Uzbekistan Named "Country of the Year" for Startups

Central Asia has become the fastest-growing startup subregion in the world. According to the StartupBlink Global Startup Ecosystem Index 2026 report, the region recorded 81 percent growth over the past two and a half years — the highest figure among all subregions. For comparison: South Asia grew by 27.5 percent, Eastern Europe by 13 percent.

The two main drivers of this growth are Tashkent and Almaty. Uzbekistan climbed 19 spots in the global ranking, taking 79th place. Its annual growth stood at 227.3 percent — the highest figure in the entire index.

The dynamic looks like this: 111th place in 2023, 110th in 2024, 98th in 2025, and 79th in 2026. That's a 32-spot climb over three years. It was this result that led StartupBlink to name Uzbekistan its "Country of the Year."

The change is just as sharp at the city level: Tashkent jumped 121 spots to reach 229th place, a growth rate of 155.7 percent. The report describes it as Central Asia's highest-ranked and fastest-growing startup city. The most interesting detail, though, lies outside the capital. Samarkand placed 814th and Fergana 863rd, marking their first-ever appearance on the list of the world's top 1,000 startup ecosystems.

The report's authors also offered a separate comment: in their view, Uzbekistan is making a serious push to become a regional tech hub, and this ambition is visible at every level. IT Park Uzbekistan, they noted, has become the central pillar of the country's startup growth.

Compared with its neighbors, the picture is more complicated. Kazakhstan sits at 71st place — above Uzbekistan — but its annual growth was only 26.5 percent, and it slipped one spot. Almaty ranks 291st, Astana 332nd. The report points to a possible reason: rivalry between Almaty and Astana for leadership may be holding back overall growth. In the Caucasus, Armenia leads at 55th place, Georgia climbed to 66th, while Azerbaijan dropped to 81st.