KAZAN, April 10. /TASS/. Over 7,000 people from 25 countries attended the 20th Russian Venture Forum, which was held on April 8-10 in Kazan. More than 350 speakers and experts discussed technological leadership, investment infrastructure, ecosystems, and markets, a TASS correspondent reported from the forum's closing ceremony.

"The forum brought together over 7,000 participants, representatives of science, business, the venture capital community, and government agencies, including delegates from friendly countries such as Belarus, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, India, Iran, the United Arab Emirates, and other states. This demonstrates the growing international interest in the opportunities offered by the forum," said Tatarstan Prime Minister Alexey Pesoshin at the closing ceremony.

Technological Leadership - Investments in the Future

The forum's business program included almost 50 events. The main focus was stimulating economic growth through innovation, improving production efficiency, strengthening national security, technology transfer, and developing corporate innovation. Technological leadership was a key topic. Experts agreed that achieving it requires consistent work, including the development of a sustainable venture ecosystem.

Russian Minister of Science and Higher Education Valery Falkov emphasized the importance of supporting technology leaders at the university level.

"This year's forum theme, 'Technological Leadership - Investments in the Future,' accurately reflects the key challenge facing the country. Technological leadership is built on systemic efforts, and in this process, of course, a special role belongs to people capable of taking responsibility, combining knowledge and practice, and developing new solutions," said Falkov. He emphasized that the Russian Ministry of Science and Higher Education intends to provide assistance to established and mature youth startups.

Damir Galiev, Director of the Tatarstan Investment and Venture Fund, noted that the fund plans to focus on early-stage startups and university projects. Head of Tatarstan Rustam Minnikhanov noted that the republic has an entire system of financial and non-financial institutions for innovative development focused on stimulating technological entrepreneurship and technological leadership in the country. He recalled that the Tatarstan Investment and Venture Fund is implementing a startup incentive program. Last year, Tatarstan’s government and partners allocated over 2 billion rubles ($25.9 mln) for these purposes, funding 37 projects.

For the first time, the forum featured extensive discussions on promising topics in the bioeconomy and creative industries.