Armenia continued its growing tech diplomacy efforts as Ambassador Narek Mkrtchyan held a series of high-level meetings with senior executives from Apple, Google, OpenAI, Anthropic, ServiceNow, Synopsys, AMD, the Open Compute Project (OCP), and Amaros on November 19 and 20.
Across two days, the Ambassador engaged with leaders in artificial intelligence, cloud infrastructure, semiconductors, advanced hardware, and educational innovation. Among the senior technology leaders he met, six were of Armenian heritage, including several Armenian-American executives in key engineering and AI leadership positions across major Silicon Valley companies. The discussions highlighted Armenia’s growing technology ecosystem and its potential for deeper cooperation with major U.S. industry players.
The meetings focused on expanding partnerships in AI, digital infrastructure, advanced engineering, semiconductor research and development, cloud computing, and technology education. Several companies expressed interest in exploring operational opportunities in Armenia or strengthening existing engagements.
Throughout these discussions, both sides underscored the importance of the August 8 Armenia and United States Memorandum of Understanding on innovation partnership in artificial intelligence and semiconductors, which provides a framework for future collaboration, investment, and technology transfer.
These engagements were held across multiple campuses in Silicon Valley and Northern California, reflecting an intensive two-day series of strategic meetings with some of the region’s most influential technology leaders.
Anthropic
On November 20, Ambassador Narek Mkrtchyan met with Dan Rosenthal, Global Head of Partnerships at Anthropic, one of the fastest-growing companies in the field of artificial intelligence. They discussed opportunities for cooperation in education, environmental protection, telecommunications, and STEM.
A partnership with Anthropic could introduce Armenia to advanced safety-focused AI systems that support applied research and practical development across institutions. Cooperation may also strengthen Armenia’s STEM education pipeline by opening access to frontier AI tools and modern learning frameworks.
OpenAI
On November 20, Ambassador Mkrtchyan met with Nate Harbacek, OpenAI’s Vice President of Global Business, and Ivy Lau-Schindewolf from International Policy and Partnerships. Opportunities to apply AI in education, healthcare, industry, cloud infrastructure, and several other sectors were discussed. The Ambassador emphasized the importance of partnering with OpenAI as a key direction for developing Armenia’s AI ecosystem. OpenAI representatives noted that a cooperation proposal will be presented to the Armenian side in the near future.
Cooperation with OpenAI could enable Armenia to integrate world-leading AI models into public services, education, research, and industry. Such a partnership may also help Armenia establish responsible AI deployment frameworks aligned with global standards, particularly in healthcare and telecommunications.
On November 20, Ambassador Mkrtchyan visited Google’s headquarters in San Francisco, where he met with Armenian-American executive Hrach Achajian, Head of AI GTM and lead for Google’s applied-AI strategy. Consul General Karen Israelyan, Armenian-American executive Gohar Galyan, and Raven Bellamy, Government Affairs and Public Policy Manager at Google, also joined the meeting. Discussions covered possible cooperation, AI and advanced-technology development, the digitalization of Armenian cultural heritage through Google Arts and Culture, and areas where Google’s expertise could strengthen Armenia’s technological ecosystem.
A collaboration with Google Arts and Culture could provide global digital access to Armenian cultural heritage, significantly increasing worldwide visibility of Armenian historic sites, artifacts, and collections. Engaging Google’s AI leadership also gives Armenia insight into the latest applied-AI strategies used by a leading global technology company. The initiative represents an opportunity for Armenia to share its cultural patrimony with a global audience through high-quality digital storytelling and preservation tools.
Apple
On November 20, Ambassador Mkrtchyan visited Apple’s headquarters in Cupertino, where he met with Jason Lundgaard, Senior Manager of Corporate Government Affairs at Apple. The Ambassador summarized the August 8 Armenia and United States Memorandum of Understanding on innovation partnership in artificial intelligence and semiconductors and introduced Armenia’s technological ecosystem and its investment advantages. The parties discussed cooperation opportunities and the prerequisites for Apple to begin operating in Armenia. Apple will send a delegation to Armenia in the near future to explore potential activities. The Ambassador also thanked Lundgaard for launching Apple’s first educational program at the Armenian College of Creative Technologies (ACT), and both sides expressed readiness to expand the initiative.
Apple’s engagement opens pathways for Armenia to benefit from one of the world’s most influential hardware and software ecosystems, including modern approaches to device-based learning and advanced development tools. The ACT program supported by Apple may also serve as a model for industry-aligned technology education, strengthening Armenia’s pipeline of future engineers.
ServiceNow
On November 20, Ambassador Mkrtchyan met with Andrew Danko, Vice President at ServiceNow. Discussions focused on strengthening bilateral relations and exploring opportunities for ServiceNow to operate in Armenia. The ServiceNow laboratory at GITC ACT College provides students with broad opportunities to develop skills and test technological innovations.
The ServiceNow lab could help Armenian students gain practical experience with workflow-automation and enterprise-cloud systems widely used in global industries. Cooperation may also support Armenia’s digital-governance goals by providing access to leading cloud architectures adopted by major international institutions.
Open Compute Project and Amaros
On November 19, Ambassador Mkrtchyan met with Armenian-American executive George Tchaparian, Chief Executive Officer of the Open Compute Project, and Armenian-American executive Ben Toker, Co-Founder and Chief Technology Officer of Amaros. Discussions covered cooperation opportunities, innovation development, and partnership prospects in mutually relevant fields.
Collaboration with OCP could help Armenia adopt open-hardware standards that improve data-center efficiency and reduce infrastructure costs. Cooperation with Amaros can strengthen Armenia’s health-tech sector through AI-driven precision imaging and ophthalmic diagnostic technologies.
AMD
On November 19, Ambassador Mkrtchyan met with leaders from AMD, one of the largest American technology companies. Khang Dao, Senior Director of Software Development, Mehrdad Eslami Dehkordi, Director of Software Development, James Chik, Senior Manager of Import and Export, and Grant Gardner, Director of International Relations and Cooperation, attended the meeting. Dan Gibbons, Corporate Vice President of Engineering and the executive overseeing AMD’s operations in Armenia, joined remotely. The discussion focused on expanding AMD operations in Armenia and the importance of the August 8 Armenia and United States Memorandum of Understanding as a foundation for applying the expertise of Armenian AMD specialists more effectively.
Expanding AMD’s footprint could reinforce Armenia’s semiconductor capability, particularly in chip design, software optimization, and embedded systems. The August 8 partnership framework also supports AMD in integrating Armenian engineering talent more effectively into its global development pipelines.
Synopsys
On November 19, Ambassador Mkrtchyan met with Jumana Muwafi, Senior Vice President of Engineering, Solutions Group at Synopsys. The discussion focused on improving the efficiency of Synopsys operations in Armenia. Both sides highlighted the importance of the August 8 Memorandum of Understanding, especially in securing support for export permits for advanced Synopsys technologies to be transferred to Armenia.
Strengthening cooperation with Synopsys can enhance Armenia’s role in global semiconductor design and verification processes. Expanded support for export permits may help accelerate the transfer of advanced tools and technologies, improving research, engineering, and educational capabilities within Armenia.
Together, these meetings underscored Armenia’s commitment to strengthening its role in the global technology landscape and building long-term partnerships with leading innovators. The outcomes also reflected a shared interest across multiple companies in supporting Armenia’s growth as an emerging hub for advanced engineering, artificial intelligence, and digital innovation.
