Hub71 to accelerate Abu Dhabi’s position as leading innovation hub

Hub71, Abu Dhabi’s global tech ecosystem, has accepted 16 startups to join its growing community as part of accelerating the Emirate’s position as a leading innovation hub.

By launching operations in Abu Dhabi, the new startup cohort, which has already raised more than Dhs231 million in funding, will have the opportunity to develop advanced technologies and gain access to the market, investment, and talent Hub71 provides.

Hub71 is Abu Dhabi’s largest community of startups, building a vibrant ecosystem of investors, corporations, government, and academia partners to provide tech startups with the essential elements to grow and succeed in the UAE and abroad.

Capitalizing on current market trends, the accepted cohort includes early-stage startups with diverse representation from leading international tech hubs including the UK, USA and South Korea. Among the cohort is Pakistan’s first digital bank, TAG; UAE-based Trade Capital Partners, a platform that boosts access to working capital for startups and small to medium-sized enterprises in emerging markets; and Zywa, the first neobank for teenagers in the Middle East and North Africa region. Also accepted in the cohort is UAE-founded Letswork, an app that allows members to book workspaces and work remotely from hotels, cafes, co-working spaces and other unique venues, as well as Ostaz which offers a private tutoring platform for students to accelerate academic progress.

The new cohort will benefit from Hub71’s accelerator programme, structured programs to boost investment potential, and a new range of flexible incentives, that allow founders to choose the level of support based on their startup needs. By joining Hub71, the cohort will gain access to Abu Dhabi’s innovation ecosystem with opportunities to scale and facilitate knowledge exchange.

Badr Al-Olama, Acting CEO of Hub71, commented: “Our first cohort of the year reflects our ambition of matching our pace with that of global tech startups that have the highest growth potential. What makes Hub71 so different is our founder-centric approach that puts emphasis on building leaders and teams to sustain exponential growth for startups. We believe in nurturing talent, and the entrepreneurs from this cohort seem eager and ready to unleash their potential.”

Since its inception, Hub71’s startups have raised Dhs1.5 billion of investment and landed deals worth Dhs36 million through the tech ecosystem’s corporate partners, while also generating approximately Dhs1.2 billion in revenue.

Hub71 offers startups access to an expansive network of strategic partners and investors and provides opportunities to demonstrate their product potential and viability. Since its inception, more than 20 proofs of concepts (POCs) were signed between corporate partners and startups, generating an expected deal value of Dhs36 million, as part of creating a launchpad for transformational ideas and ventures in Abu Dhabi.