Propeller Brings Five MENA Deeptech Startups to Silicon Valley with Kernel Camp
Propeller, an AI‑focused venture capital firm, launched the inaugural Kernel Camp residency, bringing five deep‑tech startups from Tunisia, Morocco, Jordan and Egypt to Silicon Valley. The eight‑week program embeds founders in the Bay Area ecosystem, offering access to engineers, investors and operators, and concludes with a demo day in May 2026. The cohort spans AI infrastructure, developer tools and cybersecurity, reflecting the region’s growing technical talent. Kernel Camp is a core pillar of Propeller’s Fund III cross‑border strategy, aiming to accelerate MENA‑origin innovation on a global stage.
ElGoat Raises $266,000 Seed to Build Skill-Based Football Gaming Platform
Saudi‑based sportstech startup ElGoat announced a $266,000 seed round led by Trigon, valuing the company at $2.66 million. Founded in March 2026, the platform delivers a free, skill‑based football prediction experience that rewards accuracy with points and leaderboards. It covers major...
Zsystems Brings Total Funding to $2.7 Million with Latest Seed Round
ZSystems, a Morocco‑based B2B2C marketplace, closed a $1.65 million seed round led by Azur Innovation Management, with participation from MNF Ventures, Witamax and new international investor Harambeans Prosperity Fund. The raise lifts total funding to $2.7 million after a $1.05 million pre‑seed round....
Aramco Ventures Backs Via Separations in $36 Million Round
Saudi Arabia's Aramco Ventures joined Climate Investment and Marathon Petroleum in a $36 million financing round for U.S. deep‑tech startup Via Separations. The company’s modular membrane filtration replaces heat‑intensive industrial separations, promising up to 90% energy savings. Funds will accelerate global...
Backed by Sanabil 500, Maison Safqa Secures $620,000 Pre-Seed
Maison Safqa, a Saudi flash‑sale platform for premium and luxury brands, secured a $620,000 pre‑seed round backed by 500 Global via the Sanabil MENA 500 Accelerator Fund and regional angels. The startup, founded in 2024, lets brands monetize excess inventory through...
MENA Startup Funding Falls to $48.3 Million in March 2026
MENA startup funding plunged to $48.3 million in March 2026, an 85% month‑on‑month drop and 62% lower than a year earlier. The slowdown reflects heightened geopolitical risk from the US‑Israeli conflict with Iran, prompting investors to pause rather than withdraw capital....
The Middle East’s Butterfly Effect on the Global Economy
Gulf sovereign wealth funds now control roughly $4.9 trillion and are projected to exceed $7 trillion by 2030, making the region a top global capital allocator. Recent tensions in the Strait of Hormuz cut oil shipments, sending crude above $100 a barrel...
Estaie Secures 7-Figure Pre-Seed Led by Plus VC
UAE‑based proptech startup estaie announced a seven‑figure pre‑seed round—roughly $5 million—led by PlusVC and Orbit Ventures, with participation from Falak Angels and Value Makers Studio. The AI‑native marketplace focuses on extended‑stay bookings of 30 to 365 nights, positioning itself between traditional...
CarniStore Attracts $12.2 Million Strategic Investment to Scale Premium Food Operations
UAE e‑commerce platform CarniStore secured a $12.2 million (AED 45 million) strategic minority investment from Emirates Growth Fund. The capital will fund industrial scaling, new product verticals and regional expansion as the digital‑first premium butchery moves toward institutional readiness. EGF will also help...
As War Unfolds, Sofra Is Turning Solidarity Into a System that Sustains Lebanon
Two weeks after Israel’s assault, over one million Lebanese are displaced, intensifying an already fragile economy. Sofra, a digital platform co‑created by the Ministry of Tourism, Siren, CME and Beirut Digital District, matches diaspora donors, local restaurants and shelters to...
ITIDA, Plug and Play Support 61 Upper Egypt Startups, Unlock $3.7M in Funding
Egypt’s Information Technology Industry Development Agency (ITIDA) partnered with Plug and Play to complete the Aswan Bootcamp Series, supporting 61 startups in Upper Egypt. The cohort collectively raised about $3.7 million (EGP 200 million) in investment, demonstrating strong investor interest outside Cairo. After...
Mezza Launches in the UAE with Fresh Seed Backing
Mezza, a UAE‑based hospitality platform founded in 2025, has closed an undisclosed seed round backed by high‑profile angel investors including the founders of PropertyFinder and Jellysmack and the chairman of Deel. The fintech offers independent restaurants and hospitality groups upfront...
Arabic.AI Partners with Qistas to Deliver Sovereign Arabic Legal AI
Arabic.AI and Qistas have formed a strategic partnership to deliver on‑premise, sovereign AI solutions for the Arabic legal market. The collaboration merges Arabic.AI’s Arabic‑first large language models, LLM‑X and LLM‑S, with Qistas’s legal‑tech platform, targeting law firms, corporate legal departments,...
Buy, License, or Build? Why Most Firms Struggle to Enter the UAE
Global firms are increasingly targeting the UAE as a financial and technology hub, but many stumble because they treat entry options—buy, license, or build—as interchangeable. The article argues that aligning the chosen route with the UAE's fragmented regulatory landscape (DIFC,...
GoSwap Secures Backing From Azur Innovation Fund to Expand Urban Mobility Network
Moroccan electric‑mobility startup GoSwap has closed a seed round exceeding $2 million, led by Azur Innovation Fund, to scale its battery‑as‑a‑service network. The company’s swap stations, already 20 in Casablanca, let users replace scooter batteries in under 10 seconds, cutting operating...
zypl.ai Closes $5.5 Million Bridge Round at $80 Million Valuation
UAE‑based credit‑scoring startup zypl.ai secured a $5.5 million bridge round, valuing the company at $80 million. The round was led by Silicon Valley’s Carbide Ventures and featured investor Shukhrat Ibragimov. Zypl.ai will use the capital to accelerate global expansion and roll out...
Saudi Edtech GAGA Secures $2.5 Million in Pre-Series A Round
Saudi edtech startup GAGA announced a $2.5 million pre‑Series A round led by Phoenix Venture Partners, bringing its total financing to $4.2 million. Founded in 2021, the company provides live, interactive online classes for K‑12 students, offering more than 1,000 programmes across...
The Real Cost of Undervaluing Human Capital in the GCC
Human capital is increasingly recognized as a strategic asset in the GCC, where talent scarcity and mobility demand a shift from treating HR as a support function to a core business driver. Companies that overlook employee experience face hidden costs...
People of Data Summit Maps Egypt’s AI Roadmap for Startups and Investors
Egypt hosted the People of Data – Sharks Edition summit in Cairo, gathering tech leaders, AI experts, and investors to craft a pragmatic AI roadmap for the national economy. The forum, led by Youssef Kamal, Magdi Moussa and Reem El...
Ninja Explores Riyadh Listing as Saudi Market Holds Steady Despite Tensions
Saudi quick‑commerce startup Ninja, founded in 2022, is weighing a Riyadh IPO after posting roughly $1 billion in 2025 revenue and targeting $1.6 billion in 2026. The company secured $250 million of funding in 2025, lifting its valuation to $1.5 billion and joining Saudi...
Phoenix Venture Partners Reaches Third Close of Debut Fund
Phoenix Venture Partners announced the third closing of its debut Phoenix Venture Partners Innovation Fund, bringing new investors from the United States, France, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and the UAE. The fund, which previously closed its second round at $50 million, targets...
Qualiphi Acquires Career Club to Expand AI-Powered Career Services in MENA
Qualiphi, an Egypt‑based AI career services platform, completed a six‑figure acquisition of Career Club from iCareer in the second half of 2025. The deal expands Qualiphi’s AI‑powered ecosystem across Egypt and the GCC, adding virtual career centre tools and strengthening...
Algeria’s Yassir Expands Into Adtech with Kawarizmi Acquisition
Algeria’s super‑app Yassir announced the acquisition of Paris‑based adtech firm Kawarizmi. The deal adds programmatic advertising technology and algorithmic media‑buying expertise to Yassir’s platform. With over 8 million users across six countries, Yassir will now monetize its first‑party data and offer...
Syrian Proptech Miftah Raises Pre-Seed Round
Syrian proptech startup Miftah has closed an undisclosed pre‑seed round as it prepares to launch a digital real‑estate marketplace. The platform will require identity checks and biometric verification to curb fraud and will offer separate consumer and broker applications. Miftah...
AI Capital Is Flooding the World, with the GCC Emerging as the Next Hub
Artificial intelligence captured roughly $270 billion in venture capital in 2025, more than half of all global VC funding. The Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) is emerging as a new AI hub thanks to abundant low‑cost energy, sovereign‑backed investment vehicles, and less...
VMS to Back Seven Egyptian Startups Through New Cairo Accelerator
Value Makers Studio (VMS) has launched a three‑month accelerator, VMS Accelerate, in Cairo to help Egyptian startups expand into Saudi Arabia. The program will invest up to EGP 1.5 million (about $28,000) in each of seven seed‑stage companies and provide mentorship from...
Kudwa Lands $1.1 Million Funding to Scale Its AI Finance Manager Platform
Kudwa, a UAE‑USA fintech SaaS, secured $1.1 million in a round led by 1818 Venture Capital, F6 Ventures, Sparked VC, IM Fndg and IVP. The AI‑powered finance manager automates reporting, forecasting, and insights, linking to ERP and accounting systems. The capital...
UAE Blockchain Startup Utexo Raises $7.5 Million Seed Led by Tether
UAE‑based blockchain infrastructure startup Utexo announced a $7.5 million seed round led by Tether, with participation from several venture firms. The company builds enterprise‑grade APIs that let financial institutions, digital wallets and exchanges process USDT stablecoin payments directly on the Bitcoin...
Wa’ed Ventures Invests in Resemble AI to Combat AI-Generated Fraud
Wa’ed Ventures, Saudi Aramco’s $500 million venture fund, has made a strategic investment in US‑based Resemble AI, a leader in AI‑generated voice and real‑time deepfake detection. The deal follows Resemble AI’s recent $13 million round backed by Google’s AI Future Fund, Sony...
Shorooq Invests in AMI Labs as AI Startup Hits $3.5 Billion Valuation
UAE‑based Shorooq joined a $1.03 billion seed round for AMI Labs, the AI startup founded by Turing Award winner Yann LeCun, valuing the company at $3.5 billion pre‑money. The round was co‑led by Cathay Innovation, Greycroft, Hiro Capital, HV Capital and Bezos...
The Costly Marketing Assumption MENA Founders Make
Founders in the MENA region often postpone marketing, treating it as a downstream activity after product development. The article argues that early marketing is essential for establishing a clear identity, positioning, and trust with investors and enterprise buyers. In a...
Rewa Launches in UAE After Closing Strategic Seed Round
UAE proptech startup Rewa has launched its digital rent‑payment and rewards app nationwide after closing a strategic seed round. The platform lets tenants pay rent via card or bank transfer and automatically earn points redeemable at more than 150 partners,...
Skipr Secures $2 Million Seed to Build AI-to-AI Trust Layer
UAE‑based Skipr closed a $2 million seed round at a $10 million valuation to scale its sovereign AI infrastructure. The startup’s platform creates an AI‑to‑AI trust fabric that lets autonomous systems exchange data and value across clouds and borders while preserving cryptographic...
Weego Raises $1.1 Million to Strengthen Enterprise Mobility Solutions
Weego, a Moroccan‑Senegalese mobility startup, secured $1.1 million in a round led by Azur Innovation Fund. The funding will accelerate the rollout of its mobility‑as‑a‑service (MaaS) app across additional Moroccan cities and lay the groundwork for regional expansion throughout Africa. Weego’s...
Qatar’s iQtech Secures First Funding Round to Scale XR Medical Training Platform
Qatar‑based healthtech startup iQtech has closed its first investment round, secured from European assessment firm Selexi and deep‑tech partner Yuniro. The capital will accelerate development of EsculapioVR, an AI‑powered XR platform that blends immersive virtual reality simulations with automated performance...
Rimal Semiconductors Raises Bridge Round to Scale Saudi Chip Design
Rimal Semiconductors, a Saudi fabless chip design startup founded in 2025, has closed an undisclosed bridge round led by Keheilan Asset Management and a regional investor. The capital will fund expansion of its diversified manufacturing network across Taiwan, Korea, China...
Investment in MENA Startups Hits $327 Million in February 2026
Investment in MENA startups slowed sharply in February 2026, with total capital deployed falling 42% month‑on‑month to $326.6 million across 62 deals. The UAE remained the dominant ecosystem, contributing $162.8 million from 23 companies, while fintech led sector funding at $94.7 million. Early‑stage...
Muhlah Closes $7.5 Million Seed Led by BIM Ventures
Saudi fintech Muhlah closed a $7.5 million seed round, led by BIM Ventures and Japan’s SBI Group, with AlSuhaimi Holding and Fakhr Investment also participating. Founded in 2024, Muhlah provides Shariah‑compliant consumer micro‑finance through a regulated, fintech‑enabled platform. The capital will...
WafR Secures $4 Million Seed to Expand Last-Mile Financial Services in Morocco
Moroccan fintech WafR closed an oversubscribed $4 million seed round co‑led by LoftyInc Capital, Attijariwafa Ventures and Almada Ventures. The startup, founded in 2021, already operates a network of nearly 20,000 corner stores that enable airtime sales, bill payments and will...
UAE’s Takeem Secures Backing From Second Century Ventures Through REACH Middle East
UAE‑based proptech Takeem announced a strategic investment from REACH Middle East, the accelerator arm of Second Century Ventures, the venture arm of the US National Association of Realtors. In less than a year the platform has onboarded over 55,000 residential...
Beltone Holding Launches Growth-Stage Private Equity Platform
Beltone Holding, an Egypt‑based investment group, has launched a private equity platform to complement its existing venture arm. The new platform targets growth‑stage companies, offering a structured path from early‑stage venture funding to institutional‑scale capital. Ali Mokhtar, CEO and Managing...
Moroccan Regtech Charikaty Raises $150K on National Investment Show
Moroccan regtech startup Charikaty secured MAD 1.5 million ($150,000) on the TV show “Qui Veut Investir Dans Mon Projet?” Season 3. The investment was led by Ilan Benhaim, co‑founder of Veepee and Endeavor Morocco chair, and Karim Amor, president of MeM by CGEM....
Dawar Acquires Stake in BekyaPay to Digitize Egypt’s Recycling “First Mile”
Egyptian circular‑economy platform Dawar has taken a strategic equity stake in consumer recycling app BekyaPay, extending its digital infrastructure to the household level. Dawar, which already tracks more than 90,000 verified tonnes of recyclables across 22 governorates, will now capture...
Origen Attracts $50 Million Strategic Investment From Bluefive Capital
Origen, an Abu Dhabi‑based AI technology firm, announced a $50 million strategic investment from Bluefive Capital. The funding will accelerate product development, expand partnerships, and attract specialised talent to embed AI across government services, smart homes, and advanced manufacturing. Founded in...
Saudi AI Startup Deep.SA Brings Vision Ventures Into Pre-Seed Round
Saudi AI startup Deep.SA announced that Vision Ventures has joined its pre‑seed round, adding to the SAR 4.5 million previously raised from TAM and Raed Ventures. The funding extends the $1.2 million round first disclosed in August 2025. Deep.SA will use the...
IFC Commits $150 Million to Boost Egypt’s Green Finance Sector
The International Finance Corporation (IFC) announced five new projects in Egypt, highlighted by a $150 million partnership with Banque Misr to scale green finance across energy efficiency, renewables, sustainable transport and green buildings. The initiative earmarks 20 percent of MSME lending for...
IBLOXX Studios Secures $5 Million for Global Expansion
iBLOXX Studios, a Dubai‑based Web3 game developer, announced it has raised over $5 million from undisclosed investors. The capital will fund global marketing, live‑operations, ongoing updates, and the development of console versions for its upcoming title *StrayShot*. *StrayShot* is a mobile‑first...
QuicKart Secures $1.5 Million to Expand Fresh Commerce Across the UAE
QuicKart, the UAE’s first dedicated fresh‑commerce platform for dairy and farm produce, closed a $1.5 million seed round led by Orbit Ventures. The funding will be used to optimise supply‑chain logistics, upgrade technology, expand last‑mile fulfilment and cold‑chain infrastructure, and add...
Singapore's Ascentium Acquires Clara to Expand Footprint in UAE
Singapore‑based Ascentium has acquired UAE‑based regtech firm Clara for an undisclosed sum. Clara, the largest licensed corporate service provider in the Abu Dhabi Global Market and active in the Dubai International Financial Centre, offers incorporation, governance and compliance services backed...
XSquare Attracts New Investment to Automate B2B Finance Infrastructure
XSquare, a UAE‑based B2B fintech, has secured an undisclosed investment from AngelSpark to accelerate its unified financial operations platform. The solution stitches together real‑time account‑to‑account payments, card rails, cross‑border transfers, invoicing, payouts and ERP reconciliation into a single interface. The...