Rev Lebaredian, the vice president of Omniverse and simulation technology at NVIDIA, believes Armenia has strong potential to advance in the field of artificial intelligence.

Speaking to reporters in Yerevan, Lebaredian emphasized that, in essence, no one yet fully knows how to use artificial intelligence or how to keep pace with its development.

“Because it is new and evolving very quickly, the whole world has, in this sense, become much more equal. Every individual and every country is now, to some extent, unfamiliar with it. This creates an opportunity for everyone. Anyone in Armenia who wants to work in artificial intelligence and develop expertise in it has the same opportunity as those in the United States or anywhere else in the world. Only you can decide whether to do it or not,” Lebaredian said.

He stressed the importance of having the necessary infrastructure to ensure access to artificial intelligence, adding that Armenia has great potential to make progress in this field.

“And it depends on us whether we take advantage of this opportunity or not—whether we use it or waste it,” Lebaredian emphasized.

He said with regret that, due to historical circumstances, he did not have the opportunity to be born in his homeland, but came to Armenia as soon as it became possible.

“I consider this my country; I have even obtained citizenship here. I believe in Armenia, in its capabilities and its intellect. I believe that we are hardworking, that we care about people, and that we have strong values. I also believe that we can contribute to the development of the world. I think you are already seeing proof of that.

It is thanks to Armenians’ natural work ethic and curiosity that we are beginning to do new things. Now we are seeing a unification—we are bringing all these opportunities together, and when we have a strategy that everyone can participate in and move in the same direction, the results will multiply. In that case, we will move faster than everyone else,” he said.

Lebaredian agreed with the observation that artificial intelligence is not only about science and technology, but also about geopolitical power and new opportunities.

“Of course. If you look at the second industrial revolution, it began with a completely new technology—the ability to generate electricity. That was about 100 years ago. At first, only a few countries had it—England, that is, Great Britain—and then it began to spread. The United States also developed it, but it took a long time for it to spread to other countries. Those who had it earlier had an advantage. They were the ones who brought it to the rest of the world.

Armenia is now at the very beginning of this process. As I said, we will be among the top five countries in the world in terms of the number of GPUs—more than any major country in Europe. We have this advantage, and we can use it now to become important to the rest of the world,” Lebaredian explained.

According to him, from a geopolitical perspective, it is encouraging to see peace taking shape in the South Caucasus.

“Throughout Armenia’s history, its disadvantage has been that it is a small, landlocked country in a mountainous region, at the crossroads of great empires that have constantly disrupted it. That same disadvantage can become our advantage if we are smart and learn how to navigate this position.

Being at the crossroads of empires is an opportunity. We can be a link connecting empires. We can be a bridge for the world. We have always been a link between East and West. We are at the center of the Silk Road. We can exchange our capabilities for what we need from other countries. We can bring their energy into our country and export knowledge.

This makes us important not only for ourselves, but for others as well. Ultimately, this is a prerequisite for peace and prosperity. If you are not important to others, why would they come to help you? We must make ourselves important—and this is how we do it,” Lebaredian said.

In June 2025, it was announced that, through cooperation between the Government of Armenia, NVIDIA, Firebird, and Team Group, the most powerful supercomputing and data processing center in the region—powered by artificial intelligence solutions—would be built in Armenia. An initial investment of $500 million was announced for the first phase.

On February 10, 2026, Firebird and the U.S. government officially announced the launch of the project’s second phase, with total investments expected to reach around $4 billion. By the end of the year, 50,000 GPUs planned under the second phase are expected to be deployed.