AUSTIN, Texas & BAKU, Azerbaijan--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Jul 22, 2026--
Polygraf AI, the AI security company that created the AI Behavioral Control Plane (AiBC), today announced a Memorandum of Understanding with the Innovation and Digital Development Agency (IDDA) of the Republic of Azerbaijan to establish a regional Artificial Intelligence Center of Excellence in Baku. The agreement marks Polygraf AI’s second sovereign-AI operation, following its recent expansion into Japan, and opens direct access to governments, enterprises, and critical-infrastructure operators across one of the world's fastest-emerging technology regions.
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The Center will operate under Polygraf Labs, the company's wholly owned subsidiary, based in Azerbaijan. Its mandate is not to resell or transfer Polygraf's U.S. products, but to build a new set of AI security capabilities designed for the operational, regulatory, linguistic and market realities of Azerbaijan and the surrounding region. The initiative advances Azerbaijan's national Artificial Intelligence Strategy and its Action Plan for Accelerating Digital Development, both of which name artificial intelligence, cybersecurity, digital infrastructure and technology exports as national priorities.
Why Regional AI Centers of Excellence Matter
The hardest problem in AI is no longer capability. It is trust. Governments and enterprises are deploying systems they did not build and cannot fully observe, and paying twice: first in capital, then in exposure of their most sensitive data. Polygraf's entire business is built around bridging that gap, making AI behavior observable, explainable and controllable in real time.
For a security leader, that means AI risk is enforced where the data lives, rather than inferred after the fact. For the region, it means AI that can be audited on the ground, in local languages, under local rules instead of a foreign black box operated from another continent. And for Polygraf, Azerbaijan is both a proof point and an accelerator: evidence that sovereign AI capability can be built rather than merely bought, and a template the company intends to repeat.
Two Commitments: Sovereign Capability and Proven Protection
Polygraf's presence in Azerbaijan will advance along two complementary tracks.
The new Center of Excellence, run by Polygraf Labs, will build new sovereign AI security solutions for the region, built in the region. That includes support for regional languages global AI providers have long overlooked, compliance built for local rules, and AI that can be audited on the ground.
Separately, Polygraf will bring its existing enterprise products to regional customers. It will work with technology companies and critical-operations teams to secure their AI and data using its AI Behavioral Control Plane and Secure LLM Protocol, backed by the engineers who run Polygraf's U.S. operations. It is a similar approach to the one Polygraf AI took to enter Japan, where it built Japanese-language models solely for local customers.
A Bet on Building Sovereign, Region-Owned AI
Polygraf AI operates on a simple premise: trust cannot be outsourced. Sovereign AI capability is a nation's ability to build, secure, and govern AI on its own terms. This will increasingly separate the countries that shape the AI era from those that merely consume it. To build that capability locally, Polygraf plans to hire more than 200 people in the region, building a team specializing in artificial intelligence, engineering, cybersecurity, data privacy, and AI governance, and creating a pipeline that carries ideas from research through to real-world deployment.
"This region is neither the US nor Europe, and its culture and languages are unique. Therefore, making AI behavior observable, explainable, and controllable in real time natively is a huge challenge. In Azerbaijan, today we are committing to building that capability at home rather than importing it," said Yagub Rahimov, founder and CEO of Polygraf AI, who was born in Azerbaijan.
"We built Polygraf AI in the U.S., but we know this region intimately. What we're doing in Baku isn't just a subsidiary; it is local engineers building security and compliance with regional policies, culture, and languages in mind. Trust can only be built by the people who truly understand the context. If you’re a local AI engineer, we invite you to build technology that will put your country on the global AI and cybersecurity map.”
Azerbaijani officials described the partnership as a step forward in the country's national AI ambitions.
Rashad Nabiyev, Minister of Digital Development and Transport of the Republic of Azerbaijan, said, "The expansion of Polygraf AI's operations in Azerbaijan will contribute to strengthening our country's domestic capacity and regional position in the field of artificial intelligence. The regional Center of Excellence to be established in Baku as part of this initiative will make a significant contribution to the development of AI solutions, the training of local professionals, extensive knowledge and experience exchange with international experts, and the access of Azerbaijani technology companies to global markets."
Farid Osmanov, Chairman of Innovation and Digital Development Agency ( IDDA), said, "IDDA's partnership with Polygraf AI, a globally recognized technology company founded by an Azerbaijani entrepreneur, is of exceptional importance for the development of our country's artificial intelligence potential. Simultaneously, the regional Center of Excellence to be established in Baku through the partnership between IDDA and Polygraf AI will serve as a platform for knowledge and experience exchange among the Caucasus, Central Asia and the Middle East."
About Polygraf AI
Headquartered in Austin, Texas, Polygraf AI created the AI Behavioral Control Plane (AiBC) - a category of AI security that makes AI behavior observable, explainable and controllable in real time. Polygraf's proprietary, premise-agnostic Small Language Model (SLM) technology helps critical-operations teams detect and mitigate AI risks using local, explainable and auditable AI.
Learn more at https://polygraf.ai.
About the Innovation and Digital Development Agency
The Innovation and Digital Development Agency is a public legal entity operating under the Ministry of Digital Development and Transport of the Republic of Azerbaijan. The Agency organizes, coordinates, and implements initiatives in digital development, innovation, high technology, digital skills, and technology entrepreneurship.
Yagub Rahimov, CEO and Founder of Polygraf AI, and Farid Osmanov, Chairman of IDDA, signing the MOU
