Moscow-based startups Botkin.AI, VR Concept and BumbTech have won the national finals of the <a href="https://entrepreneurshipworldcup.com/" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">Entrepreneurship World Cup (EWC)</a> and will take part in the international competition. The tGELF foundation announced this on its Facebook page, VR Concept confirmed. In total, 12 teams took part in the Russian national finals.

<hr />
 
 Product cards

 
 <a href="https://ict.moscow/en/card/botkinai/" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">Botkin.AI</a>, <a href="https://ict.moscow/en/card/vr-concept/" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">VR Concept</a>, <a href="https://ict.moscow/en/card/bee-house/" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">BumbTech</a>

<hr />
 
 The Entrepreneurship World Cup is a global startup competition. In the finals, which will take place in November 2021, the top 100 teams from around the world will be able to present their projects to investors.

 
 <a href="https://ict.moscow/news/botkin-ai-vr-concept-bumbtech-stali-finalistami-rossiiskogo-etapa-konkursa-ewc2021/" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">Original (in Russian)</a>

tGELF

Botkin.AI, VR Concept and BumbTech to compete in EWC 2021 International Contest

The <a href="https://mintrans.gov.ru/documents/3/1009" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">draft transport strategy</a> of Russia through 2030, prepared by the Ministry of Transport, reveals the prospects for biometrics and driverless vehicles in Russian transport system.

 
 The use of biometric data in transport, according to the document, will increase the convenience of passengers, reduce the time for pre-trip procedures and fare payments, and also increase the overall level of public transport safety.

 
 The document also specifies that driverless vehicles will account for 30% of all operations by 2035. At the same time, the share of intercity freight road transportation on key highways will prevail over passenger transportation, 50% and 30%, respectively.

 
 According to the draft strategy, in the next three years, unmanned and highly automated transport will carry out 2% of intercity traffic along the main highways. By 2030, this figure is expected to increase to 20%. The total share of road transportation in the 20 largest cities, performed by driverless cars, will be 5% by 2030, the same share will be for intercity transportation.

 
 In early August, a biometric fare collection system <a href="https://ict.moscow/en/news/moscow-transport-app-to-add-payment-with-facial-recognition/" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">was launched</a> in the Moscow metro. Later, the Ministry of Transport <a href="https://ict.moscow/en/news/moscow-soon-to-test-fully-autonomous-vehicles/" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">announced </a>the testing of driverless vehicles without test engineers in the cabins will soon take place in Moscow and several other cities.

 
 <a href="https://ict.moscow/news/mintrans-podgotovil-proekt-transportnoi-strategii-rossii-do-2030-goda/" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">Original (in Russian)</a>

TASS

Ministry of Transport Introduces a Draft Transport Strategy of Russia Through 2030

The Federal Antimonopoly Service’s (FAS) Expert Council, which includes representatives of the regulator and participants in the IT market, has developed five basic principles for the operation of digital platforms.

 
 The proposed principals include:

<ul>
 <li>reasonably open digital platforms (in particular, free access to information on how the ranking of search results occurs);</li>
 <li>neutral attitude towards all parties to the market (without illegal provision of advantages to one’s own solutions);</li>
 <li>ensuring the independence of platform users when interacting with them and the absence of abuse of a dominant position to impose unfavorable terms of contracts on hotels;</li>
 <li>avoidance of expansive and ambiguous wording in the rules of operation (user agreements) of digital platforms;</li>
 <li>ensuring the rights of platform users, including by considering their requests and providing them with full answers.</li>
</ul>

 
 In the future, the regulator plans to work out a mechanism for resolving disputes that may arise if the basic rules are not followed. Yandex, Avito and AliExpress stated that they participated in the discussion of the basic principles of the FAS and support them.

 
 In September 2020, FAS <a href="https://ict.moscow/en/news/the-federal-antimonopoly-service-presented-a-new-version-of-the-law-to-combat-digital-monopolies/" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">proposed </a>new amendments to the law against digital monopolies, introducing reinforcement of ordering fines for repeated breaches of antimonopoly laws.

 
 <a href="https://ict.moscow/news/ekspertnyi-sovet-fas-razrabotal-piat-printsipov-raboty-tsifrovykh-platform/" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">Original (in Russian)</a>

Izvestia

Russian Regulator Proposes Antimonopoly Principals for Digital Platforms 

The Ministry of Digital Development of the Russian Federation has proposed extending biometric data collection standards to commercial systems.

 
 According to the new rules, private companies will have to provide the same level of security and data compliance as in the <a href="https://ict.moscow/en/card/klyuch-rostelekom/" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">Unified Biometric System</a> (UBS). Thus, the companies will have to coordinate with authorities the software as well as the model and type of equipment for collecting and storing data.

 
 According to government sources, in the future, commercial biometric systems (BMS) may be required to transfer the collected information to the UBS, the content of which previously raised many questions. At the same time, companies with poor performance in collecting such data will have to buy them in the same UBS.

 
 After the launch of the UBSin 2018, there are around 160 thousand items of personal data in the database. In March last year, the authorities announced their intention to increase the number of records to 70 million in two years.

 
 <a href="https://ict.moscow/news/mintsifry-predlagaet-vnedrit-standarty-sbora-biometrii-v-kommercheskie-sistemy/" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">Original (in Russian) </a>

Kommersant

Ministry of Digital Development to Apply Biometric Standards to Private Companies 

A new dark kitchen delivery service Gde Eda has been launched by Moscow-based taxi company Evrotransservis. The company is owned by Bogdan Konoshenko, the head of the taxi transport committee of the Moscow Chamber of Commerce and Industry.

 
 The service does not yet intend to compete with major players in the market and has abandoned partnerships with the Delivery Club and Yandex.Eats food services, Konoshenko said. The startup is limited to covering a territory with a population of around 130 thousand people. Despite that fact, Konoshenko does not rule out the possibility of expanding the business in the future. 

<hr />
 
 Product cards 

 
 <a href="https://ict.moscow/en/card/gde-eda/" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">Gde Eda</a>, <a href="https://ict.moscow/en/card/delivery-club/" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">Delivery Club</a>, <a href="https://ict.moscow/en/card/yandex-eats/" target="_blank" rel="nofollow" style="background-color: rgb(250, 250, 250);">Yandex.Eats</a>, and <a href="https://ict.moscow/en/card/kukhnia-na-raione/" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">Local Kitchen</a>

<hr />
 
 According to the company’s concept, the service is similar the Local Kitchen foodtech service, which was launched in 2017. However, Local Kitchen does not see the presence of competitors in the segment, the company representatives said.

 
 <a href="https://ict.moscow/news/v-moskve-zapustili-novyi-servis-dostavki-gotovoi-edy/" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">Original (in Russian) </a>

A New FoodTech Service Launched in Moscow

Moscow-based developer of procurement automation service <a href="https://bidzaar.com/landing/" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">Bidzaar </a>has created an algorithm for evaluating contractors for compliance with Environmental, Social, and Corporate Governance (ESG) standards.

 
 The technology allows users to determine whether the company complies with the requirements for environmental care, employee safety, inclusiveness, transparency of management, etc. At the moment, the Bidzaar is testing a new function with several undisclosed clients. The new feature set will be available for all companies connected to the service by spring 2021, the company said.

 
 Despite the fact that Russia does not yet have such compliance standards, Russian companies that export to the EU countries need to comply with the UN requirements. Their implementation has been underway since 2015.

 
 <a href="https://ict.moscow/news/startap-bidzaar-predstavil-algoritm-dlia-proverki-kompanii-na-razrabotannye-oon-standarty-esg/" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">Original (in Russian) </a>

Inc.Russia

 Startup Bidzaar Introduces an Algorithm Verifying Companies for ESG 

Russian online retailer <a href="https://ict.moscow/en/cards/?tags=Ozon" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">Ozon </a>released its financial results for the second quarter and upgraded the forecast of its 2021 revenue. The company’s GMV increased 94% year-on-year and is expected to grow 110% by the end of the year, up from 100% previously.

 
 Ozon sees its GMV to grow tenfold by 2026, reaching $34 billion (2.5 trillion rubles) with the company ready to take control of a third of Russia’s e-commerce market, the company’s CEO Alexander Shulgin told Bloomberg.

 
 Ozon is now the second-biggest Russian online retailer, growing faster than its closest competitor, Wildberries, with GMV growth of 144% in 2020, the most among Russian e-commerce players. The company, now accounting sees its goals as bringing more customers online as opposed to “taking customers” from competitors, Shulgin said.

 
 The company’s plans include further development of its fintech products as well as adding 15-minute deliveries to Ozon Express.

<hr />
 
 Connect with 

 
 <a href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/alexander-shulgin-792284/" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">Alexander Shulgin</a>, the CEO of <a href="https://corp.ozon.com/" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">Ozon</a>

<hr />
 
 In July 2021, Ozon <a href="https://tech.eu/brief/ozon-signs-agreement-to-purchase-oney-bank-for-up-to-10-million/" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">bought </a>Oney Bank from Russia’s third-biggest private bank, Sovcombank, getting the necessary bank license for its own financial infrastructure offering clients installment buying. Earlier, Ozon <a href="https://ict.moscow/en/news/ozon-will-start-developing-robots-for-sorting-and-delivering-goods-in-russia/" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">announced </a>building a robotic laboratory, planning to further robotize its service and boost order frequency.

Bloomberg

Ozon Plans to Take a Third of Russian E-Commerce Market

The decision to replace paper passports with smart cards will be made before the end of this year, the Minister of Digital Development of the Russian Federation <a href="https://www.facebook.com/m.shadaev" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">Maksut Shadayev</a> announced on Wednesday.

 
 Today there is a need to replace the usual passports with a modern document format, the minister said. The government body also plans a digital copy of a passport to be available on a smartphone as a QR code.

 
 In March 2021, the Ministry of Digital Development <a href="https://ict.moscow/en/news/the-ministry-of-digital-development-proposed-to-start-issuing-electronic-passports-in-moscow-from-december-1/" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">proposed </a>to start issuing e-passports in Moscow starting from December 1, 2021. Previously, the First Deputy Minister of Internal Affairs Alexander Gorovoy <a href="https://ict.moscow/en/news/moscow-plans-to-develop-a-mobile-application-for-an-electronic-passport-by-the-end-of-2021/" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">announced </a>plans to develop an application to an electronic passport in Moscow by the end of 2021.

 
 <a href="https://ict.moscow/news/mintsifry-opredelitsia-s-resheniem-o-zamene-bumazhnogo-pasporta-smart-kartoi-do-kontsa-2021-goda/" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">Original (in Russian) </a>

Rossiya-24

The Ministry of Digital Development to Introduce E-Passports by the End of 2021

Moscow has moved up four positions in this year's international fDi and TNW Tech Cities of the Future ranking, taking 14th place among 76 European cities with the most promising prospects for start-ups, technology and innovation investment, leaving behind Frankfurt am Main, Warsaw, Vilnius, Milan, and others. The three leaders included London, Paris, and Dublin.

 
 In addition, Moscow took sixth place in top 10 cities with the best startup environment. Analysts also examined such indicators as “innovation and attractiveness”, “economic potential”, “efficiency of foreign direct investment” and “economic efficiency”. The ranking of technological cities of the future has been conducted by fDi Intelligence since 2020.

<hr />
 
 Read fDi and TNW <a href="https://ict.moscow/en/research/tech-cities-of-the-future-2021/" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">Tech Cities of the Future 2021</a> report online

 
 

<hr />
 
 The Financial Times' fDi Intelligence provides comprehensive offering of services related to foreign direct investment and innovation. For this ranking, data was collected, analysed and ranked for 76 cities across 31 European countries under five categories: Cost Effectiveness, Economic Potential, FDI Performance, Innovation & Attractiveness and Start-Up Environment.

 <div>
 <a class="image_link" target="_blank" href="https://ict.moscow/static/0725c567-11d6-54bf-92b9-90826aaf58a6.pdf">
 <img alt="" data-openpopup="0"
 src="https://ict.moscow/static/1200x/5cb17474-2460-51a8-94d7-639d57a53470.png">
 </a>
 </div>
 
 fDi &amp; TNW
 

 
 <a href="https://ict.moscow/news/moskva-podnialas-na-14-e-mesto-v-mezhdunarodnom-reitinge-tekhnologicheskikh-gorodov-budushchego/" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">Original (in Russian)</a>

mos.ru

Moscow Climbs 4 Positions in the Tech Cities of the Future 2021 Ranking

The testing of driverless vehicles without test engineers in the cabins will soon take place in Moscow and several other cities, according to the Ministry of Transport of the Russian Federation.

 
 The Ministry will select the cities where experiments with fully autonomous vehicles will be executed for the longest timespan. They include Moscow, St. Petersburg, as well as the territories of Skolkovo and Innopolis (Tatarstan).

 
 According to market participants, they still have to solve a number of tasks, including teaching cars to drive in difficult weather conditions, for example, in fog or heavy snowfall as well as effectively predicting the traffic situation, including violations of the rules by other road users.

 
 In July 2021, The Ministry of Industry and Trade of the Russian Federation <a href="https://ict.moscow/en/news/subsidies-for-driveless-testing-in-russia-prolong-for-2022/" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">made </a>a draft government decree proposing to extend the granting of subsidies for testing unmanned vehicles on public roads until 2022.

 
 <a href="https://ict.moscow/projects/ai/news/1760/" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">Original (in Russian)</a>

rg.ru

Moscow Soon to Test Fully Autonomous Vehicles

Yandex has moved logistic subdivision of the <a href="https://ict.moscow/en/card/yandex-market/" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">Yandex.Market</a> marketplace into a separate company Market.Operations.

 
 The main activity of the company will be warehousing and storage, according to the data of the Russian Unified State Register of Legal Entities (<a href="https://egrul.nalog.ru/index.html" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">USRLE</a>). Such optimization will improve the quality of management of logistics facilities, company’s representatives note.

 
 Currently Yandex.Market operates warehouses in the Moscow region, as well as St. Petersburg, Yekaterinburg, Rostov and Samara regions.

 
 <a href="https://ict.moscow/news/iandeks-vydelil-logistiku-iandeks-marketa-v-otdelnuiu-kompaniiu/" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">Original (in Russian) </a>

Yandex Creates a Separate Company for its Logistics Business 

Russian Post, the national postal operator, has moved its tech divisions into a separate IT company Pochta Service that will focus on computer equipment and digital infrastructure. The staff of the new structure will be 3.6 thousand people. It is expected that the established company will reduce the cost of supporting the IT infrastructure of Russian Post by 15-20%.

 
 In the future, state-run operator plans to enter the external service market and compete with other market incumbents, the deputy CEO of Russian Post’s IT division stated.

 
 This is not the first time Russian Post has transferred certain functions to a separate company. In 2016, the enterprise created a subsidiary company for the development of software Pochtatech.

 
 <a href="https://ict.moscow/news/pochta-rossii-sozdala-sobstvennuiu-it-kompaniiu/" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">Original (in Russian)</a>

Vedomosti

Russian Post Creates an IT Subsidiary

Past week’s top tech stories from Moscow

 
 

<hr />
<h2>
 MARKET IN BRIEF
</h2>

<div>
 <img alt="" data-openpopup="0"
 src="https://ict.moscow/static/1200x/bfee9cae-9018-5505-93cf-2552fbc5d0d6.png">
</div>
 
 Source:&nbsp;Wikipedia
 

 
 

<ul>
 <li>McKinsey <a href="https://ict.moscow/en/news/mckinsey-names-moscows-transport-system-worlds-most-efficient/" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">Names </a>Moscow’s Transport System World’s Most Efficient</li>
</ul>

<ul>
 <li>Moscow Metro App to <a href="https://ict.moscow/en/news/moscow-transport-app-to-add-payment-with-facial-recognition/" target="_blank">Add</a> Payment with Facial Recognition</li>
 <li>Goldman Sachs <a href="https://ict.moscow/en/news/goldman-sachs-values-sberbanks-non-financial-ecosystem-at-17-6-billion/" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">Values </a>Sberbank’s Non-Financial Ecosystem at $17.6 billion</li>
</ul>

<ul>
 <li>Russian Radio Research Institute (NIIR) to <a href="https://ict.moscow/en/news/russia-to-test-5g-on-6-7-6-8-ghz-band/" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">Test</a> 5G on 6.7-6.8 GHz Band</li>
</ul>

<ul>
 <li>T1 Group, VTB and Huawei to <a href="https://ict.moscow/en/news/t1-group-vtb-and-huawei-to-launch-a-fintech-jv-in-moscow/" target="_blank">Launch</a> a FinTech JV in Moscow</li>
 <li>New IT Platform for Telemedicine to <a href="https://ict.moscow/en/news/new-it-platform-for-telemedicine-to-launch-in-moscow/" target="_blank">Launch</a> in Moscow </li>
</ul>

 
 

<div class="incut-block incut-block-text-small-size">
 GOV AGENDA
 Russian Regulator <a href="https://ict.moscow/en/news/russian-regulator-proposes-collecting-biometric-data-from-taxi-drivers-and-car-sharing-users/" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">Proposes </a>Collecting Biometric Data from Taxi Drivers and Car-Sharing Users
 Russian Supplier Portal <a href="https://ict.moscow/en/news/russian-supplier-portal-added-to-g20s-list-of-innovative-procurement-practices/" target="_blank">Added</a> to G20’s List of Innovative Procurement Practices
 </div>
 
 <a href="https://ict.moscow/en/news/" target="_blank">More news →</a>

<hr />
<h2>
 INVESTMENT DEALS&nbsp;
</h2>

<ul>
 <li>15 Moscow Startups <a href="https://ict.moscow/en/news/15-moscow-startups-raise-7-9-ml-for-scaling/" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">Raise</a> $7.9 ml for Scaling</li>
 <li>Mail.ru Group to <a href="https://ict.moscow/en/news/mail-ru-group-to-invest-60-ml-in-aliexpress-russia/" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">Invest</a> $60 ml in AliExpress Russia</li>
 <li>Sberbank <a href="https://ict.moscow/en/news/sberbank-buys-jivo-communication-platform/" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">Buys </a>Customer Service Platform Jivo</li>
</ul>

<ul>
 <li>AI Startup ZeBrains <a href="https://ict.moscow/en/news/ai-startup-zebrains-raises-1-ml/" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">Raises </a>$1 ml</li>
</ul>

<hr />
<h2>
 ANALYTICS AND INSIGHTS
</h2>

 
 researches, monitorings, reports and other analytics of Moscow and Russian IT market

<ul>
 <li><a href="https://ict.moscow/en/research/voice-ai-in-russia-2020-2025/" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">JUST AI</a>: Voice AI in Russia 2020-2025 →</li>
</ul>

 
 An overview of voice AI market in Russia, which is expected to reach $120 million in 2021.

<ul>
 <li><a href="https://ict.moscow/en/research/top-russian-federation-predictive-analytics-startups/" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">STARTUP PILL</a>: Russia’s 11 Best Predictive Analytics Startups of 2021 →</li>
</ul>

 
 Best startups that take a variety of approaches to innovating the Predictive Analytics industry.

<ul>
 <li><a href="https://ict.moscow/en/research/top-15-digital-solutions-in-manufacturing-industry/" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">HSE</a>: Top 15 Digital Solutions in Manufacturing Industry →</li>
</ul>

 
 Based on big data analyses, researchers identified the most significant digital technologies that are already used in Russian and global manufacturing industry.

<ul>
 <li><a href="https://ict.moscow/en/research/urban-transportation-systems-of-25-global-cities/" target="_blank">MCKINSEY: Urban transportation systems of 25 global cities →</a></li>
</ul>

 
 The study is designed to analyze transport systems in 25 cities of the world and to benchmark critical aspects of their performance that have the most effect on city residents’ transport needs and quality of life.

 
 <a href="https://ict.moscow/en/research/" target="_blank">More analytics →</a>

<hr />
<h2>
 DIGITAL SOLUTIONS FROM MOSCOW
</h2>

 
 a showcase of some Moscow-based emerging startups 

 
 <a href="https://ict.moscow/en/card/intelligent-university/" target="_blank">Intelligent University</a>

 
 Online learning platform for up-to-date fields of study: environment, new media, entrepreneurship, soft skills, science and technology, art and culture

 
 <a href="https://ict.moscow/en/card/icowork/" target="_blank">ICowork</a>

 
 An online service that allows to choose, book and pay for the rental of a workplace in Moscow

 
 <a href="https://ict.moscow/en/card/saleschain/" target="_blank">SalesChain</a>

 
 A cryptocurrency platform for working with banks and leasing companies

 
 

 
 

 
 <a href="https://ict.moscow/en/search/?searchText=blockchain&category=card" target="_blank">More solutions →</a>

<hr />
<h2>
 MOSCOW IT: KEY ACTORS
</h2>

 
 discover people who stand behind the innovative companies and projects in Moscow

 
 Sergey Solovyov, CEO of T1 Group | <a href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/sergey-solovyev-67146b1b/" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">LinkedIn</a>

 
 Ruslan Fazlyev, founder and CEO of Ecwid | <a href="https://www.facebook.com/aznakai" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">Facebook</a>

 
 Timur Valishev, CEO of Jivo | <a href="https://www.facebook.com/timur.valishev" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">Facebook</a>

 
 Denis Shvetsov, CEO of Doctor Ryadom | <a href="https://www.facebook.com/denis.shvetsov.56/" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">Facebook</a>

<hr />
 
 <a target="_blank" href="https://ict.moscow/en/news/?filterCategory=Tech-in-Moscow">Previous Tech in Moscow newsletters</a>

The weekly observer of Moscow's tech stories

ICT.Moscow

Tech in Moscow #27 (9 August - 13 August 2021)

Private industrial technology parks will be able to count on additional government support from 2022, compensating up to 50% of the costs for creating or modernizing the infrastructure of facilities, connecting to utility networks, purchasing equipment, as well as repaying loans.

 
 The government <a href="http://static.government.ru/media/files/cfZiL4oDoAe8S12N8F6CY2lEFw4pkA5b.pdf" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">clarified </a>that only those parks that are located in geostrategic territories, in regions implementing individual development programs, as well as in single-industry towns will receive subsidies.

 
 Moreover, the amount of maximum support will be up to $203.600 (15 million rubles) per 1 hectare of an industrial park. As for technology parks, their management companies will be able to receive $800 (60 thousand rubles) for 1 sq. m of the total area of buildings.

 
 Currently there are more than 250 private industrial and industrial technoparks already operating or being created. In total, there are over 360 sites for the implementation of industrial projects.

 
 <a href="https://ict.moscow/news/chastnym-promyshlennym-tekhnoparkam-kompensiruiut-50-zatrat-na-sozdanie-infrastruktury-i-zakupku-oborudovaniia/" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">Original (in Russian)</a>

The Russian Government

Russian Government to Cover 50% of Private Industrial Technology Parks’ Costs

Starting from August 14, 2021, ride-hailing services in Moscow and the Moscow region will have to transfer orders only to drivers who have a digital ID linked to a profile in the Taxi Analytics integrated information system.

 
 The profile is created via Gosuslugi, a portal of public services, and contains information on driver's license, permission to transport passengers, fines, passing a pre-trip medical examination and other data. It is expected that with the help of this system, overworking by taxi drivers will be excluded.

 
 Almost 80 thousand taxi drivers have now received digital IDs, which is 60% of all taxi permits issued in Moscow and its region.

 
 The system is intended for the purpose of recording violations. In 2019, the Deputy Mayor of Moscow Maxim Liksutov announced a system to restrict access to orders to taxi drivers who committed violations. Back then, it was assumed as a digital "gateway" between ride-hailing services and taxi drivers, which would block the transfer of orders in the event of revealed facts of processing.

 
 <a href="https://ict.moscow/news/v-moskve-i-oblasti-zapushchena-sistema-monitoringa-raboty-taksistov/" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">Original (in Russian) </a>

A New System for Monitoring Taxi Drivers’ Work Launched in Moscow

According to McKinsey’s “Urban Transportation Systems of 25 Global Cities” report, Moscow is ranked first for its transport efficiency, with Shenzhen, and Singapore behind. Russia’s capital city has high public-transport efficiency, ranking first in the subcategory as well.

 
 Analysts highly regarded the level of electronic transport services in Moscow, including the development of transport mobile applications and the availability of Wi-Fi. According to this indicator, the Russian capital ranks third, behind only Madrid and Hong Kong.

 
 The Russian capital has secured a top ranking in improvement in several subgroups, including rail transport (where it ranks fifth), shared transport (sixth), and external connectivity (first). In addition, the city was ranked sixth in transport availability index and the second among the leading cities with top improvements in transport availability.

 
 Since 2018, Moscow has implemented several large-scale projects designed to upgrade its airport infrastructure. For example, Domodedovo has become Russia’s first airport to deploy baggage storage robotization systems and automated turnstiles; the air haven is currently testing a face recognition system.

 
 McKinsey’s “Urban Transportation Systems of 25 global cities” selected 25 cities for global ranking using five separate metrics: "availability", "affordability", "efficiency", "convenience", as well as "safety and sustainable development". In order to be included in the report, the population of the city must exceed five million people, with GRP per capita more than $10,000 and the number of cars more than 150 per 1,000 people.

<hr />
 
 Read McKinsey’s “<a href="https://www.mckinsey.com/~/media/mckinsey/business%20functions/operations/our%20insights/building%20a%20transport%20system%20that%20works%20new%20charts%20five%20insights%20from%20our%2025%20city%20report%20new/elements-of-success-urban-transportation-systems-of-25-global-cities-july-2021.pdf" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">Urban Transportation Systems of 25 Global Cities</a>” report online

<hr />
 
 In November 2020, Moscow authorities <a href="https://transport.mos.ru/en/news/104216" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">announced</a> plans to launch a MaaS-platform (Mobility-as-a-Service) in the city. It will combine all city and several private transport services. To learn more, read ICT.Moscow's <a href="https://ict.moscow/news/maas-in-global/" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">insight</a> on the prospects of MaaS in global cities.

<div>
 <img alt="" data-openpopup="0"
 src="https://ict.moscow/static/1200x/de73b8f9-9d61-5c0c-9d31-2e3ef42e0712.png">
</div>
 
 McKinsey&nbsp;
 

 
 <a href="https://ict.moscow/ru/news/mckinsey-nazvala-transportnuiu-sistemu-moskvy-samoi-effektivnoi-v-mire" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">Original (in Russian) </a>

McKinsey

McKinsey Names Moscow’s Transport System World’s Most Efficient

Russian telecom operator <a href="https://ict.moscow/en/cards/?tags=Beeline" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">Beeline </a>and Sechenov First Moscow State Medical University signed a cooperation agreement to exchange technologies, develop and jointly promote solutions in the fields of telecom infrastructure, data processing centers, information software as well as analytical and control systems.

 
 Among other things, the two organizations plan to create solutions using artificial intelligence for the early diagnosis of diseases. The proposed solutions will be created within the scope of Sechenov University’s databases from of laboratory and instrumental studies, anamnestic data and treatment tactics for patients.

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 Connect with 

 
 <a href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/georgeheld/" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">George Held</a>, the CDO of <a href="https://moskva.beeline.ru/en-us/welcome/general-information/" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">Beeline Russia</a>

 
 <a href="https://www.sechenov.ru/univers/all/1197/" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">Petr Glybochko</a>, rector of <a href="https://www.sechenov.ru/eng/" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">Sechenov First Moscow State Medical University</a>

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 In July 2021, the Ministry of Health of the Russian Federation <a href="https://ict.moscow/en/news/the-ministry-of-health-and-rostec-created-the-first-version-of-the-federal-healthcare-ai-platform/" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">announced </a>that together with Rostec the government body has created the first version of the federal AI platform for healthcare, which will combine anonymized and labeled medical data into verified datasets.

 
 <a href="https://ict.moscow/news/bilain-i-sechenovskii-universitet-budut-vmeste-razvivat-it-produkty-dlia-meditsiny/" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">Original (in Russian)</a>

CNews

Beeline and Sechenov University to Develop MedTech Solutions 

The volume of the Russian voice AI market will reach $80 million or $120 million in 2021, taking into account government orders, according to <a href="https://ict.moscow/en/research/voice-ai-in-russia-2020-2025/" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">the new analyses</a> from Just AI. The industry is adding 46-93% from year to year and the company expects it to maintain its growth dynamics from 38% to 81%, reaching $561 million by 2025.

 
 Among major market players Just AI include themselves, with annual revenue of $6.8 million (500 million rubles), followed by companies with income over $2.7 million (200 million rubles): Yandex.Cloud (speech technologies), 3iTech (solutions for the public sector) and ATS Aero.

 
 In the group of companies with annual revenues of over $1.3 million (100 million rubles), analysts noted <a href="https://ict.moscow/en/card/nanosemantika/" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">Nanosemantics </a>(NLP / NLU / DM platforms), <a href="https://ict.moscow/en/card/neuro-net/" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">Neuro.net</a>, and <a href="https://zvonobot.com/" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">Zvonobot </a>(outbound telemarketing). In general, there are more than 100 companies on the market, including small startups.

 
 As an independent segment, experts identified solutions for government customers, which are the largest consumer of conversational AI. In their segment, <a href="https://ict.moscow/en/cards/?tags=Speech_Technology_Center" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">Speech Technology Center (STC group)</a>, owned by <a href="https://ict.moscow/en/cards/?tags=Sberbank" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">Sberbank</a>, is leading with more than 80% of its revenue ($20 million a year) brought to it by government contracts, the study says.

 
 Contrary to the conclusions of Just AI, deals for the commercial segment prevail in the structure of STC's revenue in the field of conversational AI, Dmitry Dyrmovsky, the CEO of STC, argues. He agrees with the current market estimates, but the projected growth rate might be 15% lower. Among the major government customers for such services, he pointed to the Multifunctional Center (MFC), a service state network of public and municipal electronic centers that seeks to optimize its client service.

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 Connect with 

 
 <a href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/kpetrov/" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">Kirill Petrov</a>, founder and managing director of <a href="https://just-ai.com/en" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">Just AI</a>

 
 <a href="https://www.facebook.com/dyrmovsky" target="_blank" rel="nofollow" style="background-color: rgb(250, 250, 250);">Dmitry Dyrmovsky</a>, the CEO of <a href="https://speechpro.com/" target="_blank" rel="nofollow" style="background-color: rgb(250, 250, 250);">Speech Technology Center</a>

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 To learn more about Russian solutions in the field of digital assistant industry, read ICT.Moscow’s overview “<a href="https://ict.moscow/en/news/smart-assistants-in-russia/" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">Smart assistants in Russia: market overview, trends and prospects</a>”, where we spoke to 17 lead experts in the market.

 
 <a href="https://ict.moscow/projects/ai/news/1754/" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">Original (in Russian) </a>

RB.ru

Russian Voice AI Market to Reach $120 Million in 2021

Moscow-based startup UR-Li, which develops AI service for collecting accounts receivable, has raised $118,674 from Pulsar Venture Capital fund as well as private investors.

 
 According to UR-Li CEO Valery Mayushkin, the startup plans to raise another $280,000 to create MVP and CustDev abroad. Priority markets are the USA and the CIS countries. The company is also going to scale in Russia, for which it expects to attract a large corporation or a bank as a strategic partner.

<hr />
 
 Connect with

 
 <a href="https://www.facebook.com/maiushkin.vv" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">Valery Mayushkin</a>, CEO of <a href="https://dolgi.ur-li.ru/" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">UR-Li </a>

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 UR-Li launched its AI-based service for jeopardy assessment in 2020. It allows businesses to check tax reporting for errors and discrepancies.

 
 <a href="https://ict.moscow/projects/ai/news/1753/" target="_blank">Original (in Russian)</a>

Hightech.plus

Russian Legal Tech Startup UR-Li Raises Investments, Heads to International Markets

<a href="https://ict.moscow/en/cards/?tags=Sberbank" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">Sberbank</a> announced the closure of the deal to acquire 100% of Jivosite Inc, the Moscow-based JivoChat customer service platform developer that operates in Moscow and in Washington, DC.

 
 The founders of the platform, Timur Valishev and Nikolai Ivannikov, will continue to work in the company as the CEO and CTO, respectively. The deal was made for an undisclosed fee, which could have amounted to $20-27 million (1.5-2 billion rubles), according to Kommersant newspaper’s previous <a href="https://www.kommersant.ru/doc/4848235" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">estimates</a>.

 
 Sberbank notes that Jivo has already entered the company's ecosystem: entrepreneurs have received a service for communicating with their audience. The plans include even deeper integration and further development of the Jivo service.

<hr />
 
 Connect with

 
 <a href="https://www.facebook.com/timur.valishev" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">Timur Valishev</a> and <a href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/nick-ivannikov-37048979/" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">Nikolai Ivannikov</a>, the founders of <a href="https://www.jivochat.com/" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">JivoChat</a>

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 JivoChat is an all-in-one business messenger that combines several custumer support channels including live chat, phone, email, and social media. Sberbank <a href="https://ict.moscow/en/news/jivo-a-customer-communication-platform-will-be-included-in-the-sberbank-ecosystem/" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">announced</a> the plans to buy Jivosite in June 2021.

 
 <a href="https://ict.moscow/news/sberbank-zakryl-sdelku-po-pokupke-prilozheniia-dlia-biznes-kommunikatsii-jivo/" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">Original (in Russian) </a>

Sberbank

Sberbank Buys Customer Service Platform Jivo

According to Goldman Sachs’ analyses, the current value of <a href="https://ict.moscow/en/cards/?tags=Sberbank" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">Sberbank'</a>s non-financial ecosystem is estimated at $17.6 billion (1.13 trillion rubles).

 
 Analysts predict that the online market for digital non-financial segments in Russia will increase three-fold compared to 2020 and reach $163.4 billion (12 trillion rubles). Sberbank targets this market through 40 companies and 20 applications of its ecosystem. The main driver of growth for the company's non-financial services will be e-commerce, analysts note.

 
 According to Goldman Sachs estimates, the ecosystem amounts to 10% of the bank's total share value.

 
 Since the beginning of the year, Sberbank has invested around $1 billion in non-financial business companies. In the next three years, the company will allocate $4-4.7 billion (300-350 billion rubles) to develop its non-financial products.

 
 <a href="https://ict.moscow/news/analitiki-goldman-sachs-otsenili-stoimost-nefinansovoi-ekosistemy-sberbanka-v-1-13-trln-rublei/" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">Original (in Russian)</a>

Goldman Sachs Values Sberbank’s Non-Financial Ecosystem at $17.6 billion 

15 Moscow-based startups from the StartHub.Moscow incubator program raised more than $7.9 million (580 million rubles) for scaling, according to the<a href="https://innoagency.ru/en.html" target="_blank" rel="nofollow"> Moscow Agency of Innovations</a>.

 
 The list includes cryptocurrency payment service Joys, which intends to channel funds for infrastructure development and product launch to new markets, as well as the SalesChain platform for working with banks and leasing companies. Using the raised funds, SalesChain plans to promote the service in Russian regions outside Moscow as well as enter new markets in Europe, Africa, and Latin America. 

<hr />
 
 Product cards

 
 <a href="https://ict.moscow/en/card/joys-digital/" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">Joys</a>, <a href="https://ict.moscow/en/card/intelligent-university/" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">SalesChain</a>, <a href="https://ict.moscow/en/card/intelligent-university/" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">Intelligent University</a>, <a href="https://ict.moscow/en/card/icowork/" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">ICowork</a>

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 In addition, the funding was raised by Intelligent University platform to develop online education in robotics for children and by ICowork, an aggregator of coworking spaces in Moscow.

 
 <a href="https://ict.moscow/news/moskovskie-startapy-joys-saleschain-intelligent-university-i-icowork-privlekli-investitsii-na-masshtabirovanie/" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">Original (in Russian) </a>

15 Moscow Startups Raise $7.9 Million for Scaling

T<a href="https://www.grfc.ru/grfc/eng/" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">he General Radio Frequency Centre (GRFC)</a>, a Russian regulatory body, has approved the use of 6.7-6.8 GHz band by <a href="https://niir.ru/en/" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">The Radio Research Institute</a> (NIIR) for research, experimental, and design work using 5G, according to the <a href="https://digital.gov.ru/ru/documents/7981/" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">minutes</a> of the GRFC’ meeting on August 2. NIIR will be able to operate with the indicated frequencies on its own territory in Moscow. The 6.7-6.8 GHz frequency is part of the 6.425-7.1 GHz band. As previously specified by Russian telecoms operators, the 6-7 GHz range is mainly used for radio-fixing aids and radio relay lines. This range was not allocated for the operation of mobile networks by the International Telecommunication Union.

 
 The fact that NIIR plans to conduct tests for the development of 5G networks in the 6 GHz band by the end of 2021 was <a href="https://iz.ru/1082264/anna-ustinova-aleksei-ramm/chastotnaia-nedostatochnost-dlia-5g-predlozhili-novyi-diapazon-6ggtc?destination=node/1082264" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">announced</a> in November. As the deputy CEO of NIIR Evgeny Devyatkin said, the 6.425-7.1 GHz band is not an alternative, but an addition to the 3.4-3.8 GHz and 4.4-4.99 GHz bands.

 
 <a href="https://ict.moscow/news/nauchno-issledovatelskii-institut-radio-protestiruet-diapazon-6-7-6-8-ggts-dlia-5g/" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">Original (in Russian)</a>

Russian Radio Research Institute to Test 5G on 6.7-6.8 GHz Band

The ticketing service operator<a href="https://ict.moscow/en/card/kassir-ru/" target="_blank" rel="nofollow"> Kassir.ru</a> has acquired 60% of the <a href="https://business.radario.ru/" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">Radario</a> platform for an undisclosed fee and plans to buy out the remaining share within three years.

 
 According to Denis Kuskov, the CEO of Telecom Daily, Radario occupied 3-4% share of the market, or $4-5.4 million (300-400 million rubles). The last major deals in the market took place in 2018, when telecoms operator MTS bought 100% of Ticketland for $43.3 million (3.19 billion rubles) and 78.2% Ponominalu.ru for $4.3 million (321 million rubles), becoming one of the market leaders. Kassir.ru’s deal reflects the company’s willingness to sidestep MTS, Kuskov said.

 
 According to forecasts of Evgeny Finkelstein, the CEO of Kassir.ru, the deal will increase the company’s sales by 30–35%, considering that Kassir.ru’s pre-crisis turnover was around $176.6 million (13 billion rubles). Finkelstein estimates the entire market for ticket sales to theaters and concerts at $1 billion (80 billion rubles). Thus, as a result of the takeover, the market share of Kassir.ru will grow from 16% to 22.5%.

<hr />
 
 Connect with 

 
 <a href="https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100004623333645" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">Evgeny Finkelstein</a>, CEO of <a href="https://www.kassir.ru/" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">Kassir.ru</a>

 
 <a href="https://www.facebook.com/denis.kuskov.9" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">Denis Kuskov</a>, CEO of <a href="https://telecomdaily.ru/" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">Telecom Daily</a>

<hr />
 
 In July 2021, Kassir.ru bought back its share from TCS Group (the parent company of Tinkoff Bank), which acquired its stake in Kassir.ru in 2018.

 
 <a href="https://ict.moscow/news/kassir-ru-kupil-60-platformy-dlia-prodazhi-biletov-radario/" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">Original (in Russian)</a>

Market in Brief