The journey that started at 13: Azerbaijani girl's artificial intelligence success

Leman Aliyeva is an artificial intelligence researcher, startup founder, and ambassador for the "Google WomenTechmakers" program. She started programming at the age of 13 and by 15, she was already developing fully functional web and mobile applications with complex architectures. Today, she has over 10 years of experience in the technology sector, particularly in data and artificial intelligence.

Aztəhsil.az reports that she graduated with honors from ADA University with a degree in Computer Science and also studied as part of an academic exchange program at the University of Mary Washington in the USA.

Currently, Leman Aliyeva works as an artificial intelligence engineer at "Azerconnect Group". In 2025, she obtained a patent for the invention of AI glasses that assist visually impaired people in perceiving their surroundings and navigating. Leman Aliyeva is also a co-founder and leader of "Artificial Intelligence HUB", one of Azerbaijan's largest artificial intelligence communities. Within this initiative, research is conducted in the fields of artificial intelligence and machine learning, laboratory activities are carried out, and the development of the technology community is supported. Later, the organization launched an education-oriented AI program for high school students, which has already been completed by 155 students.

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For her contributions to science and technology, she was selected as the top woman (top-1) in technology in the Caucasus and Central Asia region by "Women in Tech Global" in 2023 and was included in the global top-7 list. In 2024, she was awarded first place for the CCA region in the "Most Disruptive Women in Tech" competition organized by "Amazon" and "Women in Tech". In 2025, she was awarded the Presidential Youth Award by the President of Azerbaijan, Ilham Aliyev, for her contributions to the development of innovation and entrepreneurship.

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First work experience in IT

Leman Aliyeva gained her first work experience in the IT field at the age of 16 at "JIS - Jeykhun Imanov Studio". She worked there as a Data AI Research Engineer, focusing on automating business processes, analyzing marketing data, and researching the application of artificial intelligence technologies in solving real business problems. According to her, this experience played an important role in understanding how technology and data influence decision-making in companies.

Recommendations for beginners

In Leman Aliyeva's opinion, the main challenge for those new to the IT field is the lack of practical experience. Therefore, she recommends working on real projects as soon as possible and participating in research and internship programs.

According to her, rejection is also a natural part of the professional development process, and these experiences help specialists understand which skills they need to strengthen.

Leman Aliyeva offers three main pieces of advice for beginners: constantly practice and adapt to changes in technology, effectively use artificial intelligence tools in the learning process, and work on technologies that solve real problems. This approach accelerates professional development and increases motivation.