Corporate R&D and innovation

In Russian supermarkets, consumers can settle purchases with their fingerprint

January 16, 2019

In what could be a world’s first, Azbuka Vkusa, a major grocery chain with more than 170 outlets across Russia, and its partner Sberbank, the state-owned banking giant, have launched what they call a “perfect fingerprint payment service.” The service is not entirely new: so far, the chain’s customers could use fingerprints to pay from …

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‘Alice,’ ‘Marusya,’ ‘Oleg:’ Voice assistants and smart speakers take off in Russia

December 23, 2018

Nearly one year after Yandex launched its AI-driven voice assistant Alice, two other major players are preparing to release their own intelligent assistants. Competition is coming from Yandex’s archrival Mail.Ru Group, which is reportedly developing a concept combining a voice assistant and a smart speaker. Dubbed ‘Marusya,’ this product is being designed for potential integration …

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Waves raises $120 million to integrate blockchain into corporate and government digital infrastructure

December 24, 2018

Waves, a Blockchain solutions developer founded by a Russian team and incorporated in Switzerland, has secured $120 million to develop its project Vostok. Designed for large enterprises and public institutions, this private blockchain platform “lies at the intersection of several disruptive technologies, including blockchain, Big Data, artificial intelligence and the industrial Internet-of-Things,” according to Waves founder Alexander (Sasha) Ivanov. …

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Skolkovo develops R&D and venture projects with Chinese players

October 27, 2018

Earlier this month, as the Open Innovations forum gathered thousands of Russian and foreign participants on the outskirts of Moscow, the Skolkovo Foundation signed agreements with Chinese players. As reported by Skolkovo news portal Sk.ru, the Russian tech hub agreed with Chinese telecoms giant Huawei to set up a joint innovations center. The R&D effort …

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VKontakte develops object recognition and artificial intelligence tools to boost social commerce

October 2, 2018

VKontakte (VK), Russia’s leading social network and a property of Mail.Ru Group, is developing a technology for object recognition in photos and video recordings, with a special button to purchase the corresponding products in just one click. The project was unveiled at a recent meeting with investors and analysts, the TASS news agency reported last …

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Russian “robotic nurse” provides primary medical care and administrates drugs

September 27, 2018

Tecmash, an entity of state-controlled technology conglomerate Rostec, has presented an enhanced version of Angel, an automated diagnostic and therapeutic system. This “robotic nurse” has been designed to “provide medical care during primary diagnostics, automated control over vital functions of an injured person, and ensure invasive administration of prescribed drugs in accordance with a specific …

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Crypto ticket to the future: Will Russian Railways run on blockchain?

August 27, 2018

For two years already, Blockchain technology has inspired corporate projects in a variety of industries in Russia – from banking, to capital markets, to universities, to cite just examples. Russian Railways (RZD) is also embracing the trend, with a blockchain-based digital trading platform already operating since last year and new projects under plans. The state monopoly is aiming to manage the repair …

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Rostec and Citadel to invest more than $60 million in IT security joint venture

July 26, 2018

State corporation Rostec and IT holding Citadel have announced an agreement to launch a joint venture which will create corporate IT products based on military developments in the field of information security. As reported by Russian business daily Kommersant earlier this month, the JV will mainly focus on cryptography, quantum calculations, machine learning, Big Data …

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Sberbank customers can now transfer money using just a mobile number

July 15, 2018

Tinkoff Bank, a pioneer in P2P money transfers using a mobile number, has made available this service to Sberbank customers – expanding its potential audience to millions of customers of Russia’s leading savings bank. This service, which Tinkoff describes as being one of its most popular payment methods, will be made available to all Sberbank customers …

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Sberbank and National Settlement Depository to test new ICO technology

November 26, 2018

As Russia prepares to regulate ICOs and cryptocurrencies, Russia’s central bank launched this past April a “regulatory platform” to experiment and implement new financial services and technologies that require legislative changes. This platform, which involves other state institutions and industry associations, will be used in the near future to test an ICO technology. The first transactions …

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Yandex announces own-branded smart speaker

August 16, 2018

Yesterday the Russian search giant announced the launch of a new smart speaker, Google Home style. Dubbed Yandex.Station, the device “not only our first hardware product, but also the first smart speaker [made] for the Russian market,” Yandex stated. Yandex.Station includes such basic functions as creating alarms and playing music hands-free, but also “incorporates a full video streaming experience,” according …

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Leroy Merlin teams up with IIDF to accelerate Russian retail startups

May 7, 2018

The French DIY giant Leroy Merlin has partnered with the Internet Initiatives Development Fund (IIDF, or FRII in Russian), Russia’s biggest fund for early-stage startups, to launch an accelerator for retail startups. The program will target startups developing marketing software, automation and robotization solutions for internal operations in the field of logistics, solutions for heavy trucking …

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