Valery Krasovsky, CEO and Co-Founder, Sigma Software Group

“Many large companies — especially in oil & gas and fintech — are facing increasingly complex challenges. Direct conversations with these clients make it clear where the market still lacks solutions and where new opportunities emerge.

At the same time, we are witnessing a major shift in the service industry: no one wants to build products from scratch anymore. With countless platforms and ready-made components available, businesses focus on reducing investment costs and choosing solutions that create immediate value. This is why we use product-based and platform approaches. They ensure faster implementation, better scalability, and a clear return on investment — exactly what companies need in today’s environment.”

Fidan Mirzayeva, Innovation Specialist at PASHA Holding

“When talking about the technological shift, I believe we should start by analyzing the market itself and identifying the key problems that need to be addressed in order to develop effective solutions. Also, important point is about investing in startups.”

Dr.Fuad Karimov, Regional Managing Director, Xsolla, Azerbaijan

“One of our key missions in the region is figuring out how to integrate local teams into global network effectively. We’ve run an incubation program, and many local studios have developed strong products. But having a good product and knowing how to market it are two very different things. These teams have talented, passionate artists, yet once they meet investors, it becomes clear they often need additional support. That’s why several stages of the incubation program focus on helping them understand monetization —because without it, a promising project remains just a hobby. The studios want to build real businesses, and we already have a few success stories, including several that reached seven-digit revenue this year. The first part of our work is strengthening existing studios through incubation. The second is taking these teams to major global industry events and giving them the knowledge they need to pitch, promote, and scale their products.”