#28 This Week In MENAA's Startup Scene🚀
Dive into the latest Startup News, Trends & Opportunities shaping the MENA region
Welcome to this week’s MENA startup roundup! We’ve got the latest on funding, tech innovations, and exciting upcoming events.
Trending This Week:
Weekly Funding Roundup
In The News
Startups Highlights
Upcoming Programs & Opportunities
Cool Events
Interesting Stuff
Techy Bytes
Let’s get started!
Weekly Funding Roundup
Mealplanet (UAE/FoodTech) secured $6 million in seed funding
Pentagon Games (KSA/Gaming) secured $6 million in seed funding
Yalla Plus (KSA/SaaS) closed a $2.7 million investment round
Aramco Ventures (KSA) invested in Promethean Particles (UK)
E-ramo (Egypt/Digital Solutions) closed a seed investment round
In The News
Mena startup funding trebled
Gulf IPOs raised 45% more in Q2 than last year
Qatar Investment Authority invested $180 million in TechMet
Ooredoo invested QAR 2.8 million to advance Qatar's quantum technology
Aramco pledged $100 million in funding for KAUST research
Abu Dhabi added 30 new activities to its freelancer license
Oman unveiled new corporate and VAT tax rates aligned with Vision 2040
Beltone Holding secured a license to offer financial solutions in Egypt
Startup Highlights
Ehfaaz (UAE/Cleantech) was featured for transforming waste in Khaleej Times
Thndr (Egypt/Fintech) launched Alpaca to improve investment access MENA
Spendwisor (Qatar/Fintech) partnered with Al Jazeera for BNPL service in Qatar
NOW Money (UAE/Fintech) partnered with CBI and Network International
Ziina (UAE/Fintech) secured an SVF License to enhance its financial services
Four Egyptian nominations at the GSA Edition X awards in Istanbul
Upcoming Programs & Opportunities
Startupbootcamp Energy and Sustainability Accelerator - Saudi Arabia
Llama Design Drive Acceleration Program | UAE, KSA, Egypt
WAIC Investment Readiness Bootcamp | Jordan
Access Sharjah Challenge (ASC) | Sharjah
QBIC Lean Startup Program | Qatar
EdTech Incubate Program | Egypt
Must Attend Events This Week
Building Products In The AI Era with Sohaib Thiab - 19/08 | Amman
World Environmental Social & Governance Summit - 20/08 | Dubai
VC Perspectives on Global Startup Fundraising in 2024 - 20/08 | Virtual
Entr SUMMIT 2024- Entrepreneurs Day - 21/08 | Dhahran
Startup Funding in GCC: How to Raise Money - 21/08 | Virtual
Introduction to Idea Lab 2024 By Intelak Hub - 22/08 | Virtual
Interesting Stuff
Driverless cars are set to roll out for Saudi officials by next year
A comprehensive guide on how to spend your cryptocurrency
Mubadala Capital puts its faith in biotech startups
Watch Blockchain Basics for Startups session by Takween Accelerator
Explore a deep dive into women’s role in MENA/GCC tech by Stephanie Nour Prince
Report on The MENA Economic Context 2024 is now available
Techy Bytes
MBZUAI presented record-breaking AI research
The Technology Innovation Institute (TII) launched a new large language model in Abu Dhabi
Pixel 9 lineup and other devices unveiled at Made by Google 2024
Epic Games launched its own app store
Acer launched its AI all-in-one PCs
Telegram added new monetization features for creators
Gemini will now take notes on Google Meet
Everything you need to know about Microsoft Copilot
That’s all for this edition! We hope you’re inspired by these updates and look forward to bringing you more next week.
Until then,