, 24, has become the gaming champion of the world at the prestigious Esports Awards. Kostylev, also known under his gaming nickname s1mple, competes in the online first-person shooter “Counter-Strike: Global Offensive.” Since 2013, he has earned $1.3 million in 127 tournaments. Kostylev plays for
Max Lytvyn and Alex Shevchenko (pictured left and center), the founders of Ukraine’s most expensive tech startup Grammarly, have entered the list of the wealthiest Ukrainians. The assets of each are now worth at least $4 billion, according to Forbes Ukraine. This places them above oligarchs with household names,
Launched by the nonprofit WhiteRibbon Ukraine, the app is disguised as a menstrual cycle tracker. It can be used to call emergency services, document abuse and see a map of nearby police stations, medical centers and women’s aid organizations. The app also contains information on types of abuse and
The device called Scripter records voice messages and turns them into structured notes on a smartphone. Its developer, the Ukrainian startup Senstone, has raised $111,000 from 748 Kickstarter backers as of Nov. 21, according to founder Nazar Fedorchuk. He hopes to use the money to improve the device’s
According to a 2021 survey by the password manager NordPass, the most popular password in Ukraine this year was “qwerty.” The password is used by 370,000 Ukrainians. It also takes one second to crack. Other easy-to-hack passwords widely used in Ukraine include the world’s most-popular option “123456," as
This represents a sixfold increase from its $2.1 billion valuation in 2019, the startup announced on Nov. 18. In its latest round of funding, Grammarly attracted $200 million from investment firm Baillie Gifford, venture firm General Catalyst and accounts managed by investment manager BlackRock. Grammarly uses machine learning to
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