#35 This Week In MENA's Startup Scene🚀
Dive into the latest Startup News, Trends & Opportunities shaping the MENA region
Welcome back to your weekly journey through the MENA startup landscape!
As we mark the October 7th anniversary of war on Gaza, our hearts go out to all those affected by the ongoing genocide and war crimes in the region. We stand in solidarity with our Palestinian community, embracing resilience and hope for a brighter future - From the river to the sea, Palestine, one day, will be free!
Topics 3l Mashi This Week:
Fundraising Roulette
In The News
Ecosystem Updates
Startups Highlights
Programs & Opportunities
Cool Events
Techy Bytes
Fundraising Roulette
Al Menu (KSA/SaaS) raised $10m round
Quantum (KSA/Adtech) raised $7m pre-series A
Podeo (UAE/Podcast Distribution) raised $5.4m Series A
HealthStay.io (UAE/Saas) raised $500k seed
BiggerBlueButton (UAE/EdTech) raised $15k Series A
MGX (UAE) invested in OpenAI world record $6.6B round
Konnect Networks (Tunisia/Fintech) raised $1.3m seed
Kredit (Egypt/Fintech) raised $1m round
Beltone Capital (Egypt) invested in VelyVelo (France)
Cyfr Capital (Oman) invested in 8 startups
In The News…
Mubadala (UAE) acquired Babel (Spain)
UAE issued first commercial gambling licence
Dubai Quality Group launched 1st Global AI Award
Dubai launched new IP Hub
SAMA issued new principles for finance and real estate companies
Iraq introduced new regulations to modernize payments and banking
Bokra (Egypt) & CIC (Canada) launched fund to back entrepreneurial students
Ecosystem Updates
Changelabs (Egypt) welcomed new fintech cohort
Blossom (KSA) celebrated a decade of accelerating startups
Entlaq partnered with Savannah to support Sudanese entrepreneurs in Egypt
Zain launched Zain Great Idea training camp
Playbook is hiring for multiple roles
Beban Crowdfunding to Launch SME Loans in 2025
Startup Highlights
Keyper (UAE/Proptech) launched Rent-Now Pay-Later marketplace
Space42 (UAE/Spacetech) debuted on Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange
Nice One (KSA/eCommerce) received approval to go public
Mamun (Oman/Fintech) won best Islamic Finance startup award
Klivvr (Egypt/Fintech) launched Egypt’s first family financial product
Open For Application
Sanabil Startup Unlocked by 500 Global | Saudi Arabia
Llama Design Drive AI Accelerator Program | Saudi Arabia
NBB Digital Banking Challenge | Bahrain
FoodStart Incubator Program | Tunisia
Factory 619 Incubation Program | Tunisia
Great Arab Minds initiative | MENA
Must Attend Events This Week
Women Leaders with Tech | 07.10 Dubai
VC Spotlight Series by HUB71 | 09.10 Abu Dhabi
24six9 Dxb Pitch Roulette | 11.10 Dubai
Expand North Star | 13-16.10 Dubai
GITEX | 14-18.10 Dubai
SuperReturn Middle East | 14.10 Dubai
SuperBridge Summit | 15.10 Dubai
Techy Bytes
Kuwait to introduce AI in high schools
PwC Middle East launched region’s first Legal GenAI offering
Huawei revealed 100B Arabic LLM
Google will start paying Egyptian creators in local currency
OpenAI launched new Canvas ChatGPT interface
That wraps up this week's edition! Thank you for joining us on this journey through the dynamic world of MENA startups.
Stay tuned for more opportunities, trends, and insights next week.
Until next time,