Deal to spur development of Tech Startup Community in Abu Dhabi

Hub71, Abu Dhabi’s global tech ecosystem, and Hewlett Packard Enterprise (HPE) signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) at Global Manufacturing and Industrialisation Summit (GMIS) to collaborate in a series of mutually beneficial programmes dedicated to nurturing tech start-ups.

Founders will benefit from direct access to HPE’s experts, mentorship and opportunities to further develop technologies in collaboration with the global edge-to-cloud company.

Signed by Badr Al Olama, Acting Chief Executive Officer of Hub71 and Ahmad Alkhallafi, Managing Director for UAE at HPE, the collaboration will enable an innovation acceleration ecosystem with real market demand, processes, and technologies - such as Artificial Intelligence (AI) and High Performance Computing (HPC). Participating start-ups can leverage the HPE Digital Life Garage, allowing them to test or develop certain prototypes or solutions that are demanded by customers and run events to demonstrate these solutions.

Al Olama commented, “Partnering with HPE will enable Hub71 start-ups to incorporate domain expertise to deliver cutting-edge solutions to the market. Importantly, founders can collaborate with HPE through our programmes and Community Centre of Excellence that will provide founders with the expert knowledge and access necessary to innovate and increase their commercial viability. Attracting HPE as a strategic partner elevates our value proposition and we look forward to creating impact together for our start up community.”

HPE will participate in the next edition of The Outliers, Hub71’s annual partner challenge programme, in partnership with corporate and government partners designed to address industry challenges. Through the new partnership, HPE will set challenges for founders worldwide to solve, with the winning start-up gaining the potential to secure funding from Hub71 to develop the Proof of Concept (POCs) selected by HPE. Successful start-ups will get shortlisted to benefit from Hub71’s broad range of flexible incentives dedicated to easing the growth phase of the start-up journey.

HPE will collaborate with Hub71 to support early-stage founders from Hub71’s venture builder programme, Venture’s lab, with insights on market needs and demands to align their business strategies and product growth management.

Alkhallafi said, “We are proud to partner with Hub71 to nurture tech startups in the UAE and look forward to participating in their latest programme to address industry challenges - a goal that is perfectly aligned with our purpose to advance the way people live and work.

The HPE Digital Life Garage will play a key role in providing the startups with access to cutting-edge technology, digital innovation expertise and tools they require to accelerate their innovation agendas.”

Earlier the Hub71, Abu Dhabi’s global tech ecosystem, and the Khalifa University of Science Technology signed a strategic partnership at Global Manufacturing and Industrialisation Summit to enable students and alumni to work alongside tech startups, opening the private sector and entrepreneurship door for their career paths.

Signed by Badr Al-Olama, Acting Chief Executive Officer of Hub71 and Dr. Arif Sultan Al Hammadi, Executive Vice President, Khalifa University, the partnership will accelerate the development of entrepreneurial talent among students and will promote new technologies entering the market through expert mentorship and guidance, as well as Hub71’s value-driven programmes.

The partnership will explore the use of Khalifa University’s state-of-the-art laboratory facilities for Hub71 startups and will increase opportunities for the university’s network of students and alumni to participate in Hub71’s programmes aimed at increasing access to Abu Dhabi’s marketplace.

Both Hub71 and Khalifa University will collaborate in workshops, talent exchange programmes and events that will increase the exposure of entrepreneurial students and professors to Abu Dhabi’s global tech ecosystem.

Badr Al Olama, Acting CEO, Hub71, commented: “Talent is the bedrock of a thriving tech hub, which is why we are committed to ensuring students have the ability to prosper as entrepreneurs and take their solutions to market. This partnership is a clear reflection of the value we place on nurturing young entrepreneurial talent who can contribute to the continuous development of our economy.”

“Khalifa University is a prestigious institution in Abu Dhabi, and through its leadership in cutting-edge research and development, we can effectively position the Emirate as a global knowledge economy anchored in entrepreneurial and academic excellence.”

Hub71’s technology startups will be significantly relevant to the Khalifa University community. In the calendar year 2020 alone, Khalifa University had a total of 36 awarded patents, with the number of patents filed touching 100.