FORWARD with Valeriya Ionan is a platform for conversations with investors, entrepreneurs, government officials, and global leaders about investment, partnerships, innovation, and scaling.
Valeriya explores how and why international capital enters Ukraine and other emerging markets, and how Ukrainian companies expand globally. Practical dialogue for decision-makers and builders.
🎥 Watch on YouTube — FORWARD with Valeriya Ionan.
📲 Follow on Instagram — @valeriya_ionan
Leading through uncertainty is the only kind of leadership that matters now. AI is rewriting the rules, crises keep coming, and your next move cannot depend on knowing what happens next.
When Valeriya Ionan was building Ukraine’s digital state, a pandemic and a full-scale Russian invasion changed everything: priorities, budgets, timelines. What held was the vision. In this episode she shares what that experience taught her about leading when the future refuses to follow the plan.
For advisory work on vision, strategy and digital transformation: ionan.global
Follow Valeriya Ionan:
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/valeriyaionan/ (https://www.linkedin.com/in/valeriyaionan/)
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/valeriya_ionan/ (https://www.instagram.com/valeriya_ionan/)
Substack: https://substack.com/@valeriyaionan (https://substack.com/@valeriyaionan)
10 Oct 2026
russia’s War Against Ukraine: Why “As Long As It Takes” Is a Losing Strategy | Perry Boyle
What is the world still getting wrong about Russia’s war against Ukraine and what would a strategy for victory actually look like?
Perry Boyle spent 35 years on Wall Street before February 2022 changed everything. Now he runs MITS Capital, a defense fund with two missions: Russia out and Ukraine in. He joins Valeriya Ionan to challenge the logic of “as long as it takes” and explain why Ukraine belongs at the heart of Europe’s defense architecture.
For partnerships, media inquiries and collaboration: ionan.global
Follow Valeriya Ionan:
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/valeriyaionan/ (https://www.linkedin.com/in/valeriyaionan/)
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/valeriya_ionan/ (https://www.instagram.com/valeriya_ionan/)
Substack: https://substack.com/@valeriyaionan (https://substack.com/@valeriyaionan)
3 Oct 2026
The New Era of Everything: Who is Valeriya Ionan
I spent six years as Deputy Minister of Digital Transformation of Ukraine, helping build Diia, the state super-app used by more than 24 million people, and moving Ukraine from 102nd to global top 5 in digital public services — through a pandemic, a full-scale Russian invasion and constant cyberattacks.
Today I work at the intersection of AI, government transformation and global partnerships. I host FORWARD with Valeriya Ionan and I am the author of the forthcoming book Government Freestyler.
The New Era of Everything is a new FORWARD series about what is already changing and what leaders, governments and founders should start building today.
For partnerships and collaboration: ionan.global
Follow me:
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/valeriyaionan/ (https://www.linkedin.com/in/valeriyaionan/)
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/valeriya_ionan/ (https://www.instagram.com/valeriya_ionan/)
Substack: https://substack.com/@valeriyaionan (https://substack.com/@valeriyaionan)
11 Sept 2026
Why Every Country Needs a Robotization Strategy
Robots are no longer a futuristic story. They are becoming a national economic strategy. In this episode, Valeriya Ionan explores what serious national robotization strategies look like, why human plus robot is the central model, and why countries that wait will become customers of platforms designed by others.
For partnerships, media inquiries and collaboration: ionan.global
Follow Valeriya Ionan:
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/valeriyaionan/ (https://www.linkedin.com/in/valeriyaionan/)
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/valeriya_ionan/ (https://www.instagram.com/valeriya_ionan/)
Substack: https://substack.com/@valeriyaionan (https://substack.com/@valeriyaionan)
3 Sept 2026
Seeing Through the Fog: Ukraine's AI Vision Technology Goes Global | Viktoriia Yaremchuk, Farsight Vision
Viktoriia Yaremchuk, Co-Founder & CEO of Farsight Vision, joins Valeriya Ionan to talk about how Ukraine is redefining situational awareness on the battlefield, why Western partners still underestimate digital technologies in modern warfare, and what it takes to bring Ukrainian defense innovations to NATO markets.
For partnerships, media inquiries and collaboration: ionan.global
Follow Valeriya Ionan:
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/valeriyaionan/ (https://www.linkedin.com/in/valeriyaionan/)
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/valeriya_ionan/ (https://www.instagram.com/valeriya_ionan/)
Substack: https://substack.com/@valeriyaionan (https://substack.com/@valeriyaionan)
7 Aug 2026
Inside Ukraine's Defense Tech Boom: Investment, Drones and What's Next | Artem Moroz, Brave1
FORWARD is back and Valeriya Ionan returns with a new episode and a new season, starting with Artem Moroz, investment lead at Brave1, the defense tech cluster that helped reshape Ukraine's entire defense industry since 2022. They talk about where the real money is moving, what foreign investors consistently get wrong, and why Ukraine's edge in drone warfare and autonomy is far from temporary.
For partnerships, media inquiries and collaboration: ionan.global
Follow Valeriya Ionan:
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/valeriyaionan/ (https://www.linkedin.com/in/valeriyaionan/)
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/valeriya_ionan/ (https://www.instagram.com/valeriya_ionan/)
Substack: https://substack.com/@valeriyaionan (https://substack.com/@valeriyaionan)
21 Apr 2026
Agentic State: How Ukraine Is Building AI Government First with Oleksandr Bornyakov
In this new episode with Acting Minister of Digital Transformation of Ukraine, Olexander Bornyakov, we dive into:How Ukraine is moving from “country in a smartphone” to an agentic state, where government services are powered by AI agents and delivered through the DIIA ecosystem.
Why Ukraine can become one of the first countries to build AI‑driven public services at scale and what DIIA AI will actually look like for citizens and businesses.Tech sovereignty: how Ukraine plans to secure critical technologies, build its own AI Factory and LLM and still stay open for global partnerships and big tech. DIIA City and DIIA City Invest: creating a legal and tax environment where international funds and founders can comfortably build and invest in Ukraine, even during the war.What foreign investors should realistically know about Ukraine right now – the risks, the opportunities, and why honesty and trust matter more than any slide deck.Big trends for the next five years: humanoid robotics, autonomous defense systems, longevity and how AI and crypto may converge into a new financial system. If you are a policymaker, tech founder, investor, or anyone curious about how a wartime country can still lead in digital transformation, this episode is a masterclass in pragmatic vision, courage, and long‑term thinking.
🎥 Watch this episode on YouTube.
20 Apr 2026
Meet the Startup - RATEL: Inside Ukraine’s UGV Revolution
In this episode, I speak with Taras Ostapchuk, founder of Ratel, one of the largest UGV (unmanned ground vehicle) producers in Ukraine. What started as a response to real battlefield needs has rapidly scaled into a company producing up to 200 robots per month from combat systems to logistics and evacuation platforms. These robots are used every day on the battlefield, replacing soldiers in dangerous missions, delivering supplies, deploying mines and evacuating the wounded. But this story is bigger than defense. Ukraine is building a new model of innovation - fast, collaborative, and battle-tested. The UGV ecosystem is scaling in real time. We discuss: how war accelerates innovation cycles, why Ukrainian solutions are up to 10x more cost-effective, how UGVs are evolving into dual-use technologies (from firefighting to rescue missions), and why international partnerships are critical to scaling production. If you are interested in partnerships, investments, or collaboration - this is the moment to engage.
🎥 Watch this episode on YouTube.
19 Apr 2026
What Is the Agentic State? How AI Will Transform Government With Luukas Ilves
What is an agentic state and why is it a bigger shift for governments than the last 20 years of digital transformation? In this episode, Luukas Ilves, former CIO of Estonia and advisor to Ukraine’s Minister of Digital Transformation breaks down what comes next. We explore how citizen agents could manage complex life events across public services, how task agents can transform procurement and fight corruption, and why countries like Estonia and Ukraine are positioning themselves to become the first agentic states.
🎥 Watch this episode on YouTube.
15 Apr 2026
Building Ukraine’s First New City — Oksana Markarova on Nove Misto
Oksana Markarova, former Finance Minister, architect of UkraineInvest and Ukrainian Startup Fund, former Ambassador of Ukraine to the United States of America, now Presidential Advisor on Reconstruction and Investments. This episode centers on Nove Misto, her new project to build Ukraine's first city from scratch: 100,000 residents, private funding model, circular design, tech-first infrastructure and country-specific sectors for international partners. A pilot for reconstruction. A pilot for European integration. We also discuss why investors waiting for the war to end are already late, which sectors offer serious opportunity now and how to engage with Ukraine's institutional landscape as a foreign investor. FORWARD with Valeriya Ionan is a strategic podcast for institutional investors, corporate decision-makers and policy leaders evaluating Ukraine as a serious partnership opportunity.
🎥 Watch this episode on YouTube.
15 Apr 2026
Wild Freedom, Venture as Adventure and Why Ukraine Feels Like “The Real America” with Andriy Fedoriv
In this episode, we dive into “wild freedom”, venture as adventure, Ukraine as “the real America in the center of Europe”, and why Kyiv today feels like New York in the late ’80s. If you are an investor, founder, policymaker or work with digital transformation and innovations, this conversation will challenge how you think about risk, the state, marketing and branding and the future of Ukraine.
Andriy Fedoriv, is a leading Ukrainian marketer, serial entrepreneur and VC investor, founder and CEO of Fedoriv Group and Fedoriv Agency, an award‑winning international marketing and innovation ecosystem working with top Ukrainian and global brands and backing a new generation of tech founders.
🎥 Watch this episode on YouTube.
15 Apr 2026
Why Smart Investors Go to Ukraine — and Most Still Don’t
In this episode of FORWARD with Valeriya Ionan, American entrepreneur and investor Dave Morgan shares why, after successful adtech exits in the United States, he chose to open core operational teams in Ukraine during wartime and invest directly into Ukrainian defense tech startups.
His experience challenges common assumptions: Ukraine’s innovation cycles move faster under pressure, local teams operate with unusual ownership and resilience, and technologies tested in real conflict often outperform those designed in comfort. The gap, he argues, is not information but proximity, most Western capital evaluates Ukraine without ever experiencing it.
This conversation is about how risk is perceived, how opportunity is missed and why commitment requires presence.
🎥 Watch this episode on YouTube.
Contact FORWARD with Valeriya Ionan
Guest appearances
Books guests
Based on episode analysis; this does not confirm that the show is currently accepting guests.
Host of FORWARD with Valeriya Ionan?
Claim your podcast to manage its listing and keep your show details accurate.
Pod Engine is an independent podcast discovery and analytics service and is not affiliated with or endorsed by this podcast. Artwork and show content belong to their owners. Full legal notice.
Explore this show Podcast research with Pod Engine
