Digital services & Apps

Leading Russian edtech startup Skyeng backed by two major investment firms

Skyeng, one of the most successful Russian startups, has received funding from two major investment firms, Winter Capital and Baring Vostok. The deal, which took place in October, was revealed only this past Friday by the Russian edition of Forbes magazine, based on exchanges with representatives of the parties involved.   Neither the amount invested …

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Russian government prepares to launch coronavirus contact-tracing app

Russia’s Digital Development Ministry is finishing work on a new mobile app designed to combat the spread of COVID-19. Its working name is ‘Stopcoronavirus. My contacts.’ The contact-tracing app, which relies on technologies developed by Apple and Google, is designed to track nearby mobile devices and warn the user if they have been within 10 …

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From energy policies, to education, to crime investigation, Russian government bets on AI to achieve its digital transformation

The Russian government has plans to use of artificial intelligence increasingly in the framework of its digital transformation.   On November 12, the heads of digital transformation of seven federal ministries and agencies — covering energy, industry and trade, culture, education and science, cadastre, agriculture, and taxes — gathered in a “strategic session on artificial …

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Russian sovereign fund RDIF invests in telemedicine platform, targets 100 million potential users

The Russian Direct Investment Fund (RDIF, Russia’s sovereign wealth fund) is investing in a telemedicine platform developed by Digital Medical Services (a subsidiary of state corporations Rostelecom and Rostec) and online consultation provider Doctis.  While Digital Medical Services will provide expert and methodological support to meet public healthcare standards, Doctis will contribute its information system to the joint …

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Mail.ru Group sells mapping and navigation service Maps.me as “non-core asset”

Mail.ru Group, the LSE-listed Russian Internet giant, has just announced the completion of the sale MAPS.ME to Daegu Limited, a part of Parity.com Group. All company shares have been transferred for 1.56 billion (some $20 million at today’s exchange rate).  Mail.Ru presents the move as part of its “strategy to focus on development of core assets where …

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Digital epidemiology: How to chart Covid-19 using search engine queries

According to Boris Ovchinnikov (a co-founder of e-commerce research agency Data Insight), the frequency of Internet searches for the word obonyanie (“sense of smell” in Russian) may serve as a metric for gauging the spread of the novel coronavirus across Russia.  Since temporary loss of smell is a common symptom of virus, tracking the public’s interest in this …

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Sber teams up with pharma major to acquire leading online pharmacy

Sber, the state-controlled financial and tech giant – previously known as Sberbank, – and Russian pharma major R-Pharm, are teaming up to acquire the online pharmacy Eapteka. According to the agreement, each partner will get a 45% stake with 10% being retained by company founder Anton Buzdalin. The amount and details of the transaction, which is still subject …

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Baring Vostok and Goldman Sachs acquire stake in major Russian financial and insurance portal

Russian billionaire Oleg Tinkov has sold his stake Sravni.ru, a major Russian finance and insurance marketplace, to Baring Vostok and Goldman Sachs, reports VC.RU. The terms of the transaction were not disclosed. Sravni.ru defines its mission as “to help people make the right choices and achieve financial goals.” Its users are assisted in choosing financial …

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Mail.Ru buying spree: New investments in gaming and edtech

This week several new investments by Mail.ru Group, the LSE-listed Russian Internet giant, were reported. In the field of online education: Lomigor, a Cypriot subsidiary of the LSE-listed Russian Internet giant, purchased a 45% stake in Preprep.ru LLC, the startup behind exam preparation platform Tetrika. The transaction, which took place in September, was just revealed …

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Intel-backed telemedicine service protects Russian medical workers from Covid-19

Lanit-Integration (part of the Lanit group) and Intel have developed and implemented a system for remote coordination and protection of medical workers in 39 clinics across Russia (as of August 2020). The technology — initially intended for industrial purposes — is based on ergonomic ‘smart glasses’ equipped with a video camera and a compact screen. …

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The rise of Russia’s giant digital ecosystems

Over the past few years, large ecosystems emerged around Mail.ru Group, Sberbank and Yandex, with both competition and cooperation intensifying between them.   ICT.Moscow, a media initiative from the Moscow government, has analyzed the variety of services provided by the three companies and the underlying business logic. It has compiled industry news from November 2019 to August 2020, aiming …

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Swedish, Malaysian and French investors back Russian startups

Russian startup NaPopravku (“for cure”), an online service for medical appointments, has raised $2.25 million for further domestic expansion and mobile developments, reported industry publication Rusbase.  The investor pool includes the Russian investment holding Avenir, which has a variety of tech companies in its portfolio; the Swedish VC fund VNV, which is renowned for its …

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