Valeriya Ionan

FORWARD with Valeriya Ionan

Business EN ↓ 6 episodes

FORWARD with Valeriya Ionan is a platform for conversations with investors, entrepreneurs, government officials, and global leaders about investment, partnerships, innovation, and scaling. Valeriya explores how and why international capital enters Ukraine and other emerging markets, and how Ukrainian companies expand globally. Practical dialogue for decision-makers and builders.🎥 Watch on YouTube — FORWARD with Valeriya Ionan. 📲 Follow on Instagram — @valeriya_ionan

Author

Valeriya Ionan

Episodes

Agentic State: How Ukraine Is Building AI Government First with Oleksandr Bornyakov 21.04.2026 50:40

In this new episode with Acting Minister of Digital Transformation of Ukraine, Olexander Bornyakov, we dive into:How Ukraine is moving from “country in a smartphone” to an agentic state, where government services are powered by AI agents and delivered through the DIIA ecosystem. Why Ukraine can become one of the first countries to build AI‑driven public services at scale and what DIIA AI will actu...

Meet the Startup - RATEL: Inside Ukraine’s UGV Revolution 20.04.2026 15:24

In this episode, I speak with Taras Ostapchuk, founder of Ratel, one of the largest UGV (unmanned ground vehicle) producers in Ukraine. What started as a response to real battlefield needs has rapidly scaled into a company producing up to 200 robots per month from combat systems to logistics and evacuation platforms. These robots are used every day on the battlefield, replacing soldiers in dangero...

What Is the Agentic State? How AI Will Transform Government With Luukas Ilves 19.04.2026 47:48

What is an agentic state and why is it a bigger shift for governments than the last 20 years of digital transformation? In this episode, Luukas Ilves, former CIO of Estonia and advisor to Ukraine’s Minister of Digital Transformation breaks down what comes next. We explore how citizen agents could manage complex life events across public services, how task agents can transform procurement and fight...

Building Ukraine’s First New City — Oksana Markarova on Nove Misto 15.04.2026 1:01:10

Oksana Markarova, former Finance Minister, architect of UkraineInvest and Ukrainian Startup Fund, former Ambassador of Ukraine to the United States of America, now Presidential Advisor on Reconstruction and Investments. This episode centers on Nove Misto, her new project to build Ukraine's first city from scratch: 100,000 residents, private funding model, circular design, tech-first infrastruc...

Wild Freedom, Venture as Adventure and Why Ukraine Feels Like “The Real America” with Andriy Fedoriv 15.04.2026 58:19

In this episode, we dive into “wild freedom”, venture as adventure, Ukraine as “the real America in the center of Europe”, and why Kyiv today feels like New York in the late ’80s. If you are an investor, founder, policymaker or work with digital transformation and innovations, this conversation will challenge how you think about risk, the state, marketing and branding and the future of Ukraine. An...

Why Smart Investors Go to Ukraine — and Most Still Don’t 15.04.2026 51:58

In this episode of FORWARD with Valeriya Ionan, American entrepreneur and investor Dave Morgan shares why, after successful adtech exits in the United States, he chose to open core operational teams in Ukraine during wartime and invest directly into Ukrainian defense tech startups. His experience challenges common assumptions: Ukraine’s innovation cycles move faster under pressure, local teams ope...