Stories
Founder profiles, interviews and research on the Belarusian startup diaspora.
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Ecosystem
Who invests in startups founded by Belarusians at Pre-Seed
Some investors specialise in backing startups from day one. Others rarely invest this early, but make exceptions for the right teams. We explore what drives these decisions and what founders can learn from them.
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Interview
“When you have nothing, your confidence sells.” Artem Vysotsky on the new economics of AI startups, the venture capital race and Belarusians in Silicon Valley
Writingmate and Mentioned founder Artem Vysotsky on the economics of AI startups, venture capital, sales and the Founders Fire community in San Francisco and Warsaw.
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Interview
“I don’t have work-life balance. I negotiate with myself.” Veronika Zdanovich, CCO of Welltory, on 20 million downloads, health and the price of success
Welltory CCO Veronika Zdanovich on 20 million downloads, $16 million ARR, the new Welltory Care strategy, health, burnout and work-life balance.
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Ecosystem
From AI to SpaceTech: 10 European accelerators and programmes accepting applications this autumn
BYGRID has gathered ten open calls for startups and aspiring entrepreneurs in Europe. Opportunities include investment of up to €250,000, grant funding, mentoring and access to investors. The nearest deadline is 21 October.
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Interview
“I’m feeling completely anti-startup right now.” Dasha Danilova on two exits, financial freedom and the price of a founder’s success
Dasha Danilova on the RocketData and BrandWizard exits, building Elatra, the venture capital model and the price of entrepreneurial success.
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Expert commentary
The model writes the code, but the law requires a human: who owns a startup built with Claude?
Who owns the product when AI writes the code? Lawyer and mentor Kamal Tserakhau explains what investors will examine during due diligence, from copyright and licences to control of the code and tax relief.
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Expert commentary
Same AI model, different product: where wellness ends and MedTech begins
An anonymous digital health expert explains how product claims change data, validation, architecture and the business model — through the cases of WHOOP, Owlet and Natural Cycles.
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Research
71% of healthtech startups use AI. How do they prove their software actually works?
AI is an integral part of the product at 20 of 28 healthtech startups with Belarusian roots: it personalises workouts, analyses nutrition, recognises skin lesions or heart rhythms. We looked at how companies test their technologies, from algorithm accuracy and user outcomes to clinical studies and medical certification.
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Interview
Hundreds of Thousands of Dollars in Medical AI — and a Turn Towards Beauty: What Is Happening at Skinive
Skinive cofounder Kirill Sokol on the cost of medical AI, competition from ready-made models, and the company’s new wellness and beauty products.
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Research
New Startups, Same Founders. Who Is Building HealthTech with Belarusian Roots Today?
After 2020, startups with Belarusian roots became dispersed across countries, while the startup ecosystem — already fairly limited — contracted further. Yet new companies continue to emerge. Three quarters of the projects are being built by founders who have already started a business.
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Interview
A Smartphone Can Already Sense Your Heartbeat. But Can It Detect Disease?
600K+ recordings, 9,000 phone models and 2M installs later, HeartScan is still trying to answer the hardest question: can a smartphone produce clinically meaningful heart data?
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Interview
Why BYGRID Starts With HealthTech — and What It’s All For
BYGRID founder and editor Julia Nekhai on why the experience of Belarusian founders scattered across the world is worth collecting, and why the platform’s first map covers HealthTech.
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