2026 APRI Montreal Meeting

Ashot Arzumanyan is Co-Founder and Partner at SmartGateVC, a Los Angeles- and Armenia-based venture firm making first-check investments in science-driven companies at the physical edge of AI—with a focus on physical AI, brain–computer interfaces, and cybersecurity. Since founding SmartGateVC in 2017, Ashot has co-led early investments in 40+ deep-tech companies originating from innovation engines such as Harvard, MIT, Caltech, Meta, Bosch, and Synopsys. Portfolio companies have gone on to attract capital from NVIDIA, Dell, Cisco, a16z, Khosla Ventures, Bessemer, and others. Ashot holds a PhD in Economics from Yerevan State University.

Seda leads APRI Armenia’s development (fundraising) strategy and works closely with key individual and institutional partners to advance the organization’s research and policy mission—to shift Armenia’s trajectory toward a more stable, sustainable, and democratic future. Seda brings extensive experience in nonprofit leadership, fundraising strategy and execution, and international development, with a professional background spanning US-based and international organizations. She holds the Certified Fund Raising Executive (CFRE) credential and is actively engaged with the Association of Fundraising Professionals (AFP) as part of her commitment to continuous professional development and ethical fundraising practice. She holds two Master’s degrees, one in Social Work from Yerevan State University and another in Philanthropic Studies from the Indiana University Lilly Family School of Philanthropy.

Hrair Balian has served in leadership positions with the United Nations, the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE), and NGOs the Carter Center and the International Crisis Group. During a 35-year career in public service, he has worked on conflict resolution, elections, and human rights in the Balkans, Eastern Europe, Caucasus, Central Asia, Middle East, and Africa. Hrair has also taught conflict resolution, negotiations, and mediation at the Emory University School of Law. He is the author of Anatomy of Peacemaking: Nagorno-Karabakh Conflict & Missed Opportunities (Palgrave Macmillan, Feb 2026).

Dr. Hriar Cabayan is currently a visiting scientist at the Lawrence Livermore Laboratory. He joined the Laboratory in 1977. In 1997 he joined the Joint Staff (Pentagon) where he managed a program to support operational planning. He received the Joint Meritorious Civilian Service Award from the Office of the Chairman, Joint Chiefs of Staff in 2007 and again in 2019.

Artin DerSimonian is a research associate in the Eurasia Program at the Quincy Institute for Responsible Statecraft. His research focuses on US–Russia relations, Russian foreign policy across the former Soviet Union, and the foreign and security policies of states in the South Caucasus. He earned a Master of Science in Russian, East European, and Eurasian Studies from the University of Glasgow in 2022.

Artyom A. Geghamyan is a mining executive, attorney, and corporate advisor with more than 20 years of experience. He serves as Executive Chairman of the International Chamber of Mines of Armenia (ICMA), and Managing Partner of TABIA Legal & Advisory. Admitted to practice law in both the Republic of Armenia and the State of New York, he advises governments and companies on complex cross-border transactions and a wide range of corporate legal matters. Artyom holds a Master in Public Administration from the Harvard Kennedy School and an LLM from Indiana University School of Law.

Aleksandr V. Gevorkyan PhD is a macroeconomist specializing in open economy, macroeconomic development, diaspora studies, and post-socialist transition economics. He is the Henry George Chair in Economics and Professor at the Department of Economics and Finance of the Peter J. Tobin College of Business at St. John’s University. A Board Member at the Henry George School of Social Science and at the Armenian Economic Association, he serves as an Economics Subject Matter Expert for the Permanent Observer Mission of the Holy See to the United Nations and is author of Transition Economies: Transformation, Development, and Society in Eastern Europe and the Former Soviet Union (Routledge, 2018) and editor of the forthcoming Oxford Handbook of Post-Socialist Economies (Oxford University Press).

Raffi Krikorian is Chief Technology Officer at Mozilla, where he leads efforts to build trustworthy technology that serves the public interest and strengthens human agency. A long-time member of the Mozilla community—serving on the Mozilla Foundation Board since 2023, Mozilla.ai’s Board since 2024, and the Mozilla.org Board since its inception— he hass made an enduring impact in technology, politics, media, and philanthropy.

Dr. Sergei Melkonian is a Research Fellow at APRI Armenia, focusing on Russia and Iran. He is also a visiting professor at Yerevan State University and Russian-Armenian University. Before joining APRI, he served as an Assistant to the President of Armenia from 2020 to 2022, covering post-Soviet countries and the Middle East. Dr. Melkonian was a Research Fellow in the Institute of Oriental Studies (RAS) for four years, focusing on Israeli foreign and defense policy, as well as security dynamics in the Middle East. From 2018-2020, he was Head of the Eurasian and Middle Eastern Department at the Armenian Research and Development Institute. He holds a PhD in History. He has authored multiple academic papers for peer-reviewed journals and written several book chapters, analytical reports, and articles for different think-tanks, as well as op-eds for international platforms.

Armenak Minasyants is a Senior Research Fellow at APRI Armenia, focusing on good governance, public administration reform, institutional capacity-building, and policy design. Previously, he served as Deputy Chief of Party and Objective Lead with the USAID/Armenia Justice Sector Support Project (2022–2025). He also spent more than 13 years at the Constitutional Court of Armenia, including as Assistant to the President and Head of the External Affairs Department. Minasyants has worked as a national and international expert for the Council of Europe and EU-funded projects in Armenia, Ukraine, and Moldova. He holds a Master’s Degree in International Relations and Diplomacy from Yerevan State University and completed an advanced certificate program in public policy and public administration at The Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy, Tufts University, as well as in European law at the Diplomatic Academy of Vienna.

Garo Paylan is a visiting scholar at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace in Washington, DC, where his work focuses on advancing peace and normalization in Türkiye, Armenia, and Azerbaijan. Garo is a prominent opposition voice and human rights defender from Türkiye. He served as a member of the Turkish Parliament for eight years, from 2015 to 2023.

Born in Canada to Lebanese-Armenian parents and brought up in India, Seferian moved to Armenia in 1998, where he has been living ever since. His work is at the crossroads of business and impact and he was one of the professionals that shaped the concept of corporate social responsibility (CSR) in Armenia from 2008 onwards. An independent consultant since 2015, working with corporations on sustainability, and with tech startups and non-tech small/medium enterprises to help them develop their impact visions and strategies, he has been closely involved with the development of Impact Hub Yerevan since 2021, where he has co-founded VIA Fund, Armenia’s first impact investment fund for social enterprises. Seferian has an Executive MBA from the European School of Management and Technology (ESMT) in Berlin and a post-graduate certificate in sustainable business from the University of Cambridge. He also holds the Certificate in Impact Investing qualification from CFA UK.

Lara Setrakian is an international journalist and the President of APRI Armenia. She oversees the organization’s strategic vision, partnerships, and research agenda. Lara is a graduate of Harvard University and an alumni fellow of the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism. She is also a Young Global Leader of the World Economic Forum and a Life Member of the Council on Foreign Relations. Her work focuses on advancing regional stability, sustainable prosperity, and civic engagement in the South Caucasus. She is also the Co-Founder of News Deeply, an innovative digital media company focused on critical global issues, now in partnership with The New Humanitarian.

Olesya Vartanyan is a conflict analyst with over 15 years of experience researching and advocating on developments in the South Caucasus. Her publications regularly appear in leading think tanks and research centers, contributing to regional policy debates. She previously worked with the International Crisis Group, Freedom House, and the OSCE. Her field research in Abkhazia, South Ossetia, and Nagorno-Karabakh has informed policy discussions among governments and international organizations. In 2024, she received the International Young Women’s Peace Award. Olusya is currently a PhD student at the Carter School for Peace and Conflict Resolution at George Mason University. She holds advanced degrees from King’s College London and the Georgian Institute of Public Affairs.