Exports of Ukrainian IT services in January–August 2026 increased by 4% compared to the same period last year—to $4.46 billion, according to data from the National Bank of Ukraine analyzed by Experts Club.
In terms of foreign exchange revenue, the sector has effectively returned to the levels seen in the corresponding period of 2023, though it has not yet reached the peak figures of 2022.
In January–August 2022, the volume of IT exports was approximately 9% higher than the current figure.
Thus, the trend of recent years can be divided into two periods: after a record-breaking 2022, Ukrainian IT exports began to decline, and in 2026, they are once again showing growth.
The importance of IT for the entire Ukrainian services sector remains particularly significant. In the first eight months of 2026, Ukraine exported services worth $10.9 billion, which is approximately 6% higher than the figure for the same period last year.
IT accounted for 41% of this total—that is, more than $4 out of every $10 Ukraine earned from service exports.
The sector’s share of total foreign trade also remains significant. Total exports of goods and services for January–August amounted to $35.8 billion, of which $4.46 billion came from IT companies and specialists.
As a result, the IT sector accounts for about 12% of the country’s total exports—roughly one in every eight dollars of export revenue.
If current growth rates continue, the sector could end 2026 with its best performance in several years; however, growth rates will need to accelerate to return to the record levels seen in 2022.
Data source: National Bank of Ukraine.
Tbilisi is preparing to host the international conference AgriFuture Georgia 2026, which will bring together representatives of the agribusiness sector, technology companies, investors, producers, and experts to discuss new opportunities for agricultural development, the implementation of innovations, and the attraction of investment.
The event will serve as a platform for direct dialogue between agricultural producers, suppliers of modern technologies, financial institutions, and companies interested in developing agricultural projects in Georgia and the region.
One of the central themes of AgriFuture Georgia 2026 will be the transformation of agriculture driven by modern technologies. Participants will discuss the automation of production processes, the digitalization of agribusiness, and the application of innovative solutions in crop production, horticulture, and other areas of agricultural production.
Special attention will be given to investments in agriculture and the search for new financing models for agricultural projects. Representatives from the business and investment communities will have the opportunity to discuss promising investment areas, opportunities for scaling up existing operations, and launching new projects.
Another key focus of the conference will be the development of exports. For Georgian and regional producers, entering new markets remains one of the key drivers of further growth; therefore, participants will examine the requirements of international buyers, changes in demand patterns, and opportunities to enhance the competitiveness of agricultural products.
The organizers expect the conference to serve not only as a forum for discussion but also as a venue for establishing new business contacts. As part of AgriFuture Georgia 2026, agribusiness representatives will be able to interact directly with potential partners, technology providers, investors, and experts.
The practical application of technologies will play a special role in the program. Participants will be presented with solutions that enable agricultural enterprises to increase productivity, use land, water, and energy resources more efficiently, reduce production costs, and improve product quality.
The holding of AgriFuture Georgia 2026 reflects the growing interest of the business community in the modernization of Georgia’s agricultural sector. The country has favorable conditions for producing fruits, vegetables, nuts, grapes, and other agricultural products; however, the sector’s further development increasingly depends on technological modernization, access to financing, and producers’ ability to operate in international markets.
The conference is aimed at owners and managers of agricultural enterprises, farmers, producers and exporters of agricultural products, investors, representatives of the banking sector, suppliers of equipment and technology, trading companies, international organizations, and industry experts.
AgriFuture Georgia 2026 is set to become a platform where representatives from various segments of the agricultural sector can discuss specific projects and form new partnerships to develop agribusiness in Georgia and the region.
Open4Business – Information Partner of the AgriFuture Georgia 2026 International Conference
Huawei Ukraine has announced that it is accepting applications from students at Ukrainian higher education institutions to participate in the annual Student Tech Challenge-2026 team competition, which is held with the support of the Ministry of Education and Science of Ukraine.
According to the company’s press release, participants will develop technological solutions for challenges in the fields of telecommunications, computer networks, and digital energy. Winners will receive prizes and the opportunity to join an internship program at Huawei Ukraine.
The competition will be held in three main categories: Radio Access Network Planning, Datacom Engineering, and Digital Energy. Teams will develop their projects with the assistance of the company’s faculty coaches and mentors.
The first stage of the Student Tech Challenge will run from October 6 to 26 and will include online meetings, solution development, and presentation preparation. The semifinals are scheduled for October 26–27, after which the finalist teams will continue working with mentors. Project pitches will take place on November 4–5, either online or in person in Kyiv, and the finals and awards ceremony will be held on November 6.
Teams of two to five students from Ukrainian higher education institutions are invited to participate. Eligible participants include undergraduate students in their third year or higher and first-year master’s students majoring in engineering, technical, and related polytechnic fields. Knowledge of English at a minimum B1 level is required, as project presentations will be conducted in English.
Detailed contest rules are available on the official Student Tech Challenge website.
Huawei Ukraine has been operating in the Ukrainian market since 2000, and Huawei Ukraine LLC was registered in Kyiv in May 2005. The company is engaged in the supply, commissioning, maintenance, and technical support of Huawei telecommunications equipment and software.
One of the company’s areas of activity in Ukraine is the training of specialists in the field of information and communication technologies. In particular, since 2016, the international educational program “Huawei Seeds for the Future” has been implemented in Ukraine, and the Huawei ICT Academy network has been expanding in partnership with Ukrainian universities.
Source: Huawei Ukraine press release on the “Interfax-Ukraine” website.
EDUCATION, Huawei Ukraine, Student Tech Challenge, TECHNOLOGY, СТУДЕНТ
By the end of September 2026, Apple will expand the iCloud+ package in Ukraine to include access to the Apple TV streaming service and the Apple Arcade gaming platform at no additional charge with all paid plans.
Ukraine has officially joined the list of over 100 countries and territories where Apple is rolling out its new subscription model. At the same time, Apple TV is expanding into 59 new markets and, once the rollout is complete, will be available in approximately 170 countries worldwide.
According to the Ukrainian iCloud website, the cheapest iCloud+ plan—50 GB—costs $0.99 per month and will include Apple TV and Apple Arcade. The 200 GB plan costs $2.99, 2 TB costs $9.99, 6 TB costs $34.99, and 12 TB costs $69.99 per month.
Apple TV provides access to original series, movies, and documentaries from Apple Originals, while Apple Arcade features over 200 games without ads or in-app purchases.
An iCloud+ subscription can be shared with up to five family members via Family Sharing. Each user’s personal files, settings, and recommendations remain separate.
For users who already pay for iCloud+, Apple TV and Apple Arcade should be added automatically at no additional cost. If a user previously subscribed to Apple TV or Apple Arcade separately, Apple plans to transition that access into iCloud+, while progress and saves in Apple Arcade games will remain accessible.
On Apple’s official Ukrainian website, the new bundle is currently listed as coming “soon,” as the company is rolling it out gradually through the end of September.
In addition to Ukraine, the program includes Serbia, Montenegro, Moldova, Georgia, Armenia, Turkey, Kazakhstan, Azerbaijan, the Western Balkan countries, as well as India, Singapore, the UAE, Saudi Arabia, and dozens of countries in Africa, Asia, and the Middle East.
Forbes has published its 50 Over 50: Innovation 2026 list, which includes 50 women over the age of 50 who continue to exert a significant influence on science, medicine, artificial intelligence, robotics, biotechnology, space research, industry and the technology business. The ranking was published on August 11, 2026, and is part of the broader Forbes 50 Over 50 project, which includes a total of 200 women in four categories — Innovation, Impact, Investment and Lifestyle.
An important clarification is that Forbes does not assign all 50 participants positions from No. 1 to No. 50. On the main Innovation page, the names are listed alphabetically. The de facto exception was Ritu Narayan, founder of the transportation startup Zum, whom both the company and the entrepreneur herself describe as the “No. 1 honoree” in the Innovation category and the face of the issue’s cover. However, Forbes did not publish a complete numerical ranking of the remaining 49 positions.
Narayan, who grew up in India and built her career in Silicon Valley, created Zum, a technology platform modernizing the U.S. school bus system using artificial intelligence, GPS and electric vehicles. Forbes values the startup at approximately $1.7 billion, with 2025 revenue of $333 million.
The 50 honorees also include Stanford professor Zhenan Bao, who works on electronic skin and wearable electronics; 2025 Nobel Prize laureate Mary Brunkow; NASA science program leader Nicola Fox; MIT School of Engineering dean Paula Hammond; MIT professor and developer of wireless medical technologies Dina Katabi; Takeda head Julie Kim; astrophysicist and dean of MIT’s School of Science Nergis Mavalvala; former Yahoo chief and Dazzle AI founder Marissa Mayer; HubSpot chief Yamini Rangan; Cummins leader Jennifer Rumsey, and many others.
An analysis by Experts.News reveals an interesting geography of the list. Forbes itself does not publish separate statistics by nationality, so it is more accurate to speak about the countries of birth and origins of the participants. By this measure, the United States clearly dominates: most of the women in the Innovation-50 were born and built their careers specifically within the American scientific and entrepreneurial environment.
Among the participants born outside the United States, several countries stand out. Serbia is represented by two natives — Vunjak-Novakovic and Matarić. India — Ritu Narayan and Yamini Rangan. China — Zhenan Bao and Michelle Zhou. Morocco — Bahija Jallal and Wafaa Mamilli. Serbia therefore belongs to a small group of countries that produced two participants in the Innovation-50. Zhou’s Chinese origin is confirmed by the Association for Computing Machinery, while Mamilli herself lists Casablanca as her city of birth; Roche lists her citizenships as French, Moroccan and U.S.
Among other countries, Pakistan, Syria, South Korea, Thailand, France, the United Kingdom and Israel each have one participant on the list. For example, Nergis Mavalvala was born in Lahore, Pakistan; Dina Katabi in Damascus; Julie Kim in Seoul; Thai Lee in Thailand; Aude Oliva in France; Nicola Fox in Hitchin, England; and Daphne Zohar in Israel.
At the same time, the list’s main geographical conclusion concerns not so much passports as the concentration of talent within the American innovation ecosystem. Even most of the women born in Serbia, India, China, Pakistan, Syria, South Korea or France now work at American universities and companies — MIT, Stanford, Columbia, USC, Berkeley, HubSpot, Cummins and other organizations. Four participants on the list are associated with MIT alone — Paula Hammond, Dina Katabi, Nergis Mavalvala and Aude Oliva.
For a Ukrainian audience, it is notable that there are no Ukraine-born women in the Forbes 50 Over 50: Innovation 2026 category. However, the structure of the list itself demonstrates a model that is also relevant to Ukraine: a significant share of the most successful scientists and technology entrepreneurs are migrants or people originating from other countries who developed and implemented their innovations after integrating into major international universities, research centers and venture ecosystems. In this respect, the example of the two women born in Belgrade is particularly illustrative for Eastern European countries.
The full Innovation-50 includes Maya Ajmera, Lauren Antonoff, Katrina Armstrong, Zhenan Bao, Wendy Barnes, Charlie Blackwell-Thompson, Karen Blanks Ellis, Marsha Anderson Bomar, Christine Brown, Mary Brunkow, Jennifer Tour Chayes, Karen S. Carter, Margaret Dawson, Cindy Eckert, Karen Eng, Katie Farmer, Nicola Fox, Paula T. Hammond, Lisa Harris, Lisa Gelobter, Jacqueline Hinman, Colette D. Honorable, Janice Bryant Howroyd, Bahija Jallal, Sabrina Martucci Johnson, Dina Katabi, Julie Kim, Debra Laskin, Tessa Lau, Thai Lee, Emily Liman, Wafaa Mamilli, Christina Maslach, Maja Matarić, Nergis Mavalvala, Marissa Mayer, Vivienne Ming, Aude Oliva, Ritu Narayan, Yamini Rangan, Shubhi Rao, Jennifer Rumsey, Heather Shoemaker, Ellen Stofan, Gordana Vunjak-Novakovic, Susie Wee, Beth Wozniak, Laura Yecies, Michelle Zhou and Daphne Zohar.
Thus, the 2026 Forbes list demonstrates two trends at once. The first is that an innovation career after the age of 50 increasingly continues for decades and can lead to major scientific and entrepreneurial achievements well beyond the traditional career peak. The second is that the United States remains the main center of attraction for such specialists, while simultaneously making use of the talents of scientists and entrepreneurs born in dozens of other countries.
Original source: Forbes — 2026 50 Over 50: Innovation
According to Experts.news, regular interaction with artificial intelligence and social robots may gradually influence how people communicate, perceive themselves, and shape their behavior, according to a study by researchers from the United Kingdom, Denmark, and Sweden published on August 19, 2026, in the journal AI & Society.
The authors of the study, from the University of Birmingham, Aarhus University, and Linnaeus University, coined the term “robotoid humanness.” By this term, the researchers mean a possible process in which, through repeated interaction with AI, a person begins to adapt their behavior to the machine’s logic—becoming more predictable, standardized, and amenable to algorithmic processing.
This effect could be particularly noticeable in the service sector, where AI is already used in retail, the hospitality industry, tourism, and healthcare. Modern digital assistants and robots mimic human speech and emotional cues and personalize their responses to build trust and facilitate interaction with customers.
Researchers suggest that this process may be two-way. Machines are becoming increasingly human-like, but humans may also unconsciously adopt communication patterns from their interactions with machines.
“The consumer acts, the robot responds, and through repeated interaction, the person eventually adopts this communication model,” explains Selchen Ozturkjan of Linnaeus University, one of the study’s authors. According to her, people’s natural tendency to mimic the behavior of their conversation partner can lead users to begin replicating the communicative traits of AI.
The authors describe a three-stage mechanism. First, a person begins to perceive their interaction with the AI as a social one. Then, the algorithm creates a simplified digital model of the user and feeds it back to the user in the form of personalized responses. Subsequently, the user may gradually adapt their self-presentation and behavior to the patterns that the system more easily recognizes and encourages.
The researchers identify one of the risks as the formation of a kind of feedback loop, in which the algorithm constantly reinforces the user’s characteristics that it already knows. Unlike communication with people, where a conversation partner might unexpectedly disagree, misunderstand, or offer a completely different perspective, algorithmic systems are typically designed for consistency, convenience, and personalization. This has the potential to reinforce existing views and reduce the diversity of self-expression.
At the same time, the authors emphasize an important limitation of their work: this is a theoretical study, not an experiment involving human participants. Scientists have not yet proven that prolonged interaction with ChatGPT, robots, or other artificial intelligence systems actually makes people more “robot-like.” The proposed concept must be tested in further empirical studies.
The research paper “Robotoid humanness: when selfhood becomes machine-legible” was published on August 19, 2026, in the journal AI & Society. The ScienceAlert article highlighting the study was published on August 31.
