{"id":48001,"date":"2025-06-23T13:09:08","date_gmt":"2025-06-23T10:09:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/entarabi.com\/?p=48001"},"modified":"2025-06-23T13:09:08","modified_gmt":"2025-06-23T10:09:08","slug":"the-middle-east-sees-investment-momentum-deals-led-by-saudi-arabia-and-egypt","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/entarabi.com\/en\/2025\/06\/the-middle-east-sees-investment-momentum-deals-led-by-saudi-arabia-and-egypt\/","title":{"rendered":"The Middle East Sees Investment Momentum: Deals Led by Saudi Arabia and Egypt"},"content":{"rendered":"<ul>\n<li dir=\"ltr\" style=\"text-align: left;\"><strong>Saudi Arabia Leads Startup Investments, While Egypt Competes for Regional Leadership<\/strong><\/li>\n<li dir=\"ltr\" style=\"text-align: left;\"><strong>Weekly Report | June 15\u201323, 2025<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p dir=\"ltr\" style=\"text-align: left;\">Between June 15 and 23, 2025, the Middle East witnessed a surge in investment and acquisition activity, spanning sectors such as artificial intelligence, fintech, digital education, and interactive content.<\/p>\n<p dir=\"ltr\" style=\"text-align: left;\">Saudi Arabia and Egypt emerged as central players in this momentum, alongside notable moves from the UAE and Algeria, while Gulf sovereign funds demonstrated a strong presence in major global funding rounds.<\/p>\n<h2 dir=\"ltr\" style=\"text-align: left;\"><strong>Saudi Arabia Maintains Leadership: Innovation Support and Strategic Acquisitions<\/strong><\/h2>\n<ul dir=\"ltr\" style=\"text-align: left;\">\n<li>The <strong>ninth batch of Sanabil Accelerator<\/strong> kicked off in Riyadh, hosting 10 high-potential startups in key sectors.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Darwinz AI<\/strong> secured new funding to expand \u201cDima,\u201d its AI-driven PR and marketing analytics platform.<\/li>\n<li><strong>iSchool<\/strong> acquired <strong>SEEDS<\/strong> to boost AI education for children across the Kingdom.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Thmanyah<\/strong> won exclusive broadcasting rights for Saudi sports leagues through 2031.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p dir=\"ltr\" style=\"text-align: left;\">These developments highlight Saudi Arabia\u2019s integrated strategy across early-stage funding, education, and sports media rights.<\/p>\n<h2 dir=\"ltr\" style=\"text-align: left;\"><strong>Egypt: Operational Investments and Startup Enablement<\/strong><\/h2>\n<ul dir=\"ltr\" style=\"text-align: left;\">\n<li><strong>Octane<\/strong> raised <strong>$5.2 million<\/strong> to scale its fleet expense management platform.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Outsourcy<\/strong> hosted the <strong>HR for Startups<\/strong> event, equipping early-stage founders with HR tools and strategies.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p dir=\"ltr\" style=\"text-align: left;\">Egypt\u2019s moves reflect a clear push toward strengthening operational infrastructure and optimizing the digital business environment.<\/p>\n<p dir=\"ltr\" style=\"text-align: left;\"><strong>UAE and Algeria: Sector Diversification and Regional Expansion<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul dir=\"ltr\" style=\"text-align: left;\">\n<li>UAE-based <strong>SaturnX<\/strong> raised <strong>$3 million<\/strong> to expand its crypto payments infrastructure across Southeast Asia.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Prop-AI<\/strong> secured <strong>$1.5 million<\/strong> to digitize real estate markets using AI-powered analytics.<\/li>\n<li>Creative agency <strong>Hoko<\/strong> acquired <strong>Everdome<\/strong> to enhance its presence in the metaverse with interactive content experiences.<\/li>\n<li><strong>216 Capital<\/strong> invested in Algerian HRtech platform <strong>Talenteo<\/strong>, focused on SME workforce management.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p dir=\"ltr\" style=\"text-align: left;\">These transactions reflect growing sectoral and geographic diversification in the region\u2019s innovation ecosystem.<\/p>\n<h2 dir=\"ltr\" style=\"text-align: left;\"><strong>Gulf Funds Back One of the World\u2019s Largest AI Rounds<\/strong><\/h2>\n<ul dir=\"ltr\" style=\"text-align: left;\">\n<li>US-based <strong>Applied Intuition<\/strong> raised <strong>$600 million<\/strong> in a Series F round, with participation from <strong>Qatar Investment Authority<\/strong>, <strong>Abu Dhabi Investment Council<\/strong>, <strong>BlackRock<\/strong>, and <strong>Kleiner Perkins<\/strong>.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p dir=\"ltr\" style=\"text-align: left;\">This signals the Gulf\u2019s deepening involvement in shaping the future of global AI and defense technologies.<\/p>\n<p dir=\"ltr\" style=\"text-align: left;\"><strong>Full Table of Investments and Acquisitions (June 15\u201323, 2025)<\/strong><\/p>\n<table class=\" alignleft\" dir=\"ltr\">\n<thead>\n<tr>\n<td><strong>Country<\/strong><\/td>\n<td><strong>Company \/ Deal<\/strong><\/td>\n<td><strong>Deal Type<\/strong><\/td>\n<td><strong>Funding (USD)<\/strong><\/td>\n<td><strong>Sector<\/strong><\/td>\n<td><strong>Notes<\/strong><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/thead>\n<tbody>\n<tr>\n<td>Saudi Arabia<\/td>\n<td>Sanabil Accelerator<\/td>\n<td>Acceleration Program<\/td>\n<td>Not disclosed<\/td>\n<td>AI, Fintech, ClimateTech<\/td>\n<td>10 startups selected in partnership with 500 Global<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>Saudi Arabia<\/td>\n<td>Darwinz AI<\/td>\n<td>Investment<\/td>\n<td>$325K<\/td>\n<td>AI \/ PR &amp; Marketing<\/td>\n<td>Dima platform for media analysis<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>Saudi Arabia<\/td>\n<td>iSchool \u00d7 SEEDS<\/td>\n<td>Acquisition<\/td>\n<td>Not disclosed<\/td>\n<td>AI Education<\/td>\n<td>Expanding coding education for kids in Saudi Arabia<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>Saudi Arabia<\/td>\n<td>Thmanyah \u00d7 Broadcast Rights<\/td>\n<td>Rights Deal<\/td>\n<td>Not disclosed<\/td>\n<td>Sports Media<\/td>\n<td>Exclusive broadcasting through 2031<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>Egypt<\/td>\n<td>Octane<\/td>\n<td>Investment<\/td>\n<td>$5.2M<\/td>\n<td>Fleet Tech \/ Operational SaaS<\/td>\n<td>Digital expense management for vehicle fleets<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>Egypt<\/td>\n<td>Outsourcy \u2013 HR for Startups<\/td>\n<td>Enablement Event<\/td>\n<td>Not disclosed<\/td>\n<td>Human Resources<\/td>\n<td>Event to support startup team building<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>Algeria<\/td>\n<td>Talenteo \u00d7 216 Capital<\/td>\n<td>Investment<\/td>\n<td>Not disclosed<\/td>\n<td>HR \/ SaaS<\/td>\n<td>HR platform for African SMEs<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>\u00a0UAE<\/td>\n<td>SaturnX<\/td>\n<td>Investment<\/td>\n<td>$3M<\/td>\n<td>Crypto Payments \/ Fintech<\/td>\n<td>Targeting Southeast Asian markets<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>UAE<\/td>\n<td>Prop-AI<\/td>\n<td>Investment<\/td>\n<td>$1.5M<\/td>\n<td>Real Estate Tech \/ AI<\/td>\n<td>AI-driven analytics for real estate<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>UAE<\/td>\n<td>Everdome \u00d7 Hoko<\/td>\n<td>Acquisition<\/td>\n<td>Not disclosed<\/td>\n<td>Metaverse \/ Interactive Content<\/td>\n<td>Everdome merged into HumAIn Assets initiative<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>USA (Gulf-backed)<\/td>\n<td>Applied Intuition<\/td>\n<td>Series F<\/td>\n<td>$600M<\/td>\n<td>AI \/ Defense Tech<\/td>\n<td>Backed by QIA, Abu Dhabi, BlackRock, Kleiner Perkins<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<h2 dir=\"ltr\" style=\"text-align: left;\"><strong>Conclusion<\/strong><\/h2>\n<ul dir=\"ltr\">\n<li style=\"text-align: left;\"><strong>Saudi Arabia<\/strong> is leading with a blend of accelerators, education, and media investment.<\/li>\n<li style=\"text-align: left;\"><strong>Egypt<\/strong> is strengthening its digital infrastructure and enabling operational excellence for startups.<\/li>\n<li style=\"text-align: left;\">The <strong>UAE<\/strong> continues to solidify its position as a regional innovation hub.<\/li>\n<li style=\"text-align: left;\"><strong>Algeria<\/strong> is showing growing potential in the African startup scene.<\/li>\n<li style=\"text-align: left;\"><strong>Gulf capital<\/strong> is asserting its influence in shaping global tech trends, especially in AI.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Between June 15 and 23, 2025, the Middle East witnessed a surge in investment and acquisition activity, spanning sectors such as artificial intelligence, fintech, digital education, and interactive content.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":11,"featured_media":48008,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"post_subtitle":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[1772],"tags":[8763,8709,8794,8726,8717],"class_list":["post-48001","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-startups","tag-216-capital-en","tag-octane","tag-sanabil-accelerator-en","tag-saturnx-en","tag-seeds-en"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/entarabi.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/48001","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/entarabi.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/entarabi.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/entarabi.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/11"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/entarabi.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=48001"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/entarabi.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/48001\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/entarabi.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/48008"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/entarabi.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=48001"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/entarabi.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=48001"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/entarabi.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=48001"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}