Hrazdan: Potential Lost in Poor Planning
March 5, 2026The Neruzh Program was created with an important goal: bringing Armenian founders from around the world to Armenia and encouraging them to build companies connected to the country’s growing technology ecosystem.
The effort behind the program is real. Organizing an international initiative that gathers founders from the diaspora is not easy. Each year, Neruzh brings together entrepreneurs, mentors, and investors for several days of workshops, networking, and pitching. It creates connections that might not otherwise happen.
In that sense, Neruzh is a meaningful step.
But it should also be viewed as the beginning of a longer process, not the final stage of startup development.
Many of the teams that participate are at a very early stage. Some are still exploring an idea. Others may not yet have a minimum viable product. It is also common for founders to be working on their startup part-time while maintaining full-time jobs. This is not unusual in early entrepreneurship. However, it also means that many projects struggle to maintain momentum after the program ends.
Even when teams are serious, the first few months of building a startup often reveal deeper issues. Teams may realize that they need to pivot. Sometimes, co-founders discover they are not aligned. In other cases, the team simply lacks an essential member. This is particularly common with highly technical teams. Many founders come from engineering backgrounds and are deeply focused on the technology. What they sometimes lack is experience in areas such as market strategy, customer development, partnerships, and fundraising.
A longer accelerator program could help address these challenges.
Programs that last three to six months allow organizers and mentors to observe how teams actually function. Over time, it becomes clearer whether a team needs additional support, a different skill set, or even a new team member. Some startups eventually realize they need a CEO with business experience. Others may need someone focused on product strategy or growth. These kinds of issues rarely become visible during a short event.
A longer program allows mentors and organizers to help identify these roadblocks early and guide founders toward solutions before the startup loses momentum. Armenia already has many of the ingredients necessary for this kind of ecosystem. Over the past decade, the country has developed a strong network of engineers, entrepreneurs, and industry leaders who understand the process of building technology companies. What is needed now is a structure that gives founders the time, mentorship, and environment to fully commit to building their startups.
Neruzh has already succeeded in creating connections between the diaspora and Armenia’s technology community. The next step could be building on that foundation with longer programs that support founders through the difficult early stages of company creation. If that happens, Neruzh will not only bring entrepreneurs together for a few days. It will become the first step in a deeper pipeline for building lasting startups in Armenia.
