Grace Hopper Awards distinguish Georgian women, projects in tech
Hosted at TBC Concept, the awards event was broadcast on social media and celebrated pioneering and innovative personalities and platforms. Photo via USAID Economic Security Programme.
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Some of the brightest and most inspiring women and projects involved in technology and innovation in Georgia were revealed at the Grace Hopper Award ceremony in Tbilisi on Wednesday, with six recipients distinguished at the event.
Hosted by the USAID Economic Security Programme, TBC Bank, Mashav Center, the Embassy of Israel in Georgia, and UN Women, the awards were called "one of the most important tech events of the year" and sought to promote women involved in tech industry and startups, and working for diversity and gender equality in the fields.
Three of the event's awards went to individuals, with the Emerging Leader Award handed to Ana Robakidze, Head of Engineering at Clientela, a Georgian-based company working with brands including Cartier and Gucci. The prize-winner began coding in early teenage years and was later featured in Forbes' 30 Under 30 list celebrating young business and industry personalities.
The ICT Champion Award, bestowed to women leaders in the industry who represent a role model for women in the wider public, was collected by Maka Makhatadze, Co-Founder and Director of IT Academy STEP Georgia Branch. Makhatadze established the branch promoting tech in 2015 and has been involved in a programme that presented personal computers to first grade students of Georgia's primary schools.
In the third personal category, Mako Kurtiashvili - General Manager at Smart Academy, Managing Partner at Smart Web, Co-founder at Nikola Tesla School, and Strategic Advisor at hiro - was singled out for the Industry Award.
On the company and project side, digital platform Phubber, designed for user-based social shopping, were awarded the Tech Startup Award, while Femtech went home with The Program Award from organisers and GeoLab - an innovation and new technology laboratory hosting talks and networking for industry professionals - earning the Supporter Award of the occasion.
Hosted at TBC Concept, the Grace Hopper Award occasion was broadcast live on social media and involved dignitaries including US Ambassador to Georgia Kelly Degnan.