Basel Kilany

New gateway into the MENA region: apply for the Digital Startups Scale Up Program in Dubai 🚀 Tumar Innovation Hub, in partnership with DIFC Innovation Hub and supported by Astana Hub and IT PARK Uzbekistan, is opening doors for Central Asian founders. This fall, the UAE will host the first-ever acceleration program tailored for startups from Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan, helping them localize, scale, and access opportunities across the MENA region. The acceleration program consists of a pre-selection and selection phase, a preparation phase, a program phase, Demo Day, and a post-program phase. To be considered for participation, startups have to meet the following requirements: 🔹A mature startup with sustainable traction in the country of residence 🔹Preparedness to localize the company’s operations, team, and product for the UAE and MENA market 🔹A compelling pitch deck outlining the rationale and strategic fit for expansion into the UAE 🔹Availability of resources to relocate a founder or co-founder to the UAE for the full 8-week duration of the program The program will run from mid-September to mid-November 2025, and the application starts now. Application is available at the link: https://lnkd.in/deDeYfd5  Deadline: June 20

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Proud to support home-grown creative tech in the MENA region! Thrilled to share that Beyond.xyz is backing rmz.ai in its $100K pre-seed and partnering as a build studio. Their vision: to amplify everyone's creativity with AI-powered creative agents that take content from brief to production-ready. Fast! First up: a “product photographer” that turns ordinary product images into polished, campaign-ready visuals in seconds. Next: agents for video editing, audio design, and more, all in a single, user-friendly interface. At Beyond, our virtual production expertise will help the team accelerate quality, scale, and real-world adoption. If you’re a brand, marketplace, or studio ready to move from hours to seconds, let’s talk. Congrats to the rmz.ai team, and thanks to @Arageek for the spotlight. #AI #GenAI #CreativeTech #ContentCreation #VirtualProduction #SaudiStartups #MENA #BeyondXYZ #rmzai

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𝐌𝐄𝐍𝐀 𝐏𝐫𝐞-𝐒𝐞𝐞𝐝 & 𝐒𝐞𝐞𝐝 𝐅𝐮𝐧𝐝𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐍𝐞𝐰𝐬 | 𝟐𝟔 𝐌𝐚𝐲 – 𝟏 𝐉𝐮𝐧𝐞 𝟐𝟎𝟐𝟓 Here are some notable rounds from the past week: Stitch (🇸🇦 Saudi Arabia | $10M Seed) Stitch powers fintech innovation by offering infrastructure APIs that enable developers to build custom financial products. Taawoni | تعاوني (🇸🇦 Saudi Arabia | $1.6M Seed) Taawoni is transforming education through an AI-powered mentorship and training platform designed to automate and personalize learning experiences. Birdeye (🇸🇦 Saudi Arabia | $586K Pre-Seed) BirdEye supports small retailers with tools that streamline operations, inventory, and sales, helping brick-and-mortar shops compete in the digital age. Toolmart Inc (🇮🇶 Iraq | Undisclosed Seed) Toolmart is digitizing industrial procurement in Iraq with a B2B e-commerce platform that connects suppliers and businesses more efficiently. Traceloop (🇮🇱 Israel | $6.1M Seed) Traceloop delivers observability and testing tools for AI applications, helping teams monitor and improve generative AI agents with real-time insights. Gainz (🇦🇪 UAE | Undisclosed Pre-Seed) Gainz enables individuals to invest in Shariah-compliant SME financing opportunities, providing alternative investment options through a debt-and-equity model. Congratulations to the startups that have secured funding! #MENAVC #Preseed #Seed #VCFunding #MiddleEastTech #StartupFunding

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We’re pleased to announce that AI Solution LLC has entered into a 1-year engagement with 3M Car Tinting by Moss at Dubai Festival City Mall, focused on enhancing their Google Maps SEO strategy and overall digital visibility. Key objectives: -Optimizing their Google Business Profile for increased local search performance -Generating more authentic customer reviews to boost credibility and trust -Implementing automated location-based notifications to engage nearby shoppers -Creating an immersive 360° Google Street View tour of their store for virtual foot traffic This initiative is designed to increase store discoverability, generate qualified walk-in traffic, and ensure the brand maintains a strong presence across all relevant Google search touchpoints. We look forward to supporting the continued growth and success of 3M Car Tinting by Moss through impactful, location-driven digital strategies. #GoogleMapsSEO #GoogleBusiness #LocalSEO #ReviewMarketing #StreetView360 #DubaiFestivalCity #RetailMarketing #3M #DigitalVisibility #AISolutionLLC #SmartRetail #CustomerExperience

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We’re thrilled to announce that Nascap Partners has led its first investment into supplai, a KSA-based AI-driven logistics platform revolutionizing cold-chain logistics across Saudi Arabia. We couldn’t be prouder to back two exceptionally hardworking, driven, and determined founders Azmi Negro and Marwan Oueida, who are building critical infrastructure for the Kingdom’s growing enterprise logistics sector. 𝘞𝘩𝘺 𝘸𝘦 𝘪𝘯𝘷𝘦𝘴𝘵𝘦𝘥: 𝐒𝐨𝐥𝐯𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐚 𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐥 𝐦𝐚𝐫𝐤𝐞𝐭 𝐠𝐚𝐩: Supplai bridges the disconnect between enterprise clients locked into expensive legacy providers and high-quality domestic carrier capacity that sits underutilized. They’re bringing an advanced holistic offering that most domestic carriers can’t provide alone. 𝐒𝐭𝐫𝐨𝐧𝐠 𝐩𝐫𝐨𝐝𝐮𝐜𝐭-𝐦𝐚𝐫𝐤𝐞𝐭 𝐟𝐢𝐭: The team has demonstrated impressive traction with major F&B conglomerates and enterprise clients across multiple Saudi cities, validating strong demand for their value proposition. 𝐓𝐞𝐜𝐡𝐧𝐨𝐥𝐨𝐠𝐲-𝐟𝐢𝐫𝐬𝐭 𝐚𝐩𝐩𝐫𝐨𝐚𝐜𝐡: Supplai has deployed AI-powered automation that streamlines operations, creating meaningful efficiency gains for both clients and carriers. 𝐎𝐩𝐞𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐚𝐥 𝐞𝐱𝐜𝐞𝐥𝐥𝐞𝐧𝐜𝐞: The founding team has built robust processes around risk management, client diversification, and geographic expansion, demonstrating maturity beyond their stage. 𝐌𝐚𝐫𝐤𝐞𝐭 𝐭𝐢𝐦𝐢𝐧𝐠: The logistics sector is fundamental to Vision 2030, and Supplai is perfectly positioned to capture this massive opportunity as the Kingdom continues its economic transformation. Azmi and Marwan have built something incredible in record time – a platform that doesn’t just move goods, but transforms how enterprises and carriers work together. Their focus on operational excellence, technology innovation, and client success sets them apart in a fragmented market. Congratulations to the entire Supplai team on this milestone. We’re excited to support your journey as you scale across the Kingdom and beyond. 🚀 If you’d like to learn more about what Supplai does and why we believe in them, feel free to reach out.

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🇸🇦 Saudi Arabia-headquartered #AI startup intella has raised $12.5 million in a Series A round led by Prosus Ventures, with participation from 500 Global, Wa'ed Ventures, HALA Ventures, Idrisi Ventures, and HearstLab. Founded in Egypt 🇪🇬 in 2021 by Nour Taher and Omar Mansour, Intella builds AI models tailored to #Arabic dialects, offering #transcription, #analytics, and customer engagement tools. The funding will be used to expand Intella's offerings and accelerate its #MENA expansion with go-to-market teams in Egypt and Saudi Arabia. With this round, Intella’s total funding raised stands at $16.9 million. #MiddleEast #Egypt #Saudi

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In 2024, the Affiliate Dragons team successfully onboarded 1.59 million active users to VAS (Value-Added Services) offered by Iraq’s leading mobile operators. This milestone highlights our strong performance marketing expertise, local partnerships, and deep understanding of the VAS ecosystem. 📊 Check out our latest market snapshot on Iraq’s telecom ecosystem in 2024.

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🇰🇼 Top Venture Capital Funds in Kuwait | 2026 Landscape Kuwait continues to build its venture capital ecosystem. The following are venture funds and investor groups that have been active in 2026: Arzan Venture Capital Stage: Seed, early stage
Focus: Technology, fintech, digital platforms 🌐 https://arzanvc.com KFHC Ventures Stage: Seed
Focus: Early-stage technology and diversified startups 🌐 https://lnkd.in/eyGAR562 Faith Capital Holding 
Stage: Seed to Series A
Focus: Fintech, marketplaces, tech-enabled businesses 🌐 https://faithcapital.com Zain-Ventures Stage: Early stage, growth
Focus: Digital products, telecom-related tech, platforms
🌐 https://zain-ventures.com Seeds Partners 
Stage: Seed
Focus: Early-stage startups 🌐 https://www.seedskw.com SBX Capital 
Stage: Seed, Series A
Focus: High-tech, blockchain 🌐 https://sbxcapital.com Savour Ventures Stage: Seed (micro VC)
Focus: Food, foodtech, agri-related businesses
🌐 https://savourventures.com Oasis500 (active with Kuwaiti investors) Stage: Pre-seed, seed
Focus: Technology, SaaS, digital products
🌐 https://oasis500.co *Based in Amman, Jordan 📌 Save & share:
Kuwait investors prefer clear business models, real revenue logic, and startups that can grow across the GCC, not just locally. If you know founders looking at Kuwait, this list will help them. #VentureCapital #KuwaitEcosystem #Startups #KuwaitVC #VCKuwait

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The future of content creation is being built right now. Sat down with Bizpreneur Middle East to talk about what we're doing at Pixara and where AI is taking this space. 👇

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