🚀 Atmosphere and Scale

Kazan Digital Week 2025 exceeded expectations: thousands of participants, hundreds of speakers, and an off-the-charts concentration of technological ideas per square meter.

What stood out immediately:

• Dynamic format: pitch sessions, workshops, and networking all in one space
• Focus on practical case studies, not fluff and theory
• Live conversations with representatives from IT Park, venture funds, and product teams

💡 Top 3 Insights from the Forum

1. AI is no longer hype, but a working tool

• Ready-made solutions for automating support, analytics, and content
• Emphasis on ethical use and data protection
• Russian models are catching up to foreign ones in quality for niche tasks

2. Product > Technology

• Investors and clients look not at the tech stack, but at metrics: LTV, CAC, retention
• Successful speakers shared not code, but hypotheses that worked (and those that failed)

3. The ecosystem approach wins

• Solo startups lose to teams embedded in accelerators and clusters
• Tatarstan demonstrates a working model: grants + mentorship + infrastructure

🤝 Networking That Works

The forum is not just about talks, but also about people. I managed to:

• Discuss integrations with teams from adjacent niches (PropTech, EdTech, AI)
• Find potential partners for pilot projects
• Get product feedback from experienced product managers
• Arrange speaking opportunities at future events