31 New Companies Join the Hi-Tech Park
The Belarusian Hi-Tech Park (HTP) approved 31 new resident companies at a Supervisory Board meeting held on September 17, 2026. The newly approved projects cover digital healthcare, industrial automation, artificial intelligence, software development, e-commerce, creative industries, additive manufacturing and other technology-driven activities.
The composition of the new residents is notable because it reflects a broader shift from software development as a standalone activity toward software combined with physical equipment, industrial processes and specialized data applications.
Industrial Automation Moves Closer to Production Operations
Several newly approved projects have direct relevance to industrial automation. Mirotek Engineering CJSC plans to develop hardware and software systems for processing and packaging agricultural products. This type of system typically requires coordinated control of production equipment, material handling, process monitoring and production data.
ATZ Softworks LLC is developing a Manufacturing Execution System (MES) for dairy enterprises. From an automation engineering perspective, MES is particularly important because it connects production-level equipment with higher-level production management. Data from PLCs, industrial networks, sensors and operator interfaces can become part of a larger production information system.
The significance is not simply that another MES platform is entering the market. The more important development is the increasing integration of automation data with production planning, traceability and operational analysis.
Hardware and Software Are Becoming a Single Engineering System
The Mirotek Engineering project also illustrates an important direction in industrial technology. Modern automation projects increasingly combine mechanical equipment, electrical control, industrial communication, embedded computing and application software.
A packaging or processing line may contain PLC controllers, variable-frequency drives, motion systems, sensors, safety circuits and HMI terminals at the equipment level. Above these devices, industrial networks and MES applications provide production information and operational coordination.
This architecture creates a stronger requirement for engineers who understand both physical control systems and software-based data processing. The boundary between traditional automation engineering and industrial software is becoming less distinct.
Digital Healthcare Demonstrates the Same Convergence
The healthcare projects approved by the HTP show a similar technology pattern. KARDIAN plans to develop cardiology diagnostic equipment together with hardware and software for processing electrocardiographic signals. OMOP-FORIA LLC will focus on biomedical data, pharmacovigilance and Real-World Evidence analytics.
Although these projects are outside conventional factory automation, their technical architecture has similarities with industrial systems. Sensors generate physical signals, hardware acquires those signals, software processes the data, and higher-level applications transform the information into operational or analytical results.
This same signal-to-data architecture is increasingly common across industrial automation, medical equipment and intelligent manufacturing.
AI Is Becoming Part of Industrial Software Architecture
The new HTP residents also include companies working directly with artificial intelligence. Twikky Lab LLC is developing high-load video communication systems using machine learning, while Levelpro LLC is developing an AI SaaS platform that aggregates neural networks.
For industrial automation, the broader implication is more important than the individual applications. AI is increasingly being positioned as an additional software layer rather than as a replacement for deterministic control.
PLC and safety systems still perform time-critical control functions according to defined logic. AI-based systems can instead support areas such as production analysis, anomaly detection, visual inspection, predictive maintenance and process optimization.
This separation between deterministic control and higher-level intelligence is likely to remain important in industrial system design.
Additive Manufacturing Expands the Automation Landscape
The Supervisory Board also added additive technologies to the HTP activity list. The explanation provided by Hanna Rabava emphasizes that additive manufacturing involves not only 3D-printing equipment but also specialized software and new production processes.
From an automation perspective, this is significant. A modern additive manufacturing system can involve motion control, thermal management, material delivery, machine vision, process monitoring and digital production models.
Software therefore becomes part of the manufacturing process itself. The machine is no longer simply executing a fixed sequence; production parameters, digital models and process data can influence how the physical product is manufactured.
Industrial Data Will Become More Valuable
One of the strongest signals from these new HTP projects is the increasing importance of industrial and operational data.
An automated production line can generate large quantities of information from PLCs, remote I/O, drives, sensors, HMIs and industrial communication networks. Historically, much of this data was used only for local control and operator monitoring.
MES, analytics and AI applications change this situation. Production data can be collected, structured and analyzed at higher levels of the automation architecture.
In my view, this is one of the most important developments behind the current convergence of automation and software. The value of an automation system is increasingly connected not only to whether it can control a machine, but also to whether its operational data can be used effectively.
The New HTP Residents Reflect a Broader Technology Trend
The 31 newly approved companies cover very different industries, but several common technical themes can be identified: software combined with specialized hardware, data-driven applications, AI integration, digital manufacturing and process-oriented automation.
For industrial companies, this means the technology stack is becoming increasingly interconnected. Field devices generate signals, controllers process them, industrial networks transport information, MES platforms organize production data, and analytical or AI applications operate at higher levels.
The development of industrial automation is therefore moving beyond isolated PLC or DCS functions toward integrated digital production architectures.
What This Means for Industrial Automation
The HTP announcement provides a useful snapshot of where technology development is heading in 2026. Industrial automation is no longer limited to controlling motors, valves, conveyors and process equipment. It increasingly includes production software, machine data, AI, digital manufacturing and specialized hardware.
For automation engineers, the practical challenge is to maintain clear separation between functions that require deterministic control and functions that benefit from data-driven computation. At the same time, the interfaces between these layers need to be carefully designed.
The emergence of MES, additive manufacturing software, AI platforms and hardware-software industrial systems suggests that future automation projects will require broader engineering knowledge across control, communication, computing and production data.
