Dubai-Tech-The-Road-to-2033-Founders-Forum-Group.pdf

The Road to 2033
Dubai Tech
Data partner:
Investment Trends Founder Interviews Startups to Watch
1

Contents
Cover images: Sonia Weymuller (VentureSouq), Sachin Dev Duggal (Builder.ai), Nour Al Hassan (Tarjama)
Dubai Tech: The Road to 2033
Foreword I
By Carolyn Dawson, CEO 
Founders Forum Group
3
Foreword II
By Hadi Badri, CEO 
Dubai Economic Development Corporation  
Dubai Department of Economy & Tourism
4
Dubai Tech: In Numbers 6
1) The Innovation Ecosystem
Featuring: Nadine Mezher (Sarwa), Niklas Ostburg
(Delivery Hero) & Rasmus Rothe (Merantix)
2) Corporate-Startup Collaboration
Featuring: Chris Sheldrick (what3words) & Linnéa
Kornehed Falck (Einride)
3) Talent
Featuring: Alex Bouaziz (Deel), Mona Ataya
(Mumzworld), Nour Al Hassan (Tarjama) & Steve
Papa (Parallel Wireless)
4) Capital
Featuring: Dany Farha (BECO Capital), Noor
Sweid, (Global Ventures), Rana Abdel Latif
(Speedinvest) & Sonia Weymuller (VentureSouq)
5) Access to Growth Markets
Featuring: Abdulla Almoayed (Tarabut), Jad
Antoun (Huspy) & Sachin Dev Duggal (Builder.ai)
7 Expanding in Dubai: 
Legal Checklist
67
Supporting Global Tech
Founders in Dubai
Saeed Al Gergawi, Vice President, Dubai Chamber
of Digital Economy
72
Startups to Watch 75
Methodology 90
2

OurmissionatFoundersForumGroupistosupport
entrepreneursateverystageoftheirjourneys,whereverthey
areintheworld.

InFebruary2024,wehostedourinauguraleventinDubai,in
partnershipwithDET,gathering100oftheworld’smost
impactfulfounders,investors,andcorporateandgovernment
leadersinacitycharacterisedbyitsgrowingaccessto
capital,advantageouslocation,cultureofinnovation,
supportivebusinessenvironment,andforward-thinking
investments.

Aswesetplansinmotionforour2025event,weknewwe
neededtogobigger.TheMEASA(MiddleEast,Africa,and
SouthAsia)regionishometomorethanhalftheworld’s
populationandacombinedGDPof$7.7trillion–andDubaiis
atitscentre,withathirdoftheworldwithinafour-hourflight,
atimezonethatbridgesthegapbetweenEastandWest,and
abusinessenvironmentwhichrankstopgloballyfor
entrepreneurship,talent,andinvestment.

That’swhythisyearwereturntoDubaiwithDETandFF
MEASA,ourlatestflagshipforumandourbiggesteventinthe
regiontodate,providingourcommunitywithcuratedaccess
tothevibrantinvestmentandinnovationecosysteminDubai
andbeyond.

We’resteppingupourwiderbusinessactivitiesintheregion
too.FoundersLaw,alawfirmwhichpartnerswithhyper-
ambitiouscompaniestoacceleratetheirgrowthfromideato
exit,hasbeenworkingwithclientsacrosstheGCCforawhile,
butrecentlygainedalicencetoopentheirofficesinthe
MiddleEast,basingthemselvesinDubaiandsupporting
companiesandfoundersastheyenterandexpandacrossthe
region.

Similarly,FoundersMakers–acreativepartnertostart-ups
andscale-ups,offeringexpertiseinbranding,campaignsand
content–hasbeenexpandingitsfootprintintheregion.The
agencyhassecurednewclientsacrosssectorssuchas
financialservicesandfoodandbeverage.Theysupport
locallyscalingbusinesses,andassistinternationalbrands
aimingtoestablishapresenceinthearea.

Therearestillopportunitiestouncover.Byopeningup
opportunitiesforglobaltalentandwomenentrepreneurs,
drivinginvestmentinclimatetech,sustainability,andAI,and
unlockingscale-upcapital,wecanensurethatDubai
continuesto,notjustparticipateintheglobaltechecosystem,
butactivelyshapeitsfuture.
FOREWORDI
TheDubaitechecosystemhasreacheda
combinedmarketvaluationof$43billion,
blazingatrailasadynamicdestinationfor
techinnovationandaspringboardfor
globalfounderstoexpandtheirbusinesses
acrossthewiderMEASAregion.
Readontodiscoverthetrendsshapingthe
futureofDubaitech!
CarolynDawson
CEO 
FoundersForumGroup
AsDubaisetsouttoachieveitsambitiousgoalssetoutinthe
landmarkDubai Economic Agenda (D33)–todoubleitsGDP
andbecomeoneofthemostimportanteconomiccitiesinthe
worldby2033–Dubai’sroleinbringingglobalcommunitiesof
techinnovatorstogetherwillbekey.

InourDubai Tech: The Road to 2033 report,publishedin
partnershipwithDubaiDepartmentofEconomyandTourism
(DET),wedeep-diveintothedataanduncoverinsiderinsights
fromtopinvestorsandglobalunicornfounderstoprovidea
comprehensivemarketoverviewforfounderslookingto
expandintheregion.

Weexplorethefivekeypillarsthatformthefoundationof
Dubai'sthrivingtechsceneandtheroadto2033–arobust
innovationframework,synergisticcorporate-startup
collaborations,adiversepoolofworld-classtalent,abundant
capitalresources,andaccesstomajorgrowthmarkets.Plus,
welistourtop40Dubaitechstartupstowatch!

3

Dubai’s commitment to innovation is evident in its unparalleled
infrastructure, investor-friendly policies, and its ability to
attract the brightest talent and ideas. FF MEASA exemplifies
this synergy, bringing together the world’s most impactful
entrepreneurs and investors in a collaborative environment
that embodies Dubai’s entrepreneurial spirit.

To all founders: Dubai is more than just a destination. It is your
platform to scale, your partner in growth, and your launchpad
for building transformative businesses that will shape the
future.

Let us innovate, collaborate, and chart a bold course for
global entrepreneurship – together.
As we convene in Dubai for the flagship FF MEASA, it is fitting
that we celebrate the shared values that have propelled both
this city and this global community of innovators to the
forefront of shaping the future.

The journey of Founders Forum Group, from its roots in London
to its expanding global footprint, mirrors Dubai’s own
evolution. Just as this forum has become a dynamic platform
for collaboration, Dubai has transformed from a modest
trading hub to a global beacon of entrepreneurship and
innovation. Today, it stands as the gateway to the MEASA
region and the world.

At the heart of Dubai’s vision is the Dubai Economic Agenda
(D33), a decisive roadmap to double the city’s GDP by 2033
and establish it as one of the top three global hubs for
business and innovation. Central to this ambition is nurturing
the next wave of disruptors: we are aiming to accelerate 30
unicorns from Dubai by 2033, and initiatives like Sandbox
Dubai and the AI Blueprint are setting the stage for these
startups to flourish.

In the coming months, we will unveil flagship initiatives
designed to fuel early-stage growth, identifying and
accelerating startups and SMEs across industries. Our focus is
clear: to provide entrepreneurs with a robust support
ecosystem, seamless access to international markets, and
resources to scale faster and smarter.
Dubai is a citybuilt on ambition, resilience,
and a relentless pursuit of progress –
qualities that resonate deeplywith the
founders, entrepreneurs, andvisionaries
gathered here.
HadiBadri
CEO 
Dubai Economic
Development Corporation

Dubai Department of
Economy & Tourism
4
FOREWORD II
Choose Dubai as your home for ambition
and achievement.The future is being built
here, andwe invite you to be part of it.

Dubai Tech
In Numbers
1st
The UAE is ranked first in
the Global
Entrepreneurship
Monitor’s index
Source:GEM
1st
Dubai is ranked first
globally for attracting
greenfield foreign direct
investment
Source:fDiInsights
3rd
best city in the world for
global talent
Source:BCG
$43 billion
The value of Dubai's
tech ecosystem in  
Q4 2024
Source:Dealroom
10 Unicorns
produced in Dubai -
companies valued at
more than $1 billion.
Source:Dealroom
62 Gbps
Dubai offers the fastest
5G globally
Source:ZAWYA
$31 billion
Dubai's GDPin  
Q1 2024
Source:DigitalDubai
+3.2%
GDPgrowth  
year-on-year in  
Q1 2024
Source:DigitalDubai
x2
Dubai plans to double
its GDPby 2033
Source:DubaiEconomic  
AgendaD33
6

Dubai Tech
The Road to 2033
7

In January 2023, Dubai announced the Dubai Economic Agenda (D33), a landmark economic
plan to boost trade and investment, double Dubai's GDP by 2033, and make Dubai one of the
top three most important economic cities in the world.

At its core is the development of new groundbreaking technologies, like AI and robotics, to
turbocharge green industry, logistics, and financial services, supported by flexible, pro-
innovation policies and connections to global growth markets. Dubai wants to generate $27b
from digital transformation projects each year, and nurture 30 home-grown unicorn
companies by 2033.
To start and scale their businesses, founders need access to talent, investment, markets, and
the latest infrastructure to grow. Strategically located at the crossroads of Europe, Asia, and
Africa, Dubai has become an increasingly attractive hub for founders of tech companies, from
startups to unicorns, based on five key pillars that will define the future of its thriving tech
ecosystem.
The five key pillars of Dubai tech:
1
The Innovation
Ecosystem
Business-friendly policies,
future industries, and  
startup hubs.
2
Corporate-Startup
Collaboration
Synergistic relationships
between startups and
corporations.
4
Capital
Abundant capital resources
and the world's fastest-
growing VC ecosystem.
3
Talent
A diverse pool of global,
world-class tech talent.
5
Access to Growth
Markets
Connections to fast-
growing markets in MEASA
and beyond.
8

The Innovation
Ecosystem
From startup hubs to sandboxes and economic
free zones, Dubai's business-friendly tech scene is
attracting disruptive companies to the city and
ushering in new waves of innovation across
technologies like AI, web3, and the metaverse.  
But the rapid development of a thriving
innovation ecosystem doesn't come without  
its challenges.
1 x2
Dubai plans to double its
GDP by 2033 in its
landmark Dubai Economic
Agenda (D33).
Source: u.ae
x2
Dubai plans to double its
GDP by 2033 in its
landmark Dubai Economic
Agenda (D33).
Source: u.ae
99%
of the UAE population
have access to the
internet.
Source: DataReportal
99%
of the UAE population
have access to the
internet.
Source: DataReportal
7th
The UAE is ranked seventh
in the world for its
adoption of digital
technologies.
Source: IMD World Competitiveness Ranking
7th
The UAE is ranked seventh
in the world for its
adoption of digital
technologies.
Source: IMD World Competitiveness Ranking
$96 billion
AI is projected to
contribute up to $96b to
the UAE economy by 2030
(13.6% of GDP).
Source: PwC
$96 billion
AI is projected to
contribute up to $96b to
the UAE economy by 2030
(13.6% of GDP).
Source: PwC
9

Sandbox Dubai
Launched as part of the D33 Agenda, the Sandbox Dubai
initiative aims to turn Dubai into a world-leading incubator
and testing ground for future tech. In sandbox environments,
new technologies go through live testing phases with
oversight from regulators before being granted licences for
production and distribution.

The UAE’s ICT Regulatory Sandbox, the first experimental
legislative environment for the ICT sector, began operations in
August 2024. In October, Dubai Future Foundation launched
two new sandboxes in the gig economy and proptech.
Meanwhile, fintech companies can apply for the Dubai
Financial Services Authority’s Innovation Testing Licence (ITL)
and test new products and business models in the ITL
sandbox programme.
RegLab
Dubai’s sandboxes are backed by the UAE Regulations Lab, or
RegLab, designed to pioneer ‘regulation innovation’ by co-
developing new or existing legislation around emerging
technologies. Companies can apply for public sector
backing for a product or concept, and then work together
with regulators on legislative frameworks to help their tech
applications succeed. RegLab has issued various licences – to
test self-driving vehicles, for example; electric cargo aircraft;
new innovations in insurtech; and a temporary licence to the
United Parcel Service to test electric vertical takeoff and
landing aircraft in the UAE.
Dubai’s pro-innovation regulation is a defining
feature of the city’s tech ecosystem, allowing
for the testing and marketing of new disruptive
technologies in ways which would be difficult
to replicate elsewhere.
Pro-Innovation
Policies
10

Public Private Partnerships
Dubai’s PPP model provides a legal framework for
government agencies to enter into partnership contracts with
private sector companies as both sides work hand-in-hand to
support the tech ecosystem. Deel, for example, partnered
with the UAE’s Office for AI, Digital Economy and Remote
Work Applications to offer faster access to foreign workers
visas. In March 2024, Dubai announced a new portfolio of
PPP projects worth more than $10b across key sectors
including health, education, finance, and technology.
Dubai Unified Licence
The Dubai Unified License is a unique digital passport for all
companies operating across the city’s free economic zones,
where founders can incorporate and run new companies
easily and tax efficiently. Companies can operate out of
multiple free zones under the licence, which provides a single
source of information for customers, suppliers, and service
providers to view the details of any business operating in  
the city.
Tax Incentives
Dubai’s business-friendly tax system means companies
benefit from tax and custom duty exemptions, VAT refunds,
and access to free zones. There is no personal income tax in
Dubai; 0% VAT charges on sales outside the Gulf states; and
9% corporate tax on income above $100k, one of the lowest
corporate tax rates in the world.
Dubai 10X
Dubai Future Foundation’s Dubai 10X promotes large-scale,
future-looking projects to improve government services, solve
major challenges, and position Dubai 10 years ahead of the
rest of the world. Dubai 10X powered the creation of Digital
DEWA, the digital arm of Dubai Electricity & Water Authority,
and Dubai Blink, the world’s first B2B smart commerce
platform for economic free zones.
His Excellency Helal Almarri 
(Dubai Department of Economy & Tourism)
11

Dubai offers a gateway to rapidly growing
markets with increasing urbanisation,
digitalisation, and business-friendly policies.
Niklas Östberg
Delivery Hero
Founded
2011
Employees
43,000+
Stage
Listed on the the Frankfurt Stock Exchange
Niklas is Co-Founder & CEO of Delivery Hero, the world’s leading local delivery
platform, operating marketplace, own-delivery, and dark store (Dmarts)
business, reaching a population of over 2 billion people in around 70 countries
across four continents. Delivery Hero’s Middle Eastern unit, talabat, has grown
into a leading food delivery and quick commerce business in Dubai and across
the MENA region.
12

What’s Next?
In 2023 alone, talabat achieved over $6b in sales, with
double-digit growth and strong profitability. Our goal is to
continuously refine our value proposition to meet our
customers’ needs, and as a result, we have built an
increasingly loyal customer base. Looking ahead, we plan to
expand our services to cover more areas of our customers’
lives, with the aim of becoming a super app across the
region.
Why Dubai?
Dubai has cultivated a unique environment where public
initiatives support technological innovation and
entrepreneurship, making it easier for companies to operate
and grow. People in Dubai are also quick to adopt
technology and welcome innovative ‘everyday’ solutions,
which we have seen with food and grocery delivery from our
talabat brand in MENA. Being open to new ideas and
technologies makes Dubai an ideal hub to do business and
setting up and expanding here is straightforward.
Expanding in Dubai
One of Dubai’s biggest benefits is easy access to a diverse
talent pool, as Dubai draws skilled professionals from
around the world. Having a business-friendly environment
simplifies the process of launching and managing a
business, and the city’s robust infrastructure helps
companies to set up quickly and efficiently.

A key learning that talabat exemplifies is the importance of
localisation which has helped it to grow into a category
leader. Adapting its offerings to align with local culture and
preferences has been essential. Dubai's strategic location
and its strong connections across the Middle East also make
it an ideal launchpad for regional expansion. Mona Kattan (Huda Beauty), Niklas Ostburg (Delivery Hero)  
& Michael Lahyani (Property Finder)
13

AI
The UAE AI market was valued at $3.47b in 2023 and is
projected to grow at a CAGR of 43.9% between 2024 and
2030. Plus, businesses in the UAE are actively
implementing AI – 65% of IT professionals in the UAE have
expedited an AI rollout over the past two years. The
adoption of AI could contribute up to 13.6% of the UAE’s
GDP by 2030, around $96b.
Dubai is home to 350+ VC-backed AI companies including
AI and blockchain developer, Sentient Labs, automated
investment platform, Sarwa, and retail tech startup, DTEK.
In April 2024, the Dubai government unveiled the Universal
Blueprint for Artificial Intelligence to accelerate the
adoption of AI. Phase one involved the appointment of 22
chief AI officers (CAIOs) for key government departments
and the launch of a major AI and web3 startup incubator.
The UAE was the first country in the world to appoint a
Minister of AI and the UAE National Strategy for AI aims to
position the country as the world leader in AI by 2031.
The Dubai Robotics and Automation Programme aims to
increase the sector's contribution to Dubai’s GDP to 9%
and roll-out 200,000 robots across the city by 2032, while
the DIFC Innovation Hub’s Dubai AI Campus offers an AI
accelerator programme with the ambition to attract more
than 500 tech companies and $300m in funds by 2028.
In 2024, the Dubai Multi Commodities Centre (DMCC)
launched a new AI Centre to drive global, practical AI
solutions. The AI Centre is part of a newly integrated hub
alongside DMCC’s established technology ecosystems,
the DMCC Crypto Centre and DMCC Gaming Centre.
The rise of AI in the UAE is backed by a growing ecosystem
of cloud providers and data centres. Dubai is the number
one data centre market in the UAE, with 18 data centres
and 230+ cloud service providers. Multinational tech
companies, including AWS, Microsoft, and SAP, have data
centres in Dubai.
Dubai is emerging as a world centre for
crypto, digital assets, and AI, backed by
government initiatives and a flexible and
proactive regulatory regime.
Driving Future
industries
14

Metaverse
The Dubai Metaverse Strategy aims to turn Dubai into one
of the world’s top 10 metaverse economies, add $4b to
Dubai's GDP, and create more than 40,000 virtual jobs in
the blockchain and metaverse sectors by 2030.
DIFC’s first Metaverse Accelerator Programme attracted
160+ applications from founders globally and onboarded
10 companies for an intensive, three-month startup
bootcamp.
Companies include Artichoke Labs, a spatial computing
company specialising in creating city-scale augmented
reality applications, Daoversal, an expansive web3 social
ecosystem platform, and more startups innovating across
the IoT, healthcare, edtech, the creative industries, and AI.
Web3
Dubai’s Virtual Assets Regulatory Authority (VARA) is the
world’s first independent regulator of virtual assets, like
cryptocurrencies and NFTs, and launched a landmark
licensing framework for virtual asset service providers in
2023.
Investors sent $34b in crypto transfers to the UAE between
2023 and 2024. VARA has awarded full regulatory
approvals to global crypto exchanges such as OKX,
Crypto.com, and Binance in the past year.
Dubai's gaming sector is targeting 30,000 new jobs and a
$1b contribution to GDP by 2033. The DMCC Gaming
Centre provides more than 100 gaming startups with an
ecosystem of support and funding opportunities.
FinTech
The UAE fintech market was valued at $3b in 2023 and is
expected to reach $5.7b by 2029
More than 1,000 fintech firms are registered in the Dubai
International Financial Centre (DIFC) and they’ve raised
$3.3 billion in venture funding between them
DIFC’s Innovation Hub is home to Fintech Hive, the first and
largest fintech accelerator in MEASA, connecting startups
with the region’s largest financial services firms, banks,
and insurance companies.
Fintech Hive’s 200 startup alumni have raised more than
$600m in funding and include the likes of Norbloc, Sarwa,
Tarabut Gateway, and Zywa.
15

Dubai’s local consumer has their unique
behaviour and subcultures that you need to
know and cater to.
Nadine Mezher
Sarwa
Founded
2017
Employees
50+
Stage
Series B
Raised
$25m
Investors
Mubadala Investment Company, Dubai International Financial Center, ADQ, 500 Global,
Kuwait Projects Company, Shorooq Partners, Middle East Venture Partners, Hambro Perks
Oryx Fund, HALA Ventures, Vision Venture
Nadine is the Co-Founder of Sarwa, a UAE-based pioneering investment
platform that simplifies investing and money management for everyone.
16

Expanding in Dubai
Make sure you understand the market before entering it.
Start with your market research and understanding of the
legal requirements of what you are trying to build. The legal
and regulatory framework is different, with its free zones
and mainland regulations. This allows for flexibility but also
adds a layer of complexity. Make sure you know the pros
and cons of each zone to choose where to start.

Build your network, invest time in relationships, and talk to
other founders who have been through what you are trying
to build. They will know the paint points and have gone
through the challenges. If you are building a team, make
sure you bring people on board who understand the local
market if that’s your target. It is a beautiful place to launch
a product, but make sure you understand the cultural and
behavioural nuances of the different personas and that you
tailor offerings and messages to resonate.
What’s Next?
Sarwa keeps evolving as we grow. We started as a small
team with a vision to democratise investing and money
management in the MENA region, offering one product.
Today, we serve thousands of clients and have expanded
our offerings to include various financial products. Our plan
is to continue growing our client base and continuously
enhancing our platform with advanced technology and
customer feedback to better serve them, while adding more
and more value and products.
Why Dubai?
Dubai is a city that is always forward-thinking. It has a
startup mindset itself, and because of that it offers so much.
The Dubai government is always promoting
entrepreneurship through many initiatives and also offers
an environment of ease of business. You have free zones and
regulatory sandboxes with a conversational approach to
law-making, streamlined business setup processes, and a
generally supportive framework for innovation. It is the
reason we decided to launch Sarwa out of Dubai.

Most importantly for us, Dubai is a city of early adopters
and a young population with high digital penetration:
perfect ground for testing any new ideas. Generally, you
have your venture capitalists, angel investors, and
government-backed funding initiatives close by, and within
proximity to the regulators. The city also provides easy
access to markets in the Middle East, Africa, and Asia, and
you have a great pool of super-talented people here from
different backgrounds, offering diversity and experience,
while also having affinity to the sub-cultures in the market.
17

WeseeDubaiasagreatplacetogrowour
ecosystem,andwe’recontinuallyworkingto
buildstrategicrelationshipsinDubai’s
growingAIlandscape.
Rasmus Rothe
Merantix
AUM
$140m
Focus
AI
Stage
Pre-Seed-Seed
Ticket Size
$500k-$3m
Portfolio Includes
Briink, Cambrium, Company Shield, Deltia, Ficus Health, Graph Therapeutics, Libra, Ovom
Care, Vara
Rasmus is Co-Founder & General Partner of Merantix Capital, a Berlin-based
venture capital firm and a unit of Merantix, a group of companies and
initiatives driving AI forward in Europe. Now, he’s looking to support the
development of the AI ecosystem in Dubai.
©Jan Schoelzel
18

Expanding in Dubai
In Berlin, our Merantix AI Campus is home to 300+ annual
events and more than 80 resident companies, and so we’re
constantly exploring new opportunities to expand that
footprint in new geographies, whether that’s through events,
strategic partnerships, or startup and market entry
programs. Down the road, as the AI ecosystem continues to
grow in Dubai, the sky really is the limit for what our
presence here could look like.
Advice For Founders
Entering this market is about building strong and genuine
relationships, whether participating in industry events or just
meeting people to catch up. Meaningfully integrating into
the local ecosystem and nurturing the relationships you
make is the best and most rewarding way to do business
here.
Why Dubai?
The hardest thing for founders to find when starting a new
company is talent and customers. Firstly, Dubai has created
an environment that is luring in top talent, which is critical
for AI development and maintaining a diverse and skilled
workforce. Then on the customer side, increased
collaboration between corporates and startups is allowing
early-stage ventures to get that crucial ‘stamp of approval’
from established partners on their new solutions. The influx
of talent and capital here plus the government’s willingness
to move quickly and transform is really attractive to AI
companies and investors.

In general, it's been inspiring to witness Dubai’s emergence
as a growing hub for technology and innovation. There’s a
real passion here for digital transformation and creating
modern infrastructures, as well as a general sense of
optimism which can sometimes be lacking in the western
world. Dubai is appealing thanks to the core interest here in
driving AI forward and creating an environment where new
ideas and startups can experiment and flourish. Initiatives
like the Dubai AI Campus, AI offices in government, and UAE
sovereign wealth funds’ backing of AI companies
demonstrates the commitment.
19

This map graphic shows just a small portion of
Dubai’s mammoth ecosystem of startup
programmes, accelerators, and incubators.

Click here for the complete Dubai Startup Guide.
Dubai Silicon Oasis
A 15-minute city for business and sustainable living,
dedicated to fostering knowledge and innovation.
90,000+ community residents and entrepreneurs, plus
30,000+ registered companies, are based in the 7
square kilometre city, where businesses can test new
technologies at scale, from robotics and smart city
integrations to autonomous cars.
Intelak
A tech innovation hub that supports
startups in the aviation and travel
sectors with education, mentorship, and
resources.
Dubai Future Accelerators
An intensive nine-week accelerator
programme bringing startups, private
entities, and government together to
tackle challenges relevant to Dubai’s
technological future.
Dubai International
Financial Centre’s (DIFC)
Innovation Hub
The largest financial innovation
ecosystem in the region, home to more
than 1,000 innovative tech firms, VCs, and
regulators, plus the first and largest
fintech accelerator in the MEASA region.
Dtec
The largest tech startup coworking
campus in the Middle East. Dtec also
runs SANDBOX, a 12-month scale-up
programme for tech founders.
Dubai Internet City
The region's largest technology and
business hub, and a free economic
zone, designed to facilitate and
promote IT systems and services
throughout the UAE.
Astrolabs
The Gulf’s leading business expansion
programme, supporting the expansion
of high-growth businesses to the UAE.
Dubai Multi Commodities
Centre (DMCC)
A global hub for business, trade, and
commerce, home to 24,000 companies
ranging from startups to multinationals.
Its tech ecosystems focus on fast-
growing sectors, including crypto,
gaming, and AI, giving startups access
to funding, talent, office space, and
flexible licensing solutions.
Spanning just over 1,500
square miles, the Dubai
landscape is dotted by
hundreds of incubators,
accelerators, co-working
hubs, and special economic
free zones designed to
turbocharge the city’s
startup scene.
Startup City
20

Cybersecurity
As tech advances rapidly across the Middle East, businesses
are also experiencing an increase in cyber attacks and
traditional companies with legacy systems are in need of new
solutions to support their digital transformations and keep
their systems secure. This is opening up huge opportunities for
entrepreneurs, especially in the UAE where the cybersecurity
sector is expected to reach $1.07b by 2029.
Navigating Regulation
While Dubai offers a pro-business regulatory environment,
navigating the intricacies of local laws and regulations can be
daunting. Founders Law, which offers frictionless, relationship-
driven legal support specifically for tech founders in the UK, is
now looking to Dubai to expand its operations and support
more scaling companies as they develop, protect, launch, and
scale pioneering products and services.
Founder 
Insights
21

Corporate-Startup
Collaboration
Multinationals and Big Tech firms, from Mastercard to Microsoft,
are setting up headquarters in Dubai and fueling a city-wide
melting pot of corporate-startup activity – including
accelerators, bootcamps, and joint ventures – often facilitated
by the Dubai government. In the past year alone, we’ve seen a
flurry of corporate initiatives and partnerships driving Dubai’s
startup ecosystem forwards.
2 +200%
YoY growth in the number
of multinational
companies setting up
offices in Dubai in H1
2024.
Source: Emirates News Agency
+200%
YoY growth in the number
of multinational
companies setting up
offices in Dubai in H1
2024.
Source: Emirates News Agency $3b+
Corporate VC investment
into Dubai-headquartered
startups in the past five
years.
Source: Dealroom
$3b+
Corporate VC investment
into Dubai-headquartered
startups in the past five
years.
Source: Dealroom
$1.5b
Invested by Microsoft in
UAE AI company, G42.
Source: Microsoft
$1.5b
Invested by Microsoft in
UAE AI company, G42.
Source: Microsoft
22

2024
Google Cloud partnered with the
DIFC’s Dubai AI Campus to support
startups with mentorship and
access to Google Cloud resources.
Google and the Dubai AI Campus
will work together on programmes
like the Google Cloud Gen AI
Startup School.
Mastercard has established a global
centre for advanced AI and cyber
technology in Dubai and partnered
with DET on a new Digital City
initiative to harness its multi-rail
payments network and digital
commerce technology.
August
Richemont and Dubai Future
Foundation announced the winners
of their five-week, no equity
Innovation Incubator Programme
designed to advance the luxury
industry through innovative tech
solutions.
April
L’Oréal and AstroLabs launched
L’Oréal TechQuest, a challenge for
homegrown startups in the UAE and
Saudi Arabia to develop beauty
technology for L’Oréal Middle East.
TechQuest serves as the Middle
East's regional semi-finals of the
wider L'Oréal Big Bang Beauty Tech
Innovation Programme.
May
Dubai property giant DAMAC Group
invested $50m into AI startup,
Anthropic. DAMAC has also made
investments in xAI and Mistral AI.
July
New Corporate-Startup
Initiatives in 2024
23

Uber and WeRide partnered to
bring WeRide’s autonomous
vehicles onto the Uber
platform, beginning in the UAE.
Uber has also partnered with
the UAE’s Al-Futtaim Electric
Mobility Company to give
drivers access to a wide
selection of electric and hybrid
vehicles and progress its
commitment to having 25% of
kilometres driven on its
platform in Dubai to be
emission-free by 2026.
Bolt partnered with Dubai Taxi
Company to launch the UAE’s
largest e-hailing platform,
bringing together DTC’s fleet of
over 6,000 vehicles and Bolt’s
advanced global mobility
platform.
October
Meta and the Dubai Future
Foundation announced the
first cohort of the Llama
Design Drive, an AI Accelerator
powered by Startupbootcamp,
targeting corporates and
startups across the MENA
region. Companies tap into
Meta’s open-source LLM, Llama
3.1, for innovation and product
development across three four-
week sprints.
September
Amazon has partnered with the
Dubai Department of Economy
and Tourism (DET) to launch
the new DET x Amazon
Accelerator and propel the
growth of SMEs in Dubai. The
accelerator will provide Dubai-
based businesses with
advanced digital tools and
strategic growth opportunities
to reach millions of customers
through Amazon UAE.
Insurance marketplace,
Lloyd’s, and DET announced
the first cohort for their new
insurtech accelerator, which
provides Dubai-based startups
with a pathway to access the
London market. Startups
include Artio, which provides
insurance products for carbon
projects, and embedded
insurance platform,
Discovermarket.
24

Our partnershipwith DPWorldwill be the
Middle East’s largest deployment of electric,
autonomous freight mobility.
Linnéa Kornehed Falck
Einride
Founded
2016
Employees
400
Stage
Series C
Investors
EQT, Temasek, Northzone, Barclay’s, AMF
Linnéa is Co-Founder, Deputy CEO, and a Board Member at Einride, which
designs, develops, and deploys freight mobility technologies to accelerate the
transition to sustainable transportation. Einride became the world’s first
company to operate an autonomous, electric vehicle on a public road in 2019.
Today, Einride operates one of the largest fleets of heavy-duty electric trucks
servicing Global Fortune 500 companies across eight markets.
25

Expanding in Dubai
Einride’s approach to deploying in the UAE is region-wide.
The Falcon Rise grid will deploy Einride’s full freight mobility
offering, providing over a stretch of 550 km across Abu
Dhabi, Dubai, and Sharjah, encompassing 2,000 electric
trucks, 200 autonomous trucks and eight charging stations
with over 500 charging points – all powered by Einride’s
digital freight platform.
Given the vast rollout of the plan, government support is
critical. In May 2023, an MoU with the UAE’s Ministry of
Energy and Infrastructure was signed, with a second MoU
with the Abu Dhabi Integrated Transport Center following in
February 2024. The MoUs showcase support from a
governmental level in both deploying the technology but
also in developing the regulation needed to do so, which will
then help support ongoing conversations with shipper
customers to start operations within the Falcon Rise grid.
What’s Next?
The first shipper customer we announced was DP World,
with operations set to kickoff shortly. Einride’s partnership
with customer DP World, announced in May 2024, will be
the Middle East’s largest deployment of electric,
autonomous freight mobility.
Starting in Q1 2025, the partnership will scale up to support
approximately 1,600 container movements daily, which in
turn will look to reduce 14,600 tonnes of CO2e annually. A
fleet of connected electric trucks will operate 24/7 out of
Jebel Ali Port, and an autonomous pilot is slated for
deployment in the latter half of 2025.
Advice For Founders
Working with government support is an important aspect of
being in the region, as it ensures access to funding, a
network of resources, and regulation support. But there is
such a strong payoff given the UAE has set up incentives for
international companies to invest in the region and deploy
new technologies. This has then turned it into an excellent
spot to test out new technology, so don’t hesitate to see it as
a test bed to bring ideas to life in an impactful way.
Why Dubai?
The UAE region overall has presented an attractive case
specifically in two areas: its high ambitions in investing in
new, disruptive technologies, and its governmental bodies
that are implementing supportive regulation to put the
technology into action, like Dubai’s goal for 25% of all
transportation to be autonomous by 2030. Dubai is at the
forefront of innovation, with ambitions to create a future
powered by disruptive solutions and we believe that Einride
can, and will, serve as a great partner in this work.

SpearheadedbyourpartnershipwithAramex,
ourwhat3wordsecosystemisbringing
precisionandefficiencytobusinessesand
individualsacrosstheGulf.
ChrisSheldrick
what3words
Founded
2013
Employees
100+
Stage
SeriesC
Raised
£100m+
Investors
Intel,Ingka(Ikea),Mercedes-Benz,Aramex,DeutscheBahn,Subaru,SonyInnovationFund
ChrisisCo-Founder&CEOofwhat3words,asimplewaytotalkaboutprecise
locations.what3wordsenablesuserstoeasilyshareverypreciselocationswith
otherpeople,ortoinputthemintoplatformsandmachinessuchasride-hailing
appsore-commercecheckoutsandcarnavigationsystems.Customers
includeJaguarLandRover,Subaru,Lamborghini,DPD,DHL,andAramex  
inDubai.
26

Why Dubai?
The region’s booming logistics and e-
commerce industry presents exciting
opportunities for our technology.
Inadequate addressing remains a headache
for these businesses, as many live in large
apartment complexes with multiple
entrances, or newly-built developments
pending official addresses, causing
deliveries to be delayed or fail, ultimately
raising costs. Our technology offers a
simple solution: we’ve divided the globe into
3m squares, and assigned each one a
unique combination of three words, giving
every front gate, side door, parking space
and hidden entrance to a secluded
residence an accurate and easily
communicable address.

Since introducing what3words to the region
in 2016, spearheaded by our partnership
with Aramex, our ecosystem has expanded
at pace, bringing precision and efficiency to
businesses and individuals across the Gulf.
Expanding in Dubai
It’s been remarkable to see what3words’
growth in the region. In 2017, we conducted
a delivery test with our partner Aramex in
Dubai, which found that using a
what3words address was 42% faster than
street addresses. Seven years on, and many
partnerships later, over 20 logistics and
fulfilment companies in the region have
adopted the technology, including early
what3words-investor Aramex, IQ Fulfilment,
Shipa, as well as Zajel, which utilises the
technology for accurate delivery of
government issued documents.

Over nearly a decade of working in the
region, we have learnt a huge amount about
the nuances of the market from other
founders, investors and mentors.
Understanding the importance of engaging
directly with the culture has been crucial –
it’s helped us identify specific pain points
surrounding location information that
locals deal with on a daily basis.
Alongside our Gulf team’s dedication
towards growing our partner ecosystem, a
key factor in what3words’ success has been
the region’s tech-savvy population and
receptiveness to innovation. We have had
fantastic feedback from users, who have
used the technology to remedy numerous
issues commonly faced during deliveries,
like directing couriers to specific locations
such as side doors and hidden entrances
without the need for long and frustrating
phone calls.
What’s Next?
We will continue to work towards making
what3words an addressing standard. As the
region’s appetite for innovative solutions
grows, we see even greater potential for
what3words to scale across different
sectors – from logistics and e-commerce, to
tourism and smart city development
projects.
27

Advice For Founders
1. Local experts & travel

A crucial step in setting up what3words’ operations in the
Gulf was hiring Arabic-speaking local experts with deep
understanding of the region, guiding us through its unique
business landscape. We’ve also invested significant time on
the ground, with team members frequently travelling across
the region for in-person meetings, helping to build valued
relationships.
2. Localisation, localisation, localisation

Simply making your product available in Arabic isn’t enough
to convince a market – it’s essential that your offering is
culturally relevant, built on solid insights and solves a real
problem faced by consumers and businesses.
3. Network

Simply making your product available in Arabic isn’t enough
to convince a market – it’s essential that your offering is
culturally relevant, built on solid insights and solves a real
problem faced by consumers and businesses.
28

Read a startup guide to securing corporate
partnerships by Founders Factory.

Regional Opportunities
There are other growing business hubs in the Middle East. Saudi
Arabia has urged companies seeking government contracts to set
up their regional HQs in the Kingdom, and PepsiCo, PwC, and
Unilever are among 350 global companies that have recently
obtained licences to do so. Dubai must continue to promote its
friendly and innovative business environment to attract and retain
the biggest global firms.
Partnership Problems
Less than 30% of startups who responded to a corporate-startup
study by McKinsey said they were happy with their corporate
partnerships. Any corporate-startup partnership can be a struggle,
with contrasting priorities, structures, and ways of working – and
that’s compounded when different cultures and languages meet.
Founders partnering with companies in Dubai should choose their
partners strategically, set common goals, and tap into local talent
to ensure their offerings align with regional preferences.
Founder 
Insights
29

Talent
Recognised as one of the best cities in the world for global
talent, Dubai is top-ranked globally for its friendly visa policies,
livability, remote working, and the transparency of its
blockchain-powered property market. Like elsewhere, Dubai
faces a shortage of AI talent, but organisations in Dubai are
taking significant steps to close the skills gap.

3 1st
Dubai is ranked as the
world’s best city for
attracting global talent.
Source: Kearney
1st
world’s best city for
attracting global talent.
Source: Kearney
Leadership, Blockchain,
Operations, Supply Chain
Top skills areas for UAE talent.
Source: Coursera
Leadership, Blockchain,
Operations, Supply Chain
Top skills areas for UAE talent.
Source: Coursera
1st
easiest place in the world
to get a visa.
Source: Expat City Ranking
1st
easiest place in the world
to get a visa.
Source: Expat City Ranking
30

Golden Visa
10-year residency visa for property owners, those
investing significant capital in the UAE, or entrepreneurs.
To qualify, founders must be owners or partners in a
pioneering project registered with the Dubai Future
Authority, a classified SME, or a project sold for more
$1.9m+.
Virtual Work Visa
One-year visa for remote-work employees who work for a
non-UAE company.
Applicants must have a monthly income of $3.5k+.
Green Visa
Five-year residency visa for skilled professionals,
freelancers, and self-employed people.
Applicants must have university degrees or an equivalent,
and meet the relevant income requirements ($98k+ p/a
for freelancers/self-employed; $4k+ p/m for skilled
professionals).
Retirement Visa
For those aged 55+ wanting to retire in Dubai.
Applicants must own property or have sufficient income  
or savings.
Blue Visa
A new 10-year residency visa for individuals who have
made an exceptional contribution towards protecting the
environment.
Applicants must have a verifiable record in climate action,
including members of global associations, award winners,
and distinguished activists and researchers.
Dubai’s friendly visa policies offer significant
opportunities for global talent in the region,
especially tech founders looking to build and
expand their businesses.
VISAS
Discover more about Dubai visas.
31

Steve Papa
Founder & CEO
Parallel Wireless
Founded
2012
Employees
800
Stage
Late-Stage
Raised
$500m+
Parallel Wireless is building a modern cloud-native
infrastructure solution for 4G/5G networks. Its
ultimate goal is to accelerate 5G capacity globally.
Dubai stands out forits talent
ecosystem, particularlydue to its
proven trackrecord in attracting
expatswho arewilling to relocate,
drawn bythe emirate'svibrant tech
economy.
 
As a regional hub forlarge mobile
networkoperatorgroups like MTN,
VEON, Airtel, and E&, Dubai has
built an impressive talent pool that
continues to grow.We are building
up a regional HQ team here in
Dubai, leveraging these  
unique advantages.
32

Bybasingourselvesin
Dubai,wegainedaccessto
exceptionalprofessionals
fromallovertheworldwho
helpedusinnovate,adapt,
andgrow.
Mona Ataya
Mumzworld
Founded
2011
Employees
280+
Stage
Acquired by Tamer Group (2021)
Raised
$50m+
Mona is Founder and former Chair & CEO of
Mumzworld, the largest online marketplace aimed at
mothers in the Middle East. Mumzworld became the
number one funded women-led ecommerce company
in the region and was acquired by Saudi Arabia’s
Tamer Group in 2021. Mona exited the business in
February 2024. She’s also Co-Founder & Partner at
Bayt.com, the largest jobs board in the Arab world.
Why Dubai?
I’ve seen firsthand how Dubai has evolved from a nascent
startup hub to a thriving innovation leader. For
entrepreneurs looking to scale, Dubai doesn’t just offer
infrastructure; it offers an ecosystem of opportunity,
connections, and rapid scalability.

A key factor is talent. Dubai’s ability to attract a diverse,
skilled, and globally competitive workforce has been
instrumental for companies like Mumzworld. Access to talent
helped us build a team of experts who shared our vision and
had the capability to execute it with precision, and helped
us navigate challenges like market entry, customer
acquisition, and logistics in a rapidly evolving region. Over
the years, we were able to scale not just by hiring talent but
by retaining and empowering them to innovate
continuously.

Dubai's connectivity also enabled us to quickly expand our
ecommerce footprint across the GCC in less than two years
and ship to 20+ countries within four years. Today, free
zones like Dubai Internet City and DIFC that provide tax
advantages, and government initiatives, such as Dubai
Future Accelerators and programmes aimed at fostering
entrepreneurship, ensure startups have access to resources
and mentorship that were not as readily available when
Mumzworld began.

33

Building in Dubai
When Mumzworld launched in 2011, Dubai’s tech and
ecommerce ecosystem was in its infancy. Back then, the
challenge lay in navigating a market where key enablers
such as logistics networks, venture capital availability, and
digital payment systems were still evolving. This required
ingenuity and resilience.

Dubai’s nascent ecosystem, however, also presented an
immense opportunity. Its strategic location as a trade and
logistics hub was already world-class, and the government
was taking its first major steps to foster entrepreneurship. By
basing Mumzworld in Dubai, we gained access to its
unmatched connectivity across the MENA region, enabling
us to rapidly expand across the GCC. Dubai’s free zones
also allowed us to operate with agility and handle cross-
border complexities efficiently. And funding rounds became
relatively easier over time as more VCs and private equity
firms set up in Dubai.

While Dubai offers infrastructure and support, success still
requires a hyper-localized approach. Understanding the
cultural diversity and tailoring offerings to meet the unique
needs of mothers across the region set Mumzworld apart.
From day one, we prioritized operational efficiency –
leveraging Dubai’s logistics infrastructure to ensure rapid
and reliable deliveries across the region.
Another key learning was the importance of staying
adaptable. As Dubai’s ecosystem evolved, we continuously
integrated new technologies and partnerships. Today,
Dubai’s infrastructure is far more sophisticated, and
entrepreneurs entering the market benefit from a tech-
enabled environment. However, the fundamentals of success
– building a world-class team, committing to operational
excellence, and deeply understanding your customers –
remain unchanged.
Advice For Founders
Embrace Dubai’s role as a springboard for regional
expansion. With its state-of-the-art logistics and
infrastructure, you can scale quickly across the Middle East,
North Africa, and beyond. For Mumzworld, this was
instrumental in becoming a trusted regional leader.

Leverage the government’s startup-friendly initiatives,
such as access to free zones, zero corporate tax, and
accelerator programs like Dubai Future Accelerators. These
offer significant operational and financial advantages.

Invest in partnerships with local entities. Early on,
Mumzworld built relationships with logistics providers and
local suppliers to ensure efficiency and customer trust.
Collaboration is key in Dubai's interconnected ecosystem.
Don’t ignore the importance of market research. Dubai
is diverse and serves as a melting pot of cultures, so one-
size-fits-all strategies won’t work.

Avoid underestimating the competition. Dubai’s appeal
means it attracts global tech giants and nimble startups, so
differentiation and speed are essential.
34

UAE'svisionasaglobaltalenthubperfectly
mirrorsDeel'smissionofborderlesswork.
Alex Bouaziz
Deel
Founded
2019
Employees
4,000+
Stage
Series D
Raised
$650m+
Investors
a16z, Coatue, Emerson Collective
Alex is Co-Founder & CEO of Deel, the all-in-one HR platform for global teams.
Deel helps companies simplify every aspect of managing a workforce, from
onboarding, compliance and performance management, to global payroll,
HRIS and immigration support, and has partnered with the UAE government to
attract the best global talent and high-growth companies to the region.
35

What’s Next?
We’re actively supporting UAE's vision 2031 through HR tech
innovation and are facilitating seamless global workforce
management under new visa schemes. We see a huge
opportunity in supporting companies of all sizes to focus on
their core business growth while Deel simplifies their global
HR complexities.
Advice For Founders
Move fast globally while building strong local presence;
prioritise relationship building with key stakeholders; foster
local partnerships that accelerate growth; align with
government initiatives and vision; and build for scale from
day one.
Why Dubai?
UAE consistently ranks among top global destinations for
skilled professionals. The government’s progressive policies
and digital initiatives like the Dubai Government's D33
create an ideal environment for growth across many
industries, which is beneficial for Deel’s objectives of
bringing talent to the region and helping companies there
hire, pay, and manage their teams.
Expanding in Dubai
Deel entered in 2021 when UAE was accelerating its digital
transformation. Our company’s growth trajectory perfectly
complemented Dubai's D33 initiatives. We found strong
support for tech innovation and digital economy
development and experienced rapid growth supporting both
regional and global companies establishing a UAE presence.
We certainly recognized the value of the UAE's diverse talent
pool and multicultural business environment.

I was also personally welcomed with open arms when I was
in UAE – I got my visa in under three hours! There was also a
great understanding of Deel and how we started, and from
the beginning of the relationship I felt a real sense of how we
could create value here.
36

We'veneverbeenabletoattracttalentoutof
SanFranciscobefore,butnowwe'reseeing
peoplewanttomoveandrelocatetoDubai.
Nour Al Hassan
Tarjama
Founded
2008
Employees
200+
Stage
Series A
Raised
$11.5m
Investors
Amethis
Nour is Founder & CEO of Tarjama, a leading Arabic language AI company
specialising in enterprise translation and content solutions. With a focus on
leveraging AI to bridge language gaps, Tarjama serves diverse industries across
the MENA region, empowering businesses with precise, culturally nuanced
language tools.
37

What’s Next?
We have more than 17 nationalities in our company and
people distributed across Dubai, Abu Dhabi, and the Middle
East and Europe. Now we’re trying to attract the best people
to come to Dubai and build a tech talent hub. We’re
planning to raise our Series B round early next year and
we’re doubling down on AI, focusing on improving our LLM
translation capabilities and accuracy and adding more
agents to handle specific tasks.
Advice For Founders
There are multiple funds operating here. You have startup
programmes, support from the government, and if you set
up your business in a free zone, it’s relatively easy to get
your licences approved, your bank accounts set up, and be
ready to go in a couple of weeks. At the same time, you need
to stay focused when building a business, be prepared to
bootstrap, and pivot quickly if there’s no market fit. Once
you have enough traction, then you can fundraise. But, at
the start, try as much as possible to protect yourself by
retaining equity so you avoid diluting yourself and losing
leverage over your business.
Why Dubai?
When you're building an AI company, everyone needs cash.
Investors feel more comfortable injecting cash in a business
that's operating out of a jurisdiction like the UAE, where
there’s good governance and where it’s easy to operate and
do business. There’s been a big push around AI and
entrepreneurship in the UAE, from setting up AI ministers to
10 year entrepreneur visas, and there’s an attractive
ecosystem for talent wanting to relocate.
Building from Dubai
We’ve fine-tuned an LLM specifically for the Arabic
language. We have around 200 employees, we’re in growth
stage, and we’re expanding our presence in the AI space.
We’ve already expanded in Saudi Arabia and Qatar and
now we’re looking to Asia for new markets. We’re seeing
more people wanting to relocate to Dubai. It’s a
cosmopolitan city and very attractive for foreigners to live
in, plus it’s a bridge between East and West, giving you an
edge to expand globally from the UAE.
38

AI Skills Gap
There is huge demand for AI talent across the UAE, but two-
thirds of organisations are grappling with a shortage of
talent capable of driving innovation in their industries.
Meanwhile, 42% of Middle East CEOs report difficulty filling
key technology roles.
As AI disrupts employee roles and skills, companies in Dubai
continue to look abroad to fill talent gaps, but Dubai also
needs to build up a local talent pool and reduce dependence
on foreign talent. There is a significant talent shortage in
climate tech, for example, where the Dubai government has
responded with the new 10-year Blue Visa for environmental
leaders.
Promoting Local Talent
Fortunately, the ambition is there. Enrolments in generative AI
courses on Coursera in the UAE soared by 1,102% between
2023 and 2024, surpassing growth in the MENA region and
globally. And, in May 2024, the University of Dubai and AIJRF
launched the first Arab Index for Artificial Intelligence in
Universities to monitor and analyse the integration of AI into
the curriculum of Arab universities.
More broadly, the Dubai-based founders we spoke to say
government should promote industry-academia partnerships
and invest more in R&D grants and R&D centres that tech
companies can potentially hire from. Investing in STEM
education from an early age, building the university
ecosystem, and adding specialised training programs to
train the necessary skilled workforce will be key.
Founder 
Insights
39

Capital
Dubai is the world’s fastest-growing VC ecosystem, accounting
for 30% of all VC rounds raised in the MENA region in 2024,
while huge foreign direct investment and rising wealth
migration offer founders opportunities to access capital
outside traditional VC structures.
4 1,000+
investors with a combined
$1 trillion AUM are located
in Dubai.
Source: Gulf Business
1,000+
investors with a combined
$1 trillion AUM are located
in Dubai.
Source: Gulf Business
Fintech, Enterprise SaaS,
Transport, Media
Industries that have attracted the
most VC investment in Dubai
between 2023 and 2024.
Source: Dealroom
Fintech, Enterprise SaaS,
Transport, Media
Industries that have attracted the
most VC investment in Dubai
between 2023 and 2024.
Source: Dealroom
30%
of VC rounds raised in the
MENA region in 2024 were
raised in Dubai.
Source: Dealroom
30%
of VC rounds raised in the
MENA region in 2024 were
raised in Dubai.
Source: Dealroom
6,700
millionaires are expected
to move to the UAE by the
end of 2024 as the
country sees a significant
rise in HNWI migrations.
Source: Henley & Partners
6,700
millionaires are expected
to move to the UAE by the
end of 2024 as the
country sees a significant
rise in HNWI migrations.
Source: Henley & Partners
40

The Dubai tech sector reached a combined 
market valuation of $43.3b in Q4 2024.
The combined value of VC-backed companies headquartered in Dubai has doubled in the past five years and increased  
by 22x in the past decade. Dubai accounts for 81% of the total value of the UAE tech sector and 34% of the MENA tech  
sector overall.
Despite a normalisation of the VC funding
environment after the boom years of 2021 and
2022, the Dubai tech ecosystem is on a
significant growth trajectory, new funds are
being raised, and there’s huge investment
activity, particularly at early stage.
VC Investment
Trends
Combined market valuation of VC-backed companies headquartered in Dubai
Source: Dealroom
41

Dubai startups have raised $7.3b in
VC funding over the past five years,
although investment follows a global
downward trend in 2024.
Dubai-headquartered startups have raised $646m in 2024,
compared with a peak of $2.39b in 2022, with VC funding in
Dubai following a global downward trend after the boom
years of 2021 and 2022.
VC investment includes all venture-type investments, from VC firms as well as corporate venture investments and venture investments by family offices,
angel networks etc.

Note: 2024 figures can be expected to increase slightly. 2024 figures were recorded in November and there is also a known reporting lag for early-stage
funding rounds in particular.
VC investment in Dubai-headquartered startups
Source: Dealroom
42

There is still a huge amount of VC
investment activity at pre-Seed to
Series A stage, with Dubai
accounting for 30% of all VC rounds
raised in the MENA region in 2024.
Dubai-headquartered startups also account for 83% of
rounds raised in the UAE in 2024. Startups have raised more
than 200 rounds in 2024, with the vast majority at pre-Seed-
Seed stage.t
Note: 2024 figures can be expected to increase slightly. 2024 figures were recorded in November and there is also a known reporting lag for early-stage
funding rounds in particular.
Number of VC rounds raised by Dubai-headquartered startups
Source: Dealroom
43

Top industries in Dubai based on total VC investment (2023-24)
Media
Real Estate
$128m
$53m
Dubai startups in
fintech, enterprise
SaaS, transport, and
the media industries
are raising the most
VC investment.
Dubai-headquartered fintech
startups have raised $620m over
the past two years, while
enterprise SaaS startups have
raised $250m.
FinTech
Gaming
$620m
$73m
Enterprise Software
Food Tech
$250m
$73m
Transportation
Travel Tech
$226m
$56m
Source: Dealroom
44

Funds headquartered in Dubai have
raised $840m in 2024, following a
record $1.36b year in 2023.
There is capital ready to be deployed in Dubai with money
raised by Dubai-headquartered VC, PE, growth, and
corporate funds increasing by more than 4x in the past five
years (2024 vs 2020).

The Dubai Future District Fund, a fund of funds that invests
both in startups and VCs, has set a $1 billion target for assets
under management by the end of 2024.
Funds include VC, PE, growth, and corporate funds.
Money raised by Dubai-headquartered funds
Source: Dealroom
45

The UAE presents an incredible opportunity
for founders who build with solid unit
economics and a clear path to profitability
from day one.
Dany Farha
BECO Capital
AUM
$495m
Focus
Generalist
Stage
Seed-Series A
Ticket Size
$2m-$7m
Portfolio Includes
Abwaab, Careem (Exited), Fresha, Kitopi, Maxab, Property Finder (Exited), Syarah, Thndr
46

Expanding in Dubai
Leverage the great talent we have here. Dubai has long been
a talent magnet and, in recent years, a growth epicentre
fueled by decentralised work trends and high quality of life.
Don’t import all your executives; having the regional/local
lens and reach in the c-suite from someone who has built
roots in the region is valuable, and there’s plenty to choose
from!

Also, visit Dubai and plug into the startup ecosystem. Some
may have a misconception that capital comes easy here.
Whilst there is a lot of capital, it’s incredibly competitive and
the environment in the UAE is unique. For example, the Gulf
produces $2.25t GDP with just 60 million people. This low
friction presents an incredible opportunity for founders who
focus on their unit economics and path to profitability early
in their startup journey. We look for founders who can seize
the opportunity from day one.
Raising Investment
We extensively due diligence founders' ability to company
build – the ability to hire, fire, inspire others to join their
vision, and think about what their business needs well
beyond the round they’re raising. We are company builders
ourselves; we go extremely deep with founders during DD
and hope they see the value we can bring as investors, and
how that will be accretive to their business in the long run.
Learning and adapting is crucial. Our best founders listen to
the market and pivot when needed; they don’t get stuck on a
model or product when it's not working. The dynamics of this
region also lend themselves to building capital efficient
businesses. Lastly, in the age of AI, it is imperative to have a
proprietary data advantage. Click here to read more.
Investment Trends
The UAE continues to be a core market for us and is around
50% of our target geography in the current fund. We have
identified four high-conviction sectors, all underpinned by
an AI layer and key founder or business model
characteristics including capital efficiency and intelligent
use of proprietary data.
We're especially excited about PropTech and
Construction-Tech; these sectors are nominally large and
rapidly growing, and in Dubai, companies can build
innovative models on top of the strong digital foundation
built by players like PropertyFinder.
Another is Lending; specifically profitable lending driven
by AI/ML and an unfair data advantage, meeting strong
demand for consumer and business lending solutions.
We've made investments in vertical lending, such as RNPL,
and SME lending. The strength of the Gulf consumer is
extremely powerful, high APRU and mix of online and offline
shopping environments create an ideal landscape for omni-
channel brands.
Retail Tech and Consumer Brands like Eyewa and Kitopi
have capitalised on this, and we believe there's room for
more standout omnichannel tech-enabled consumer or
retail brands.
And we’re closely monitoring the AI space. We believe the
region will play a notable role on the global AI stage,
particularly with the tech talent migrating here, and that
there may be exciting opportunities within the life of Fund 4.
47

Do your investor due diligence and
strategically approach the investors you feel
provide the best value and support as well  
as capital.
Sonia Weymuller
VentureSouq
AUM
$250m+
Focus
Climate Tech & Fintech
Stage
Seed-Series B
Ticket Size
$500k-$5m
Portfolio Includes
Andela, Aspire, Bikayi, Bikry, Clara, Eyrv Health, Huspy, Impossible Foods, Jeeves, Mighty
Buildings, Odeko, Onfido, Reddit, Seafood Souq, Substack, Tabby, Telegram, Zoomcar
48

Expanding in Dubai
Reflect on what your contribution will be to the region. Do
your research, gain an understanding of the legal and
regulatory requirements depending on the sector you are in,
delve into the various set up options, spend time here
building your local network from investors to other founders
and ecosystem builders, and keep a pulse for regional
initiatives, announcements, and sector-specific
opportunities.
Raising Investment
It's tempting to widen your target investor list when faced
with a challenging fundraising environment; some would go
as far as randomly cold messaging any and all investors
irrespective of what mandates these investors actually have.
However, I encourage international founders looking at
expansion to the region to do their own investor diligence
and strategically approach regional investors they feel
would best provide the value, the guidance and the support
they need, in addition to the capital. Making sure you are
approaching the relevant investors in a targeted way will
save you time – focus on quality of approach over quantity.
Investment Trends
We manage a thematic VC platform focused on fintech and
climate. The need for an uplift in terms of financial services
in MENA, and the recognition of how much venture needs
fintech as a building block, became increasingly apparent
to us over the course of our journey.

We invested alongside some of the biggest global VCs into a
number of high-profile fintech companies and we developed
a strong conviction that fintech would ultimately serve as
unifier for a still very fragmented regional market. This led to
our launching the first sector focused fund backed by
regional sovereign powerhouses including PIF’s Jada Fund
of Funds, Mubadala, ADQ, and Bahrain’s Al Waha Fund of
Funds.

At the same time, we also recognised that the new economy
will inevitably need to incorporate climate considerations at
its core and all stakeholders need to be building the
foundations for this now. Specifically, we believe that MENA,
as a region that is both uniquely vulnerable to, but also well
equipped to counter climate change, should take a
leadership role in the global climate effort. We have been
actively investing in this space for the last five years and will
continue to do so with a current focus on the MENA-Asia
climate corridor.
49

Wealth Migration
An estimated 6,700 millionaires relocated to the UAE in 2024,
driven by an influx from the UK and Europe, according to
Henley & Partners’ Wealth Migration index. 2024’s net
millionaire inflow to the UAE is nearly double that of its closest
competitor, the US, which was projected to welcome around
3,800 millionaires.

Dubai alone is home to more 72,500 millionaires – 212 with
$100m or more, as well as 15 billionaires – fuelling the rise of the
city’s wealth management industry. More than 300 wealth and
asset management firms accounting for $500b AUM have set
up operations in the DIFC, including Edmond de Rothschild,
EnTrust Global, and Nomura. Dubai-based family offices
manage more than $1 trillion in assets.
As the world's leading wealth
magnet, home to many of the
world’s millionaires and one
third of all MENA investors,
founders in Dubai can tap into
an array of funding
opportunities beyond
traditional VC investment.
Global
Investment
Opportunities
Jack Hidary (SandboxAQ)
50

FDI
Dubai has been ranked first globally for attracting greenfield
foreign direct investment for three consecutive years. In H1
2024, Dubai attracted 508 greenfield foreign direct
investment projects, representing a 6.2% global share and an
8% increase on the previous year.

The majority of FDI projects are focused on high-tech
investment and building Dubai’s digital economy. Between
2022 and 2023, the Middle East was the only region in the
world that saw growth of tech FDI projects, and Dubai
attracted more than half of those projects in 2023.
Public Markets
In November 2024, UAE-listed stocks surpassed $1 trillion in
value for the first time. The Dubai Financial Market is ranked
among the top 10 IPO destinations in the world and has seen
steady growth in IPOs in recent years, most notably the public
listings of DEWA, Empower Salik, and Al Ansari Financial
Services. German multinational tech company, Delivery Hero,
is also reportedly planning for an IPO of its Emirati subsidiary,
talabat, the Emirati subsidiary of German multinational tech
company, Delivery Hero, went public with a $2b IPO on the
Dubai stock exchange in December 2024.
Cindy Mi (VIPKID)
51

We’remostexcitedaboutsupplychain
disruption,manufacturing,andthewhole
areaoffoodsecurity.
Noor Sweid
Global Ventures
AUM
$350m
Focus
Generalist
Stage
Series A
Ticket Size
$5m-$10m
Portfolio Includes
ABHI, Hakbah, Moniepoint, Immensa, iyris, Maalexi, Proximie, Seafood Souq
52

Expanding in Dubai
Understand what real market needs your solution solves.
Tabby is a great example. In Europe or the US, credit card
penetration is already high, people have access to digital
payments, and Buy Now Pay Later doesn’t solve a big
problem, so a lot of companies doing BNPL have failed.

In the Middle East, BNPL solves the real pain point of lack of
access to credit and lack of digital payment solutions. As
you're looking to expand here, take a moment to reflect and
analyse whether this market really does need your product
or solution and how you can adapt it so it's solving a real
market problem.
Raising Investment
The VC ecosystem in Dubai is young and growing very
quickly. Find investors who are strategic, understand what
you’re building, and can be supportive.
Investment Trends
In manufacturing and agritech, you don’t have many
incumbents or legacy infrastructure in our region – and so
when founders start companies, they can really scale. You
get companies like Immensa, a 3D printing company that’s
digitising the global spare parts supply chain and using
additive manufacturing to solve real problems. They’re
scaling without the challenge you’d face in Europe or the US
from traditional manufacturing incumbents.

In AI, we’re investing in AI-led companies that are solving real
problems, rather than the deep tech of AI that’s being built.
Like blockchain before it, AI is fast becoming an enabling
technology that you need to use because if you don’t you’ll
be at a competitive disadvantage. Now, all the world is
building better and smarter LLMs. But, in our region, we want
use cases. We want to know how to use AI to make
ecommerce better, make our population smarter, or widen
access to healthcare.
53

We’rebuildingaportfoliooffintechand
fintech-enabledstartupsinGlobalGrowth
Markets.
DubaiTech:TheRoadto2033
RanaAbdelLatif
Speedinvest
AUM
$1.2b
Focus
Fintech,Health,Deeptech,Climate,SaaS,Marketplaces
Stage
Seed,withspecific
fundsinvestingin
SeriesA+
TicketSize
$1.5m-$5m
PortfolioIncludes
Abhi,Bitpanda,Flow48,GoStudent,Khazna,Kema,Moove,PalmHr,Pemo,Shopup,Tide,
Wayflier
54

Expanding in Dubai
When expanding in Dubai, a deep comprehension of local
market dynamics, cultural nuances, and consumer
behaviour is crucial. Companies that tailor their offerings to
meet regional needs and, beyond that, the country they are
operating in, stand out.

While the Middle East can be grouped as a region, there are
vast differences between the UAE and Egypt or Saudi
Arabia. A deep understanding of those structural
differences is critical, and the ability to scale across the
Middle East and Africa is a significant advantage. Solutions
that address common challenges across multiple markets
are particularly attractive.
Raising Investment
Develop a deep understanding of the country and specific
nuances. Expand with the intention to build commercial and
local partnerships and fully service the market – the capital
will follow

As fintech investors, regulation also plays a massive role in
our day to day. Working with a founding team that
understands how to navigate the regulatory landscape
effectively is essential. We look for startups that proactively
engage with regulators and consider them as allies.
Investment Trends
The biggest investment opportunities in Dubai fall in line
with Dubai’s strategic initiatives, which include driving the
adoption of digital financial services (fintech), enhancing
the efficiency of the thriving real estate market (proptech),
and the circular economy.

At Speedinvest, we invest across six verticals in Europe. What
few people know is that we have also been building a
portfolio of fintech and fintech-enabled startups in Global
Growth Markets with rapid population and GDP growth. We
have invested in 29 fintech and fintech-enabled companies
across LATAM, Africa, Middle East, Pakistan, and
Bangladesh. Over half of those companies are in the Middle
East and Africa, and we’re building a fintech team in the
UAE to cover the region.

Today, the majority of the SMB population in the region is
not being addressed and that’s a segment that we’re
extremely interested in. We look at startups that service
SMEs/SMBs whether through expense management,
lending, payments, as a pure fintech vertical. We are also
interested in how this segment can be serviced indirectly
through embedded finance so fintech as a horizontal
especially in B2B segment.
55

Scaleup Capital
Despite a healthy investment ecosystem, founders in Dubai
are increasingly searching for growth funding opportunities
as they scale their businesses. Of the 273 rounds raised by
Dubai-headquartered startups in 2023, just 4 (1.5%) were
Series C-type rounds or later (worth $40-$100m), according
to Dealroom. No Dubai-headquartered startup raised a round
worth more than $100m.

As the Dubai startup ecosystem grows, it’s vital that growth-
stage companies can continue to attract funding to support
their scaling journey. For later-stage companies, greater
flexibility around IPO eligibility rules focused on profitability
would also enable more tech companies to go public in
Dubai.
Funding Women Founders
Like elsewhere, the share of VC funding raised by Dubai
startups with women founders or co-founders tracks is low,
but Dubai is taking steps to increase opportunities for women
founders. The Dubai Business Women Council is dedicated to
the professional and personal growth of businesswomen and
female entrepreneurs in the UAE, while Dubai’s SheTrades
Hub serves as a resource centre for women entrepreneurs in
the region, offering skills training, resources, and market
access opportunities, to help them scale up their businesses.
Founder 
Insights
56

Access to 
Growth Markets
With easy access to fast-growing markets across the MEASA
(Middle East, Africa, and South Asia) region, founders are
expanding internationally and building global businesses from
Dubai.

5 $7.7 trillion
Combined GDP of MEASA
countries.
Source: Innovate Finance
$7.7 trillion
Combined GDP of MEASA
countries.
Source: Innovate Finance
+51%
Rise in GDP between 2002
and 2022.
Source: Transition Investment Lab
+51%
Rise in GDP between 2002
and 2022.
Source: Transition Investment Lab
1st
Dubai International Airport
has been ranked the
world’s number one for
international passengers
for 10 consecutive years.
Source: ACI
1st
Dubai International Airport
has been ranked the
world’s number one for
international passengers
for 10 consecutive years.
Source: ACI
57

Sub-Saharan Africa
By 2030, every $1 invested in digital
technology in Sub-Saharan Africa will
return over $2 for the region's wider
economy. Overcoming key connectivity
barriers could unlock $170b in GDP.

Dubai-headquartered companies are
ideally positioned to tap into the high-
potential region. In October 2024,
cybersecurity company, PROW,
announced plans to boost its expansion
in Africa, in a cybersecurity market
expected to exceed $3.7b by 2025.

Dubai’s DP World plans to spend $3b
on new port and logistics infrastructure
in Africa by 2029.
Pakistan
In May 2024, the UAE announced a $10b
investment in promising economic
sectors in Pakistan and has strategic
partnerships across the technology,
renewable energy, and tourism
industries.
India
In May 2022, the UAE and India signed
the Comprehensive Economic
Partnership Agreement (CEPA) to
increase bilateral trade in goods to
$100b, and services to $15b, within five
years. The agreement reduces or
eliminates tariffs on more than 80% of
product lines.
MEASA is home to more than half the
world’s population; four billion people
with a median age of less than 24
years old, spread across 88 countries
with a combined GDP of $7.7 trillion.
Dubai offers a gateway to this rapidly
expanding region.
Nigeria
Africa' richest man, Aliko Dangote, has
announced plans to establish a family
office in Dubai.
South Africa
There are more than 2,400 South
African companies affiliated or
registered with the Dubai Chambers of
Commerce.
Dubai
The world’s busiest airport for
international passengers, Dubai
International Airport is connected to 273
destinations in 105 countries through
more than 100 airlines.

The Port of Jebel Ali is one of the world's
ten busiest ports and the largest
container port in the Middle East.

Part of the D33 Agenda, the Dubai
Economic Corridors 2033 initiative is
designed to enhance foreign trade with
cities across Africa, Latin America, and
Southeast Asia.
58

Success here comes from being genuinely
engaged with the ecosystem and understanding
how your business can contribute.
Sachin Dev Duggal
Builder
.ai
Founded
2016
Employees
800+
Stage
Series D
Raised
$450m+
Investors
Qatar Investment Authority (QIA), Iconiq Capital, Jungle Ventures, Insight Partners
Sachin is Founder & Chief Wizard at Builder
.ai, the AI-powered composable
software platform that allows every business to become digitally powered.
59

Advice For Founders
The UAE deeply values genuine commitment and long-term
relationships. This isn't a market you can effectively serve
through occasional business trips or remote management. The
real opportunities come from being present, building deep
relationships, and demonstrating your long-term commitment
to the region. The business culture here places a premium on
face-to-face interactions and genuine relationship building –
it's about being part of the community, not just doing business
in it.

Take advantage of the UAE's openness to business
engagement. The government's willingness to engage with
businesses of all sizes and explore public-private partnerships
is unprecedented. Don't be hesitant to engage with
government initiatives or propose collaborative projects –
there's a genuine interest in innovative ideas that can
contribute to the UAE's vision for the future.

Approach the market with a long-term perspective. The UAE has
created an environment that rewards innovation and strategic
thinking. Success here comes from being genuinely engaged
with the ecosystem and understanding how your business can
contribute to and benefit from the region's ambitious vision for
the future.

Understand that you're entering a market that values both
innovation and execution. Take time to understand the local
business environment, build meaningful relationships, and
align your growth strategy with the opportunities that exist
here. The potential is significant, but it requires a thoughtful,
committed approach.
Why Dubai?
Dubai represents an ideal combination of forward-thinking
leadership, business-enabling policies, and a genuine
commitment to technological advancement. What's
remarkable about the UAE is how it's firmly open for
business at every level. You see government leaders and
officials actively engaging with companies of all sizes, from
startups to global enterprises, exploring possibilities for
public-private partnerships.

This openness and accessibility to leadership is unique – it's
not just about having business-friendly policies on paper,
but about having a government that actively participates in
making those policies work for businesses. We're also seeing
a remarkable convergence of skilled professionals and
innovative thinking that's creating a unique environment for
AI development and an ideal foundation for companies like
ours to grow and innovate.

The UAE isn't just a regional hub; it's increasingly becoming
an essential node in the global technology network. While
you don't necessarily need to establish your entire
operation here, having a meaningful presence in the region
can be crucial for global relevance.
60

Dubai’s position as a business hub in MENA
gives us access to emerging markets across
the region.
Jad Antoun
Huspy
Founded
2020
Employees
300
Stage
Series B
Jad is Co-Founder & CEO of Huspy, building the infrastructure of real estate
and mortgages. Huspy allows real estate agents and mortgage brokers to
build and grow their businesses giving buyers and sellers access to faster
liquidity and a more efficient, trusted process to find or sell their homes.
61

What’s Next?
Since launching our super app in Q3 2023, agents have
spent nearly an hour per day using it, showcasing its impact
on their efficiency and profitability. Our focus remains on
delivering scalable, tech-driven solutions for agents and
clients alike.
Advice For Founders
For success in Dubai, adaptability and a strong focus on
collaboration are essential. The market moves quickly, so
staying agile and partnering with both corporates and
startups can provide a competitive edge. Tailor your
offerings to align with local preferences and regulatory
requirements; don’t assume models that work elsewhere will
apply here. Delivering tangible value that improves lives is
also critical, as customers in Dubai demand excellence.
Why Dubai?
Dubai offers a highly conducive innovation ecosystem for
tech companies. The regulatory environment is proactive
and forward-thinking, which is essential for Huspy to
innovate in the home-buying process. The city’s focus on
fostering innovation and access to capital and talent is
crucial for our rapid growth. Dubai’s position as a business
hub in MENA also gives us access to emerging markets
across the region, allowing us to scale efficiently and
expand our tech-driven real estate solutions, perfectly
aligning with Huspy’s vision of transforming the industry.
Building from Dubai
We're currently operating in Dubai, Abu Dhabi, and Madrid,
and recently entered Valencia, with plans to expand further
across Europe and Saudi. Europe presents a significant
opportunity as its real estate value chain doesn’t
adequately reward agents. Huspy aims to change this by
empowering agents with 2-3x more commission compared
to the market, passive income opportunities, and superior
technology.
62

Dubai is a natural choice for fintech expansion
in the region and beyond.
Abdulla Almoayed
T
arabut
Founded
2018
Employees
150
Stage
Series A
Raised
$57m
Investors
Pinnacle Capital, Visa, Tiger Global, Aljazira Capital
Abdulla is Founder & CEO of T
arabut, the MENA region’
s first and largest
regulated open banking platform, connecting a regional network of banks and
fintechs through universal APIs. By offering tools that facilitate and distribute
personalised financial services, T
arabut enables financial institutions to build a
new world of financial services in the MENA region.
63

Why Dubai?
Dubai offers a forward-thinking regulatory environment, a rapidly developing open finance
ecosystem, advanced digital infrastructure, and a strategic position as a business and innovation
hub. This complements our existing operations in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, Manama, Bahrain, and
London, UK, enhancing our capabilities and reach across key markets.

The recent UAE Open Finance Regulation exemplifies the proactive approach taken to support
data-sharing and open banking advancements. These progressive regulatory frameworks not only
ensure compliance and security but also promote creativity and partnerships, allowing us to
develop secure, adaptable financial solutions that meet regulatory standards and evolving market
needs while facilitating collaboration across different sectors.
Expanding in Dubai
Dubai’s status as a hub for talent and its strategic location enable us to access high-potential
markets across the MENA region. While Riyadh, Manama, and London play vital roles by offering
innovation, regulatory support, and global connectivity, Dubai stands out as the next key piece
that enhances our ambition to lead in open banking innovation and service excellence across the
region.

Dubai’s location enables us to explore partnerships and expand our open banking solutions across
a wide network of growth markets. Our recent acquisition of London-based Vyne, a real-time
account-to-account (A2A) payments platform for online businesses, further positions us to offer
enhanced payment capabilities and support our regional growth.

The local tech ecosystem also encourages collaboration between established financial institutions
and fintechs, akin to our successful partnerships in Bahrain (i.e., with FLOOSS, streamlining loan
processes, and with BENEFIT to enhance customer consent authentication). This is instrumental for
us in driving open banking adoption and supporting our vision to make financial services better,
faster, more accessible and more affordable for all.
64

Advice For Founders
Leverage Local Insights. Understanding the market’s unique aspects is key. Take the time
to research consumer behaviour, local business practices, and regulatory requirements.
Partnering with established local firms can also provide valuable insights.

Utilise Available Resources. Dubai’s rich ecosystem offers extensive resources, from the
DIFC Innovation Hub to accelerator programs and networking events. These are invaluable
for building connections and gaining traction in the market.

Don’t Overlook Compliance. Compliance with UAE regulations, especially in financial
services, is critical. Engage with regulators early on and stay aligned with compliance
requirements to maintain trust and reliability.

Avoid Short-Term Focus. Although Dubai’s business pace is fast, lasting success requires a
long-term commitment. Building solid partnerships, adapting to evolving regulations, and
gaining market trust all take time, but they’re essential for sustained growth.
What’s Next?
Tarabut is at a pivotal growth phase, solidifying our position as a leading open banking
solutions enabler. We’ve built a strong network of partnerships with regional banks and
fintech companies, helping to drive open banking adoption and enhance financial services
across the board.

Over the next 1-2 years, our focus is on expanding our product offerings and regional
footprint: we aim to deepen our presence in the UAE and expand regionally as and when
regulations open up opportunities for broader open banking services. Our key goals include
scaling our partnership network, launching new products and successful use cases that
showcase the potential of open finance, driving more partnerships and fostering adoption
in the region.
65

Expanding Sustainably
As the MEASA region develops rapidly and builds out its
infrastructure at the same time, environmental challenges are
coming to the forefront. The financial gap needed to meet
the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals in the
MEASA region by 2030 has expanded to nearly $5t annually.
More private investment in climate technologies and
sustainable finance initiatives are needed to close the gap,
and the UAE is uniquely positioned to mobilise capital into the
region. Companies expanding from Dubai should do so with
sustainability, as well as growth and profit, in mind.

Ease of Business
Within the UAE, companies need to apply for separate
licences to operate within individual jurisdictions. A Dubai-
licensed company that wants to open an office in the emirate
of Sharjah, for example, would need to apply for a new
licence there. Unifying licensing rules and reducing
regulatory hurdles across the MEASA region will help more
companies to scale.
Founder 
Insights
66

Expanding in Dubai:
Legal Checklist
67

Tom Bohills
Founders Law
1. Business Licensing and Registration
Considerations
To establish your business in Dubai, securing a valid trade
licence is crucial. International founders often operate within
Dubai’s free zones, benefiting from 100% founder
ownership, favourable tax policies, and a globally
connected environment. Each free zone offers specific
industry-focused advantages, such as those tailored to
technology, media, healthcare, and logistics.
Advice
Make sure you pick the right Dubai free zone for your
business needs. Dubai free zones are tailored to different
industries such as technology, media, healthcare, and
logistics. Certain Dubai free zones also operate under
different laws. For example, UK-based founders
(especially in Fintech and/or the Crypto space), may prefer
the heavily tech startup focused Dubai International
Financial Centre (DIFC), which operates according to
familiar English common law principles, independent of UAE
federal law.
Resources
The specific Dubai free zone websites provide helpful
detailed guidelines to support founders in making the right
choice (see here for DIFC).
Tom is Founder & Principle at Founders Law, a law firm which partners with hyper-ambitious companies to accelerate
their growth from idea to exit.
68

2. Financial Regulations and Banking
Considerations
Not unlike the UK, the UAE’s regulations on anti-money
laundering (AML) and combating the financing of terrorism
(CFT) are strict, impacting how founder’s businesses open
bank accounts and process payments in the region. Due to
this regulatory scrutiny, many founders looking to operate
in Dubai often experience challenges with obtaining the
requisite bank approvals.
Advice
In their planning stages, founders should ensure that their
businesses’ financial operations meet Dubai’s AML and CFT
requirements. As of February 2024, the UAE was removed
from the global Financial Action Task Force risk register,
making it easier to do business internationally. When
choosing a bank, founders should look for those institutions
with experience in the sector in which the founder’s business
operates, to simplify the account-opening process.
Resources
The UAE Central Bank website offers helpful AML/CFT
guidelines, but consulting with Founders Law can be
particularly beneficial in ensuring that founders fully
understand and meet compliance obligations. Consider also
seeking assistance from local business setup advisors, who
often have partnerships with tech-savvy banks.
3. Intellectual Property Protection
Considerations
In Dubai’s competitive landscape, protecting your
intellectual property (IP) is essential. The UAE is a signatory
to major international IP conventions, but local enforcement
varies. Remember that existing IP protections elsewhere in
the world, such as the UK, do not automatically apply in the
UAE.
Advice
It is crucial for founders to proactively secure their startup’s
or scaleup’s IP to avoid the risks of counterfeiting,
unauthorised use, and infringement, particularly given the
pace of growth and innovation in the region. Founders
should look to proactively register their trademarks, patents,
and copyrights with the UAE Ministry of Economy,
particularly in the founder’s industry niche. Investing in a
local IP lawyer is highly recommended, as they can guide
founders through the nuances of UAE IP law, assist with
documentation, and ensure robust protection measures. If a
founder’s services or products are already protected
elsewhere in the world, it is still essential to follow the
required steps in the UAE to secure IP rights locally in the
region.
Resources
The Ministry of Economy's IP section provides IP resources
and guidelines. Dubai free zones also provide informational
resources and connections to IP experts, further assisting
founders in understanding and securing their IP rights (see
for example, the DIFC’s Guide to the DIFC IP Law).
69

4. Data Protection and Privacy Compliance
Considerations
While the Dubai mainland follows the UAE Federal Data Protection Law, many of Dubai’s
free zones have their own data protection laws. For example, the DIFC’s ‘DIFC Data
Protection Law No. 5 of 2020’, which aligns closely with the General Data Protection
Regulation (GDPR), is widely considered to be one of the most advanced data protection
frameworks in the region. Founders must implement robust data protection policies,
especially as non-compliance can result in substantial fines.
Advice
Where startups and scaleups intend to handle personal data of UAE-based data subjects,
founders will need to adopt strict operational measures to protect user privacy and data
security. UK and EU based founders who choose to operate in a Dubai free zone (such as
the DIFC), would benefit from operating according to familiar practices to those of GDPR
which apply back home. That being said, all UAE law does have its nuances, so consider
working with local legal advisors to navigate specific compliance requirements.
Resources
The UAE's Data Office provides resources (see here), and the UAE's Ministry of Justice
website offers legal insights on compliance.
70

5. Employment Regulations and Visa Sponsorship
Considerations
Dubai’s employment laws are designed to protect both founders themselves and their
prospective employees, covering essential and familiar areas such as employment
contracts, wage protection, health insurance, working hours, and end-of-service benefits. As
a prospective employer, a tech founder considering an expansion or launch in Dubai must
arrange visa sponsorship for themselves and their employees, ensuring legal residency and
work permits, a process that often varies between mainland and Dubai free zone setups.
Advice
While mainland companies must adhere to federal labour laws, most of the Dubai free zones
have their own streamlined employment, visa and HR laws and regulations, often simplifying
compliance for startups and scaleups who are looking to attract talent. It is important for
founders to still acquaint themselves with the intricacies of all such Dubai free zone
employment-related laws and regulations. Many Dubai free zone employment contracts will
often need to include provisions mandated by UAE law and/or by enforced policies specific
to the chosen Dubai free zone (e.g. one-time return flights back to the employee’s home
country per year, reduced working hours for Ramadan observance, and mandatory
inclusion of private healthcare). When it comes to hiring talent, Dubai free zones will also
often partner with local and international recruitment agencies, offering startups and
scaleups easy access to specialised recruitment services that streamline hiring.
Resources
The UAE Ministry of Human Resources and Emiratisation (MOHRE) website provides current
labour regulations and visa guidance. We also recommend consulting with a local lawyer
operating on the ground to ensure that you remain compliant with visa and employment
procedures. Founders Law can provide hands-on assistance, ensuring compliance with
employment regulations and supporting you through each step of the hiring process.
Expanding your business in Dubai 
Get in touch with Founders Law.
71

Supporting Global
Tech Founders  
in Dubai
72

Weaimtomakeitaseasyaspossibleforcompaniestoset
upinDubaiandleveragetheemirateasalaunchpadfor
theirexpansion.
Saeed Al Gergawi
Vice President, Dubai Chamber of Digital Economy
“Tech companies benefit from the ease of
doing business in Dubai.”
At Dubai Chamber of Digital Economy, we are committed to
catering to the individual needs of each company in a way
that makes sense for their business and Dubai’s future
ambitions. Between January 2023 and the end of
September 2024, the chamber attracted nine multinational
digital companies (sMNCs) to Dubai and supported the
establishment and expansion of 1,000+ digital startups in
cooperation with partners from key government entities.
These businesses specialise in future-facing sectors such as
AI, fintech, SaaS, technology, media and
telecommunications, and health tech.
Based on the feedback we receive, international companies
are attracted to the numerous competitive advantages
created by Dubai’s dynamic startup ecosystem. Advanced
digital infrastructure, agile regulations, specialised free
zones, business incubators, and sandboxes ensure an
environment conducive to innovation and growth. Dubai’s
location at the crossroads of Europe, Asia, and Africa is
another important reason they are here. Dubai’s embrace of
future technologies and collaborative culture is bolstered by
access to a diverse talent pool, offering unparalleled
opportunities for startups to thrive in a truly global
marketplace.

73

“We’ve launched initiatives to connect
businesses and investors with opportunities
for growth.”
Dubai Chamber of Digital Economy aims to make it as easy
as possible for companies to set up in Dubai and leverage
the emirate as a launchpad for their expansion, both in the
region and worldwide.

Our initiatives include our ‘Business in Dubai’ platform, a
one-stop digital gateway designed to streamline the process
of establishing a company in Dubai. The platform offers
convenient access to essential services in areas including
banking, accounting, logistics, and talent acquisition,
together with business matchmaking tools to introduce
companies to the right partners and customers.

The chamber also hosts Expand North Star, the world’s
largest event for global startups and investors. This annual
event provides participating startups with a unique platform
to build connections, secure investments, and accelerate
business growth. Founders, venture capitalists, global tech
leaders, and key ecosystem enablers from around the world
attend to forge business deals, expand their networks, and
exchange valuable knowledge on the latest innovations
shaping the future of the digital economy.

In addition, we organise trade missions to priority markets
around the world to facilitate the global expansion of Dubai-
based companies. Dubai International Chamber’s powerful
network of 33 representative offices around the world
supports these efforts, providing access to timely market
intelligence as well as business matching and stakeholder
engagement activities.

Dubai Chamber of Digital Economy also spearheads the
App Olympics, a global competition open to international
startups interested in expanding into the region. This comes
as part of the ‘Create Apps in Dubai’ initiative, which seeks
to position Dubai as a leading global hub for the
development of cutting-edge mobile applications.
“Dubai offers a clear path to success for
companies and individuals that can match
its ambition.”
As a global incubator for innovative ideas and technologies,
Dubai is home to an enabling ecosystem that proactively
supports all types of digital companies throughout every
stage of their growth journeys. We encourage international
founders to leverage all of the resources and incentives
available to accelerate their global growth.

Initiatives such as ‘Business in Dubai’ help startups
overcome any obstacles to market entry and set up easily in
the emirate, while Expand North Star and the App Olympics
create exciting opportunities for digital businesses seeking
to scale their operations. In addition, numerous co-working
spaces, government-backed and private-sector incubators,
accelerators, and sandboxes provide a nurturing
environment for startups in Dubai.
Dubai Chamber of Digital Economy is committed to
providing all support necessary to technology companies
seeking to establish their operations and achieve
sustainable business success in the emirate and beyond. As
we continue to work towards unlocking the full potential of
the digital economy, we look forward to welcoming many
more ambitious and innovative startups to Dubai.
74

Startups to Watch
75

DTEK.ai
Founders
Sanad Yaghi, Ali Al Sayegh, Shadi Joulani
Stage
Pre-Series A
Raised
$21.85m
Investors
BECO Capital, GFC, Rocketship VC, Comma
Capital, Plug and Play
DTEK.ai
AI & DeepTech
Founders
Sanad Yaghi, Ali Al Sayegh, Shadi Joulani
Stage
Pre-Series A
Raised
$21.85m
Investors
BECO Capital, GFC, Rocketship VC, Comma
Capital, Plug and Play
DTEK.ai is shaping the future of retail with the transformative power of
computer vision and AI. Its proprietary object recognition models are designed
to revolutionise retail operations, unlocking efficiencies, enhancing data
transparency, and automating workflows to create smarter, more responsive
businesses. At the forefront of this transformation is SWIFT, a checkout solution
which eliminates the need for barcodes, powered by advanced computer
vision technology.
CozmoX Al
Founders
Nuha Hashem, Alok Kumar
Stage
Seed
Raised
$3m
Investors
Y Combinator, Dubai Future District Fund (DFDF),
Goodwater Capital, Rebel Fund, Trampoline
Venture Partners, ZEMU VC
CozmoX Al
AI & DeepTech
Founders
Nuha Hashem, Alok Kumar
Stage
Seed
Raised
$3m
Investors
Y Combinator, Dubai Future District Fund (DFDF),
Goodwater Capital, Rebel Fund, Trampoline
Venture Partners, ZEMU VC
CozmoX AI provides companies with smart voice AI employees that can talk
and work just like humans. CozmoX AI’s employees are complete digital workers
who never sleep and can independently manage entire business processes,
handle all those repetitive tasks that take up so much time, and can be
implemented and deployed in businesses of all sizes within minutes, instead of
weeks, through CozmoX AI’s no-code platform.
AI & DeepTech

Immensa
Founders
Fahmi AlShawwa
Stage
Series A+
Raised
$27m
Investors
Global Ventures, Endeavor Catalyst Fund,
Shorooq Partners, Energy Capital Group (ECG),
VentureSouq
Immensa
Ecommerce, SaaS & Supply Chains
Founders
Fahmi AlShawwa
Stage
Series A+
Raised
$27m
Investors
Global Ventures, Endeavor Catalyst Fund,
Shorooq Partners, Energy Capital Group (ECG),
VentureSouq
Immensa has developed a first-of-its-kind technology that enables companies
in the energy and utilities sectors to produce spare parts locally, on demand,
eliminating the need for shipping and warehousing, which typically cost mid-
sized companies hundreds of millions of dollars. Immensa360, its end-to-end
platform, enables the seamless digitisation of spare parts. With access to
Immensa's largest library of digitized components, organisations can send files
instead of physical parts across the globe, transforming the spare parts supply
chain.
AI & DeepTech
XPANCEO
Founders
Roman Axelrod, Valentin Volkov
Stage
Seed
Raised
$40m
Investors
Opportunity Ventures
XPANCEO
AI & DeepTech
Founders
Roman Axelrod, Valentin Volkov
Stage
Seed
Raised
$40m
Investors
Opportunity Ventures
XPANCEO is a deep tech company developing the next generation of
computing through smart contact lenses. This innovative device integrates the
functions of multiple gadgets, such as smartphones, laptops, and
smartwatches, offering augmented reality, health monitoring, and super vision
in an invisible and seamless form

.

baraka
Founders
Feras Jalbout
Stage
Series A
Raised
$27m
baraka
FinTech
Founders
Feras Jalbout
Stage
Series A
Raised
$27m
baraka is a leading investment platform designed exclusively for GCC
investors, empowering users to make informed, strategic, and long-term
financial decisions.
FinTech & InsurTech
Seez
Founders
Tarek Kabrit, Andrew Kabrit
Stage
Series B
Raised
$21m+
Investors
Pinewood, Crealize, Phoenician Funds, B&Y,
Wamda Capital, Nuwa Capital
Seez
Founders
Tarek Kabrit, Andrew Kabrit
Stage
Series B
Raised
$21m+
Investors
Pinewood, Crealize, Phoenician Funds, B&Y,
Wamda Capital, Nuwa Capital
Seez provides innovative software solutions to car dealerships and OEM
regional offices. Seez’s mission is to help dealerships improve their customer
experience and increase sales. Products include a digital buying journey
(SeezClick), a CRM and inventory management system (SeezPad), an
advanced ChatGPT interface (Seezar), and multiple AI and digital marketing
services (SeezNitro and SeezBoost).
76

Democrance
Founders
Michele Grosso, Alberto Perez, Damian Dimmich
Stage
Series A
Raised
$6m
Investors
Global Ventures, Wa’ed by aramco
Democrance
FinTech & InsurTech
Founders
Michele Grosso, Alberto Perez, Damian Dimmich
Stage
Series A
Raised
$6m
Investors
Global Ventures, Wa’ed by aramco
Democrance is a SaaS insurance technology platform that helps insurers and
insurance brokers digitise the insurance value chain. Operating across 15
markets in the Middle East, Sub-Saharan Africa, Southeast Asia, and Latin
America, Democrance helps insurers increase their digital sales and access
new customer segments.
Fasset
Founders
Mohammad Raafi Hossain, Daniel Ahmed
Stage
Pre-Series B
Raised
$27m
Investors
Investcorp, Liberty City Ventures, Fatima Gobi
Ventures, Primal Capital, Wealthwell Ventures,
FHS Capital, VN2 Capital, myAsiaVC, Soma
Capital, Kanoo Capital, Formus Capital, FHS
Capital, local family offices
Fasset
FinTech & InsurTech
Founders
Mohammad Raafi Hossain, Daniel Ahmed
Stage
Pre-Series B
Raised
$27m
Investors
Investcorp, Liberty City Ventures, Fatima Gobi
Ventures, Primal Capital, Wealthwell Ventures,
FHS Capital, VN2 Capital, myAsiaVC, Soma
Capital, Kanoo Capital, Formus Capital, FHS
Capital, local family offices
Fasset is a blockchain-based fintech company that allows people and
businesses to save, invest, send and spend money at the tap of a button.
Fasset’s mission is to drive financial access for 2 billion people across emerging
markets.
FinTech & InsurTech
77

Flow48
Founders
Idriss Al Rifai, Karim Khattar
Stage
Pre-Series A
Raised
$29m
Investors
Breega, SpeedInvest, Daphni, 212, Endeavor
Catalyst
Flow48
FinTech & InsurTech
Founders
Idriss Al Rifai, Karim Khattar
Stage
Pre-Series A
Raised
$29m
Investors
Breega, SpeedInvest, Daphni, 212, Endeavor
Catalyst
Flow48 provides revenue-based financing solutions to SMEs, enabling them to
convert future revenues into immediate capital with flexible repayment terms.
Fuze
Founders
Mo Ali Yusuf, Arpit Mehta, Srijan Shetty
Stage
Seed
Raised
$14m
Investors
Further Ventures, Liberty City Ventures
Fuze
FinTech & InsurTech
Founders
Mo Ali Yusuf, Arpit Mehta, Srijan Shetty
Stage
Seed
Raised
$14m
Investors
Further Ventures, Liberty City Ventures
Fuze is a first-of-its-kind, regulated digital assets infrastructure platform in
MENA. Driven by a solutions-based approach, Fuze helps financial services
providers to strategise, organise and implement digital assets infrastructure
and quickly and securely launch regulated, world-class products.
FinTech & InsurTech
78

Kema
Founders
Michael Ghandour, Akash Rao
Stage
Pre-Seed
Investors
Dubai Future District Fund, Speedinvest
Kema
FinTech & InsurTech
Founders
Michael Ghandour, Akash Rao
Stage
Pre-Seed
Investors
Dubai Future District Fund, Speedinvest
Kema is a fintech startup building an accounts receivables automation and
financing platform for SMEs. Kema aims to accelerate cashflow for businesses
that use invoices and payment terms as part of their financial operations and
fuel their growth potential.
Lune
Founders
Alexandre Soued, Helal Tariq Lootah
Stage
Seed
Raised
$2.4m
Investors
Dubai Future District Fund, Plus.VC, Flat6 Labs,
Judah.vc, Reach Holding
Lune
FinTech & InsurTech
Founders
Alexandre Soued, Helal Tariq Lootah
Stage
Seed
Raised
$2.4m
Investors
Dubai Future District Fund, Plus.VC, Flat6 Labs,
Judah.vc, Reach Holding
Lune is a data platform that works with banks, fintechs, and card issuers to
transform transaction data into transaction intelligence.
FinTech & InsurTech
79

NymCard
Founders
Omar Onsi
Stage
Series A+
Raised
$35m
Investors
DisruptAD, Reciprocal Ventures, Shorooq Partners,
Chimera, DFDF, Knollwood, Endeavor Catalyst,
OTF Jasoor Ventures, VentureSouq, Oman
Technology Fund
NymCard
FinTech & InsurTech
Founders
Omar Onsi
Stage
Series A+
Raised
$35m
Investors
DisruptAD, Reciprocal Ventures, Shorooq Partners,
Chimera, DFDF, Knollwood, Endeavor Catalyst,
OTF Jasoor Ventures, VentureSouq, Oman
Technology Fund
NymCard is MENA’s trusted partner in embedded finance, helping businesses
and platforms integrate a full suite of financial services with ease.
Pemo
Founders
Alessandro Duri, Ayham Gorani, Valerie Konde,
Saed Al Ghorani
Stage
Pre-Series A
Raised
$18m
Investors
Augmentum Fintech, Speedinvest, Shorooq
Partners, Cherry Ventures, Fintech Collective, BY
Partners
Pemo
FinTech & InsurTech
Founders
Alessandro Duri, Ayham Gorani, Valerie Konde,
Saed Al Ghorani
Stage
Pre-Series A
Raised
$18m
Investors
Augmentum Fintech, Speedinvest, Shorooq
Partners, Cherry Ventures, Fintech Collective, BY
Partners
Pemo offers an all-in-one spend management platform for SMEs in the MENA
region, featuring prepaid corporate cards, invoice payment, and expense
tracking. Founded in 2022, it serves over 4,000 businesses, helping streamline
spending processes with AI-driven tools and corporate card issuance.
FinTech & InsurTech
80

Tarabut
Founders
Abdulla Almoayed
Stage
Series A
Raised
$57.2m
Investors
AlJazira Capital, Pinnacle Capital, Visa, Tiger
Global Management
Tarabut
FinTech & InsurTech
Founders
Abdulla Almoayed
Stage
Series A
Raised
$57.2m
Investors
AlJazira Capital, Pinnacle Capital, Visa, Tiger
Global Management
Tarabut is the MENA region’s leading regulated open banking platform,
connecting a regional network of banks and fintechs through universal APIs. By
offering tools that facilitate and distribute personalised financial services,
Tarabut enables financial institutions to build a new world of financial services
in the MENA region.
Wafeq
Founders
Nadim Alameddine
Stage
Series A
Raised
$10.5m
Investors
9900 Capital, Raed Ventures, Wamda Capital
Wafeq
FinTech & InsurTech
Founders
Nadim Alameddine
Stage
Series A
Raised
$10.5m
Investors
9900 Capital, Raed Ventures, Wamda Capital
Wafeq is a modern and easy-to-use software that powers every finance-related
need of small to medium businesses in the Middle East, starting with
accounting.
FinTech & InsurTech
81

Zenda
Founders
Raman Thiagarajan, Haseeb Ahmed
Stage
Seed
Raised
$14m
Investors
STV (Saudi Technology Ventures), COTU, Global
Founders Capital, VentureSouq
Zenda
FinTech & InsurTech
Founders
Raman Thiagarajan, Haseeb Ahmed
Stage
Seed
Raised
$14m
Investors
STV (Saudi Technology Ventures), COTU, Global
Founders Capital, VentureSouq
Zenda is a specialist financial technology partner helping educational
institutions to digitise payments, boost collection efficiency, and provide
flexibility solutions to parents. For families, zenda offers an unparalleled one-
stop experience to discover and manage all education related payments.
Zest
Founders
Zuhair Shamma, Rawan Baddour
Stage
Pre-Series A
Investors
Morgan Stanley Ventures, Middle East Venture
Partners, Dubai Future District Fund, 500 Global,
NUWA Capital
Zest
FinTech & InsurTech
Founders
Zuhair Shamma, Rawan Baddour
Stage
Pre-Series A
Investors
Morgan Stanley Ventures, Middle East Venture
Partners, Dubai Future District Fund, 500 Global,
NUWA Capital
Zest is building transactional infrastructure for the alternative asset class,
digitising workflows, enhancing transparency, and simplifying transactions to
empower all stakeholders to seamlessly transact.
FinTech & InsurTech
82

Ziina
Founders
Faisal Toukan, Sarah Toukan
Stage
Series A
Raised
$30m
Investors
Altos Ventures, Fintech Collective, FJ Labs, Avenir
Growth, Y Combinator, Activant Capital, MEVP,
Jabbar Internet Group
Ziina
FinTech & InsurTech
Founders
Faisal Toukan, Sarah Toukan
Stage
Series A
Raised
$30m
Investors
Altos Ventures, Fintech Collective, FJ Labs, Avenir
Growth, Y Combinator, Activant Capital, MEVP,
Jabbar Internet Group
Ziina is the leading financial platform for consumers and entrepreneurs in the
UAE who need a fast and secure way to spend, receive, and grow their money.
Growdash
Founders
Sean Trevaskis, Enver Sorkun
Stage
Seed
Raised
$2.6m
Investors
Salica, Oresaya Capital, Hub71, +VC, TPN
Investments
Growdash
FoodTech & HealthTech
Founders
Sean Trevaskis, Enver Sorkun
Stage
Seed
Raised
$2.6m
Investors
Salica, Oresaya Capital, Hub71, +VC, TPN
Investments
Growdash empowers restaurants to execute profitable growth strategies
across digital channels like talabat, Deliveroo, and Careem. Simply, it makes
data make sense by helping restaurants operate like ecommerce businesses.
FinTech & InsurTech FoodTech & HealthTech

Kaso
Founders
Manar Alkassar, Ahmed Soliman
Stage
Seed
Raised
$17m
Investors
GFC, Y Combinator, MSA, BY Ventures, HALA
Ventures, SEEDRA Ventures, Spade Ventures, KBW
Ventures
Kaso
Founders
Manar Alkassar, Ahmed Soliman
Stage
Seed
Raised
$17m
Investors
GFC, Y Combinator, MSA, BY Ventures, HALA
Ventures, SEEDRA Ventures, Spade Ventures, KBW
Ventures
KASO is a B2B tech platform that uses advanced AI to digitalise and streamline
procurement between restaurants and suppliers, enhancing efficiency,
reducing waste, and promoting sustainability in the F&B industry.
Seafood Souq
Founders
Sheikh Fahim Al Qasimi, Sean Dennis
Stage
Pre-Series B
Raised
$23.5m
Investors
Universum, Global Ventures, GRIL Ventures,
Venture Souq Capital, GateWay Capital, Future
Investment Institute, Mix of HNWI and family
offices
Seafood Souq
Founders
Sheikh Fahim Al Qasimi, Sean Dennis
Stage
Pre-Series B
Raised
$23.5m
Investors
Universum, Global Ventures, GRIL Ventures,
Venture Souq Capital, GateWay Capital, Future
Investment Institute, Mix of HNWI and family
offices
Seafood Souq offers end-to-end digital solutions for the seafood sector,
facilitating traceability, trade, and regulatory compliance for transparent and
efficient supply chains. Its mission is to use technology to transform the
seafood industry by implementing traceability across the entire supply chain,
empowering industry stakeholders to make informed decisions that safeguard
a sustainable future for both the oceans and consumers.
83

Supy
Founders
Dani El-Zein, Ibrahim Bou Ncoula, Yazeed bin
Busayyis
Stage
Seed
Raised
$9.5m
Investors
BECO Capital, Global Ventures, Cotu Ventures,
Valia Ventures, AMK Investment Office
Supy
Founders
Dani El-Zein, Ibrahim Bou Ncoula, Yazeed bin
Busayyis
Stage
Seed
Raised
$9.5m
Investors
BECO Capital, Global Ventures, Cotu Ventures,
Valia Ventures, AMK Investment Office
Supy is the ultimate inventory management, procurement, and business
intelligence software for multi-branch restaurants. Supy gives F&B operators
clarity on what’s actually happening in every branch, increasing efficiency
across the back-of-house, driving down food costs, and increasing restaurant
profits.
Valeo
Founders
Sundeep Singh Sahni, Nadin Karadag
Stage
Pre-Series A
Raised
$9m
Investors
Nuwa Capital, Global Ventures, Shorooq, DFDF,
Global Founders Capital, 500 Sanabil, Midshift
Capital
Valeo
Founders
Sundeep Singh Sahni, Nadin Karadag
Stage
Pre-Series A
Raised
$9m
Investors
Nuwa Capital, Global Ventures, Shorooq, DFDF,
Global Founders Capital, 500 Sanabil, Midshift
Capital
A category leader in longevity and weightloss, Valeo Health focuses on
delivering convenient, personalised, and proactive healthcare services at
home.
84

Cercli
Founders
David Reche, Akeed Azmi
Stage
Seed
Raised
$4m
Investors
AFORE CAPITAL, COTU Ventures, YCombinator,
Rebel Fund
Cercli
HR Tech
Founders
David Reche, Akeed Azmi
Stage
Seed
Raised
$4m
Investors
AFORE CAPITAL, COTU Ventures, YCombinator,
Rebel Fund
Cercli is the single modern platform for MENA businesses to hire, manage, and
pay their global workforce. By providing a single source of truth, Cercli ensures
your data is accurate, secure, and easy to access, so you can focus on what
matters most – your people.
Merit Incentives
Founders
Julie Barbier, Thrishan Padayachi
Stage
Series B
Raised
$19.5m
Investors
SAIB - The Saudi Investment Bank, Tech Invest
Merit Incentives
HR Tech
Founders
Julie Barbier, Thrishan Padayachi
Stage
Series B
Raised
$19.5m
Investors
SAIB - The Saudi Investment Bank, Tech Invest
Merit Incentives is a global engagement technology and solutions company
enabling businesses to increase customer and employee engagement, via a
suite of innovative cloud-based SaaS platforms, enterprise solutions,
applications, and software.
HR Tech
85

Ogram
Founders
Shafiq Khartabil, Karim Kouatly, Karim Beyhum
Stage
Series A
Raised
$5m+
Investors
Global Ventures, Oresaya Capital
Ogram
HR Tech
Founders
Shafiq Khartabil, Karim Kouatly, Karim Beyhum
Stage
Series A
Raised
$5m+
Investors
Global Ventures, Oresaya Capital
Ogram is disrupting the manpower space by changing the way people work
and companies hire. Ogram empowers workers to take back control of their
schedules, earnings, and their lives, while businesses get a supercharged
flexible workforce that is engaged, driven, reliable, and compliant.
Huspy
Founders
Jad Antoun
Stage
Series B
Investors
Balderton Capital, Fifth Wall
Huspy
PropTech
Founders
Jad Antoun
Stage
Series B
Investors
Balderton Capital, Fifth Wall
Huspy is building the infrastructure of real estate and mortgages. Huspy allows
real estate agents and mortgage brokers to build and grow their businesses
giving buyers and sellers access to faster liquidity and a more efficient, trusted
process to find or sell their homes.
HR Tech PropTech
86

Keyper
Founders
Omar Abu Innab, Walid Shihabi
Stage
Seed
Raised
$11.3m
Investors
Access Bridge, MEVP, BECO, Jabbar Group, Annex
Investment, Vivium Holding, Lafana Capital,
Signature Estates
Keyper
PropTech
Founders
Omar Abu Innab, Walid Shihabi
Stage
Seed
Raised
$11.3m
Investors
Access Bridge, MEVP, BECO, Jabbar Group, Annex
Investment, Vivium Holding, Lafana Capital,
Signature Estates
Keyper is an automated, digitised solution with embedded financial solutions
for real estate investment management, empowering property owners with
visibility, data, and insights into their real estate portfolio.
Nomad Homes
Founders
Helen Chen, Damien Drap, Daniel Piehler
Stage
Series A
Raised
$40m
Investors
01a, Acrew, Partech, Precursor, Abstract, Class 5
Global, and the founders of Zillow and Opendoor
Nomad Homes
PropTech
Founders
Helen Chen, Damien Drap, Daniel Piehler
Stage
Series A
Raised
$40m
Investors
01a, Acrew, Partech, Precursor, Abstract, Class 5
Global, and the founders of Zillow and Opendoor
Nomad Homes is building a vertical AI solution for real estate agents that
automates work from prospecting to closing. Led by its AI copilot named Remy,
Nomad powers front office client interactions and will soon automate back
office functions. The company operates in the UAE, France, and Spain.
PropTech
87

Qstay
Founders
Artur Khayrullin, Alec Redelman
Stage
Pre-Series A
Raised
$14m
Investors
Equity: Private investors. Debt providers: Deem
Finance, Beehive, Dubai Islamic Bank, Abu Dhabi
Islamic Bank
Qstay
PropTech
Founders
Artur Khayrullin, Alec Redelman
Stage
Pre-Series A
Raised
$14m
Investors
Equity: Private investors. Debt providers: Deem
Finance, Beehive, Dubai Islamic Bank, Abu Dhabi
Islamic Bank
Qstay is transforming the global hospitality and rental investment market with
its Al-driven platform, delivering seamless guest experiences that meet 5-star
hotel standards while cutting operating costs by up to 50%. With $18m
revenue in 2024, 158% CAR since 2020, and 300+ properties across nine
markets, Qstay offers property owners hands-off management, higher ROl,
and ambitious growth to $40m+ revenue by 2025.
Fintopio
Founders
Steve Milton
Stage
Seed
Raised
$10m
Fintopio
Web3
Founders
Steve Milton
Stage
Seed
Raised
$10m
Fintopio is a leading Web3 wallet that simplifies the way you send, receive, and
store cryptocurrencies and NFTs. With support for multiple blockchain networks
and 100+ tokens, Fintopio provides the flexibility to manage a wide range of
digital assets, all from a single platform.
PropTech Web3
88

myco
Founders
Umair Masoom Usmani
Stage
Series A
Raised
$15m
Investors
Daman Investments, Aptos Labs, B Digital, Mocha
Ventures, Art3 Foundation, Ghaf Capital Partners,
Mix Media Network, Factor6 Capital Partners,
Enjinstarter
myco
Web3
Founders
Umair Masoom Usmani
Stage
Series A
Raised
$15m
Investors
Daman Investments, Aptos Labs, B Digital, Mocha
Ventures, Art3 Foundation, Ghaf Capital Partners,
Mix Media Network, Factor6 Capital Partners,
Enjinstarter
myco is a Web3 video streaming, funding, production, and distribution
platform where viewers earn from watching content and creators earn from
creating content.
Web3
89

VC Investment Trends
We used tech startup and investment data provided by
Dealroom – covering valuations, investments, and growth
sectors – to provide an overview of the Dubai investment
ecosystem. All currency data is in USD.

All 2024 investment figures in this section were recorded in
November 2024. Therefore, total 2024 numbers can be
expected to increase slightly, especially given the known
reporting lag for early-stage funding rounds in particular.

VC investment figures (money raised by tech startups)
include all venture-type investments, from VC firms as well as
corporate venture investments and venture investments by
family offices, angel networks etc. When referring to funds,
we include VC, PE, growth, and corporate funds.

The figure for the annual value of the Dubai tech ecosystem is
based on the combined sum of the valuations of Dubai-
headquartered tech companies founded in the region since
1990 for each year over the past decade.

When total investment is broken down by industry, the
combined total investment figure per industry does not
equate to total investment in Dubai tech startups. This is
because some companies are counted as operating in more
than one industry, so the resulting figure would be greater.

Startups to Watch
Our Dubai startups to watch list is based on an in-house
selection process, which includes measurement against key
selection criteria (detailed below), external data sources
including Dealroom and Pitchbook, and review and cross-
comparison with company nominations from leading
investors and founders within the Founders Forum Group
community.

All companies included in the list (at time of report release)
Are headquartered in Dubai
Are pre-Seed to Series B stage
Have raised a funding round in the past three years (since
2021)
Have raised a minimum $2m in total funding
Were founded in the past decade (since 2015).

Companies were vetted for inclusion based on these criteria
as well as their prominence in terms of media coverage and
their Dealroom Signal rating.
TotellthestoryoftheDubaitech
ecosystem’sgrowthanditsfuture,we
pulleddataandinsightsfromvarious
sources,citedwithinthereport,aswellasa
seriesofconversationswithleadingtech
foundersandinvestorsactiveinDubaiand
acrossthewiderMEASAregion.
Methodology
90

Dubai-Tech-The-Road-to-2033-Founders-Forum-Group.pdf

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