Abu Dhabi global tech startups ramp up Dhs1 5b of investments

Hub71, Abu Dhabi’s global tech ecosystem, announced that its startup community ramped up approximately Dhs1.5 billion of investments since inception and secured Dhs30 million in 2021 through over 20 corporate deals during the year.

The aggregate valuation of Hub71 startups soared to Dhs5.87 billion, with close to 1,000 jobs created since its inception in 2019, demonstrating impact of a thriving technology community in the UAE’s capital city.

Backed by Mubadala, Hub71 is accelerating Abu Dhabi’s digital transformation and the UAE’s progress to becoming an Entrepreneurial Nation by 2031. The tech ecosystem has expanded its strategic partnerships and value-creation programs to enable disruptive startups to grow and accelerate their journeys to becoming multibillion dollar companies.

Hub71 published its 2021 Impact Report, highlighting growth and success stories emerging from its community of more than 100 startups over the past year, available to download here.

Mohammed Ali Al Shorafa Al Hammadi, Chairman of Hub71, said: “Following Hub71’s 191 per cent startup growth in 2020, Abu Dhabi has emerged stronger as technological and innovative economy characterized by progress. Entrepreneurship will be a key cornerstone of a sustainable economy and if the quality of Hub71’s founders are anything to go by, we have every confidence the tech ecosystem will continue to attract long-term investment, international partnerships and companies exceeding the one-billion-dollar valuation mark.

“As we work toward achieving the UAE’s ambition of becoming an entrepreneurial nation by 2031, Hub71’s strong performance in 2021 exemplifies the enabling business environment we have established in Abu Dhabi. We aim to position technology companies for growth, and our priority remains to enable a flexible and favourable business environment that supports creative ideas and scales solutions to address society’s most pressing challenges.”

New Impact Report findings: For the period from January to December 2021, Hub71’s Impact Report provides insights into Abu Dhabi’s technology ecosystem and its impact on the wider community, economy and society. Hub71’s vibrant community boasts startups from 25 nations across 18 diverse sectors, ranging from FinTech, Robotics, AI & Big Data to HealthTech, AgTech and Cybersecurity.

As part of its mission to build a community of globally enduring tech companies and position Abu Dhabi as a leading tech hub, Hub71 has connected founders with investors and funds and contributed Dhs36 million through its various initiatives to ease the startup journey in Abu Dhabi. Startups at Hub71 closed 32 funding rounds in which companies such as Trella closed a Dhs154 million Series-A funding round, and BitOasis, the cryptocurrency platform, along with Securrency, the blockchain-based financial infrastructure company, both raised Dhs110 million in Series-B rounds to fund their expansion across the UAE and the region. Seven Proof of Concepts (POCs) have been successfully implemented and three-multimillion-dirham deals have been signed through Hub71’s The Outliers program, which seeks innovative solutions to challenges set by corporate and government partners.

Badr Al-Olama, Acting CEO of Hub71, commented: “Our Impact Report demonstrates how much progress Hub71 startups have achieved over the past year. Founders play an immense role in Abu Dhabi by defining the future of technology that is capturing the imagination of a city full of ambition. At Hub71, we partner with founders who are scaling the leading businesses of tomorrow that are inspiring new ways to advance sectors and influence how we do things. Impact has been our number one aim, and we are firmly committed to it as our community contributes to the UAE’s next 50 years as a catalyst for growth, transformation and disruption.”

To solidify its impact in 2022, Hub71 will intensify its efforts to strengthen Abu Dhabi’s position globally as an attractive innovation hub for entrepreneurial talent. The tech ecosystem aims to reinforce its capital community of VC funds and continue growing its strategic partnerships that facilitate cross-border market access, funding and knowledge exchange to help fulfil the growth aspirations of founders in its community. Through a concerted effort to enhance value creation, Hub71 will continue supporting entrepreneurs and investors with a series of new initiatives, programs and partnerships that will foster the tech innovation ecosystem in Abu Dhabi.

Hub71 is Abu Dhabi’s global tech ecosystem that enables founders to build globally enduring homegrown tech companies in any sector by providing access to global markets, a capital ecosystem, a global network of partners, and a vibrant community filled with highly skilled talent, governed by forward-thinking regulation.

Backed by the Government of Abu Dhabi and Mubadala Investment Company, Hub71 is growing its vibrant community of tech startups, investors, government, and corporate partners to ensure the availability of investment, commercial activities, and incentives from the public and private sectors. Through Hub71’s entrepreneurial infrastructure, value-add programs, enabling services and support packages, founders can build and scale widely adopted technologies with purpose and impact.