Ghada Ismail

For years, the startup scene has been obsessed with unicorns; those rare, billion-dollar companies that symbolize hypergrowth, massive funding rounds, and meteoric success. But as markets mature and the realities of sustainable business sink in, many in the global startup ecosystem are beginning to ask: Do we really need more unicorns, or something entirely different?

Across the Middle East, and particularly in Saudi Arabia, the answer increasingly leans toward a new breed of companies: camels and zebras. These startups may not dazzle with billion-dollar valuations, but they embody traits that could prove far more valuable in the long run: resilience, sustainability, and social purpose.

From Unicorns to Camels and Zebras

The “unicorn” was once the ultimate prize: a company valued at over $1 billion, fueled by venture capital, and celebrated for its speed of growth. But this obsession often came at a cost. Many unicorns prioritized expansion over profitability, and when market conditions shifted, they found themselves struggling to stay afloat.

The global downturn in tech valuations and the funding scene exposed over time how fragile many of these high-growth models were. Meanwhile, startups that operated with leaner models, focused on cash flow, and adapted to uncertainty—the so-called camels—proved more resilient.

The term “camel startup,” first popularized in the Middle East and North Africa, captures a distinctly regional mindset. Just as camels survive harsh desert conditions, these startups are designed to withstand economic volatility. They grow steadily, conserve cash, and adapt intelligently to changing markets.

Zebras, on the other hand, represent a different kind of strength. Coined by a group of women entrepreneurs in Silicon Valley, “zebra startups” pursue profit and purpose simultaneously. They are black and white, symbolizing balance. In emerging economies like Saudi Arabia, this philosophy is resonating strongly, particularly among founders tackling social, environmental, or inclusion-driven challenges.

The Saudi Context: Vision 2030 and the Shift in Startup Mindset

Saudi Arabia’s startup ecosystem is evolving rapidly. Over the past few years, the Kingdom has transformed into one of the MENA region’s fastest-growing entrepreneurship hubs, with total venture funding reaching new highs annually. Yet as the market matures, there’s a visible shift in what founders, investors, and policymakers value.

Under Vision 2030, the Kingdom’s economic diversification plan, sustainability, innovation, and resilience are central pillars. This aligns closely with the camel and zebra mindset. Saudi startups are no longer just chasing valuations; instead, they’re building business models that can endure challenges, create jobs, and contribute to national priorities such as fintech innovation, food security, clean energy, and women’s empowerment.

Venture capital firms, too, are evolving. While early-stage funding remains strong, there’s greater scrutiny over unit economics, profitability, and long-term impact. Investors are asking tougher questions, not only about how fast startups can grow, but how well they can sustain that growth.

Camels in the Desert: Startups That Endure

In Saudi Arabia and the wider Gulf, the camel metaphor feels especially apt. Startups like Jahez, Tamara, and Foodics exemplify the camel mindset. Each grew deliberately, balancing rapid market capture with clear revenue models.

Jahez, for instance, built a profitable food-delivery platform long before its IPO, expanding carefully across the Kingdom instead of burning cash on regional domination. Tamara, one of Saudi’s leading buy-now-pay-later players, achieved remarkable growth but stayed focused on regulatory compliance and operational sustainability—traits that make it more of a camel than a traditional unicorn.

Similarly, Foodics navigated funding rounds and expansion by maintaining profitability as a core discipline. These companies may still reach unicorn valuations, but their success rests on fundamentals rather than hype.

This approach is especially relevant in Saudi Arabia’s macroeconomic environment. While government support and investor interest remain strong, startups that can survive without constant external funding are better positioned for long-term success.

The Rise of Zebras: Purpose Meets Profit

The zebra philosophy—building companies that are both profitable and purposeful—is also taking root in the Kingdom. A growing number of Saudi startups are tackling societal challenges, from financial inclusion to healthcare access, while maintaining sound business models.

Take Nana, which has expanded access to online grocery delivery not just in major cities but in smaller regions, improving supply chain efficiency and consumer convenience. Another example is Labayh. Founded in 2018, Labayh provides mental health and therapy services in Arabic, offering one-on-one therapy sessions, webinars, support groups, and self-assessment tools. It also acquired the UAE meditation app Nafas, adding over 300 audio clips for meditation and stress relief, to expand its wellbeing portfolio. 

These companies demonstrate that profitability and social impact can go hand in hand. They are building trust with customers, generating real economic value, and aligning with national goals such as improving the quality of life and fostering digital innovation.

Why the World Needs More Camels and Zebras

Globally, the call for more sustainable startup models is growing louder. As capital markets tighten, founders can no longer rely solely on fundraising cycles to survive. The camel and zebra frameworks encourage startups to focus on cash discipline, real impact, and steady growth; values that are not only good for business but for economies at large.

In emerging markets like Saudi Arabia, these models carry even more importance. Economies in transformation need startups that can withstand uncertainty, employ locals, and create solutions tailored to regional challenges. Unicorns might bring attention, but camels and zebras bring stability.

Moreover, these models align perfectly with Saudi Arabia’s evolving venture ecosystem. Initiatives by entities such as Monsha’at, SDAIA, RAED Ventures, and STV are increasingly supporting startups that solve real problems rather than chase inflated valuations.

The Investor Perspective: Quality Over Hype

Investors across MENA are beginning to recalibrate their expectations. The new question isn’t “Who will be the next unicorn?” but “Who will survive the next downturn?”

Funds like IMPACT46 and Wa’ed Ventures have emphasized the importance of sustainable scaling and solid governance. International investors entering Saudi Arabia are also adjusting their lenses, preferring startups with clear profitability paths, diversified customer bases, and mission-driven growth.

This shift in mindset could redefine how success is measured in the Saudi startup scene. Valuation alone is no longer enough; longevity, local relevance, and measurable impact are becoming the new metrics of excellence.

A Cultural Shift in Entrepreneurship

The rise of camels and zebras also reflects a deeper cultural transformation among Saudi entrepreneurs. A new generation of founders, many educated abroad but rooted locally, is questioning the “growth at all costs” narrative.

They are more aware of the risks associated with overfunding, more focused on building sustainable ecosystems, and more open to collaboration rather than competition. Many are exploring hybrid funding models—mixing venture capital with grants, government programs, and non-dilutive financing—to maintain control and flexibility.

This mindset aligns with broader societal changes under Vision 2030, which emphasizes entrepreneurship as a driver of economic and social progress, not merely personal wealth.

Toward a More Balanced Future

The world may always celebrate unicorns as they capture imagination and headlines. But in Saudi Arabia’s context, the future likely belongs to the camels and zebras: startups that combine endurance with empathy, profitability with purpose.

As global markets grow more volatile and sustainability becomes a non-negotiable standard, these models will define the next era of entrepreneurship in the Kingdom and beyond.

Saudi Arabia’s journey from an oil-driven economy to a diversified, innovation-powered one will depend not on a few billion-dollar valuations, but on thousands of resilient, responsible, and adaptive startups.

And that’s where the real magic lies, not in chasing mythical creatures, but in nurturing the ones that thrive in the real world.

Noha Gad 

Loyalty and reward programs in the Europe, the Middle East, and Africa (EMEA) region are evolving rapidly, triggered by shifting consumer expectations for hyper-personalized, seamless, and engaging experiences. As businesses seek to deepen customer relationships amid increasing digitalization and competitive markets, loyalty platforms go beyond simple points systems to deliver meaningful value that resonates with today’s diverse consumers.

Dsquares transforms the loyalty sector by offering an end-to-end B2B loyalty and rewards solutions that cover the entire program lifecycle. This comprehensive approach, combined with deep regional expertise, enables Dsquares to create truly personalized, impactful loyalty programs that drive business growth and customer retention.

In this regard, Sharikat Mubasher interviewed with CEO Marwan Kenawy to dive deep into Dsquares’ innovative approach and diverse offerings, and to discover key trends and challenges in the loyalty and rewards realm across the region. 

First, can you tell us more about Dsquares’ offerings and how it differentiates itself from other loyalty and rewards companies in the region?

Dsquares is an end-to-end B2B loyalty and rewards solutions provider established in 2012 and serving clients in over 16 countries. We are trusted by Fortune 500, multinationals, and global giants as we offer end-to-end tailored loyalty solutions to drive business growth.

By end-to-end, we mean that we do not just offer software; rather, we manage the entire lifecycle of a loyalty program, giving our clients the flexibility and peace of mind to focus on their business and leave the customer acquisition and retention to us. Our offerings include: 

• Strategic commercial planning: from strategy building and market analysis to program design and performance.
• Technology and solutions: our modular technology covering traditional loyalty mechanics, customer engagement solutions, short and long-term loyalty campaigns, rewarding solutions, and advanced data and analytics solutions. All running on Dsquares AI engine.
• Field operations: from on-ground execution and program setup and management to anomaly detection and quality control.
• Merchant management: with an extensive network of over 25,000 merchants and brands across the MENA region, we manage the end-to-end relationship for our clients, from onboarding to enablement, to legal, to payments.
• Customer success management: where we have dedicated account managers working with our clients to ensure program optimization, providing timely analysis on enhancements to ensure our clients get the best program.

What makes us different is our end-to-end capabilities. We provide a fully managed service and own deep regional expertise and presence, with a team of certified experts. This is crucial for designing effective programs leveraging our unmatched understanding of local markets, consumer behavior, and business cultures, in addition to our extensive and diverse merchant network, which is the biggest in the region. There is a saying that “a loyalty program is only as good as its redemption options”. Well, we make it simple, effective, and diverse, catering to every persona and making sure our clients’ customers get rewarded from the brands they love. 

How does Dsquares harness AI and data analytics capabilities to transform the loyalty and rewards industry?

At Dsquares, we leverage AI and data analytics as the core engine of our technology for all our solutions. We use it to transform loyalty programs from simple transactions to smart systems that foster and grow customer relationships by personalizing their experience and journey, proving ROI, all while ethically acquiring zero-party data. 

Some of the use cases where we stand out are:

• Prescriptive analytics: leveraging C-cubed, our campaign management system, we are able to analyze customers’ behavior and predict what they might do, while recommending the actions to take. For example, detecting that a high-value customer has a high percentage of churning, our solution flags this and prescribes the right actions to take, which could be an offer from their favorite brand, a trigger of a challenge, or a surprise experience. 
• Dynamic loyalty: where every message, reward, offer, or challenge is customized per individual, not per segment. Making it a truly hyper-personalized experience for all customers, directly addressing the modern consumer’s expectation to be recognized as an individual. An example here is the work we have done with ExxonMobil for their traders program. Leveraging Dynamic loyalty, we combined tiered rewards, KPI-based challenges, and gamification tied to purchasing specific products (SKUs), driving targeted growth and a 2x increase in monthly engagement. 

We are using AI to ethically acquire zero-party data. We do this by using analytics to design engagement strategies that customers willingly opt into, solving the data privacy challenge. 

An example here is a short-term loyalty campaign we ran for Pepsi in Saudi Arabia. They are the official sponsor for the Saudi League, and they wanted to push sales and gather data about their customer. Only, they had to earn the privilege to get this data. So, we built a gamification strategy to engage Saudi league fans and reward them instantly by completing personalized challenges upon buying Pepsi cans. Fans eagerly shared their data to make use of the surprises they were getting.

What are the key challenges businesses face when implementing loyalty programs, and how does Dsquares tackle them?

Based on our experience, businesses often encounter these four major challenges. Our entire business model is designed to overcome these challenges as an expert partner.

     -Complexity of End-to-end management
Many companies underestimate the effort required to run a loyalty program. It is not just an app or a points system; it involves strategy, technology, merchant acquisition, operations, and continuous optimization. 
As mentioned before, this is our core differentiator. We provide a fully managed, end-to-end model, allowing our clients to focus on their core business while we manage the entire loyalty journey on their behalf.

     -Creating real value and personalized experiences for customers
One of the most common challenges we have seen is programs that offer little to no value for their customers or those that are similar or redundant to their competitors. Customers are expecting brands they love to offer them programs that recognize them as individuals and give them hyper-personalized, relevant experiences.
Our engagement solutions, including AI-powered personalization and Dynamic loyalty, gamification, and experiential rewards, as well as our extensive merchant network and our smart campaign engine, help us build value for our customers. By understanding their preferences and behavior, we can predict their needs, offer personalized recommendations, incorporate engaging connections, and offer rewards based on their individual interests. This helps build emotional connections with the brand.

     -Data Silos and Proving ROI
To date, many businesses see loyalty as a “nice to have”. However, when implemented correctly, loyalty solutions can play a significant role in every business strategy. Businesses also have their customer data locked in separate systems. Without a unified view, it is impossible to truly understand the customer or prove the financial impact of the loyalty program. 
With our Dsquares AI engine at the core of all our solutions, we built an analysis platform that builds a 360-degree view of the client, integrating data from every touchpoint, from acquisition, retention, engagement, and supports the integration with key data sources. This breaks down the silos, which is not only essential for effective personalization but also helps create value for brands.
In addition, we have the live reporting tools to estimate, measure, and report on the program's financial performance. This directly links loyalty activities to business outcomes like increased customer lifetime value (CLV), reduced acquisition costs, and protected revenue, satisfying CFOs and proving clear ROI.

     -Acquiring zero-party data and building trust
The increase in data privacy regulations, the rise of Web 3.0, and the different law requirements per country are all challenges facing any business, and without data, it is hard to grow a business. Brands need their customers to willingly share their data and preferences in order to grow. And this is where Dsquares can help through value exchange and loyalty. As mentioned before, building the right strategy that delivers unique value to customers makes them want to share their data. We help clients design programs and campaigns that offer personalization and valuable experiences that customers are incentivized to share their data, making loyalty programs a strategic asset for building direct, trusted customer relationships.

What are the biggest opportunities and key trends that could reshape the loyalty and rewards market in Saudi Arabia and the wider GCC region?

The loyalty landscape in the region is being fundamentally reshaped by a shift in buyer behavior, placing customer-centricity at the core of all key trends. 

     -The rise of zero-party data as a strategic asset
Brands need reliable, consented customer data to make informed decisions and personalize their customers’ experiences. The new data privacy rules are making it a challenge. 
Opportunity: positioning loyalty programs as the primary value-exchange mechanism for acquiring zero-party data. Customers will be more willing to share their preferences, interests, and behaviors in exchange for a more personalized and rewarding brand experience.

     -Hyper-personalized experiences 
This is about delivering a unique, relevant experience to every single customer in real time. 
Opportunity: Loyalty engagement solutions can act as the central hub, unifying touchpoints, treating customers as individuals, not segments, providing seamless omnichannel experiences, and recommending the actions to take next. This ensures a consistent loyalty experience whether a customer shops online, in-store, or through an app. This 360-degree customer view is invaluable for brands.

     -Rise of partnerships and coalition loyalty
This is a key trend, and we have seen brands creating ecosystems of value through strategic partnerships. These partnerships can add value for both the brand and the customer, and this is a trend that will continue to grow over the coming years. In the GCC, the market has been shifting to a mindset where businesses collaborate in loyalty to compete more effectively in a crowded market.
Opportunity: Partnerships help address modern consumers who have diverse loyalties and do not want to be locked into one brand silo. They also increase the value of the program and combat the digital clutter, which is a rising challenge for marketers globally. It also opens more value for zero-party data, enabling all partners to build richer, more holistic views of their shared customers.

     -Shift from transactional to experiential loyalty
GCC consumers are increasingly looking for value beyond discounts. They are looking for brands that understand their lifestyle and create memorable experiences, whether by unique recognition, status, exclusive access to events, or even meeting their favorite celebrity. 
Opportunity: offering experiential and emotional loyalty, through tiered programs with VIP status offering exclusive benefits, gamification to create engaging challenges and rewards, unique experiences like meet and greets, event tickets, limited edition products, or private shopping.

     -Alignment with national economic visions
Most of the GCC countries have their national agendas, such as the Saudi Vision 2030, with the focus on diversifying the economy, increasing digital transformation, and boosting tourism.
Opportunity: loyalty programs are actually the perfect tool to support these goals by:

1. Driving financial inclusion by incentivizing digital payments. An example is a project we had with Egypt Post, where citizens were rewarded for digitizing their payment experience. The more you spend digitally, the less you withdraw, the more you get rewarded. This helped in banking adoption, specifically in the rural areas.
2. Boosting tourism and entertainment through creating destination-based loyalty solutions and campaigns that reward tourists for spending across hotels, excursions, and retail, and drive people to visit the country through value-based campaigns.

How does Dsquares plan to scale its technology infrastructure to support future growth?

When it comes to scaling our technology, we are building on our Modular, Intelligent, Automated, API-First architecture, driven by our AI-powered engine. 

Our modular approach helps us to scale by easily adding features, services, or entire modules without disrupting the entire system. This enables us to quickly adapt to markets and new market demands.

Our API-driven approach makes it easy to integrate with a vast array of partner systems, scaling our solutions to fit every client’s needs. We give the flexibility to our clients to have their technology hosted online, on premises, or as a hybrid model. 

We are deeply investing in AI and automation. This helps us manage complexity intelligently. Also, we automate our core functions from automated personalization, anomaly and fraud detection, and operational efficiency, which thereby allow us to protect the ecosystem as it grows, leverage AI to prescribe the right triggers making campaigns efficient at scale, and reduce operational overhead.

Dsquares relies on building a robust data infrastructure that integrates data from countless sources and becomes more valuable with scale, in addition to providing deeper insights while helping to train our AI models, ultimately making their predictive and prescriptive analytics even more accurate. 

We are investing in next-generation tools such as advanced gamification and real-time campaign management to ensure the platform can support the future of engagement, which we see will be more immersive and data-driven.

Additionally, we plan to maintain quality, performance, and security, and obtain the required enterprise-grade certifications.

How do loyalty and rewards contribute to enhancing the digital economy in countries where Dsquares operates?

First, they contribute to driving financial inclusion and digital payment adoption. In many of Dsquares' markets, a significant portion of the population is unbanked or underbanked. Loyalty programs act as a powerful incentive to bring these users into the formal digital economy. For instance, programs linked to financial and banking services, like Egypt Post, reward citizens for any digital transaction they perform with rewards from merchants that link to their lifestyle. Similarly, programs linked to telecom services, like Vodafone, enable users to earn points for using a mobile wallet, paying a bill online, or sending money digitally, making these behaviors habitual. As a result, loyalty and reward programs contribute to reducing reliance on cash, moving them to use digital wallets, credit cards, and applications, in addition to increasing the volume of formal digital transactions. They also help central banks and governments achieve their financial inclusion targets. 

Second, these programs play a pivotal role in supporting and digitizing Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) through strategic partnerships. Acquiring customers and competing with larger brands are key challenges for SMEs. So, being part of a large loyalty merchant network or a coalition loyalty program managed by a company like Dsquares gives them instant access to a vast customer base. For example, local restaurants or boutiques can become a redemption partner in major loyalty programs of banks and other industries. This can help in driving foot traffic and sales from high-value customers they would not normally reach, and encourage cooperation rather than competition between local and large brands. 

Third, loyalty and reward programs help SMEs digitize their operations by using points as a currency, enabling them to grow in alignment with the economic diversification goals in many countries. Such programs can also increase flexibility for consumers and foster engagement across different sectors, where SMEs are collaborating with major brands, banks, telcos, oil and gas companies, and more. 

Finally, coalition loyalty programs can heavily promote tourism in GCC countries by attracting and rewarding tourists. Tourists can earn a unified loyalty currency for spending on flights, hotels, attractions, and retail within the country. This will eventually encourage longer stays and higher spending, and boost the digital tourism economy by creating a seamless, rewarding digital experience for visitors.

Ghada Ismail

Every founder faces a defining question early on: how to fund growth without losing control. Should you give investors a stake, or rely on grants and incentives to stay independent? In Saudi Arabia’s fast-growing startup scene, understanding the difference between non-dilutive funding and equity financing can shape your company’s future from day one.

What Is Non-Dilutive Funding?

Non-dilutive funding refers to capital that doesn’t require you to give up any shares or ownership in your company. Instead, you receive financial support, grants, or incentives that help your business grow while you retain full control.

In Saudi Arabia, this form of support has expanded rapidly under Vision 2030, with programs designed to empower entrepreneurs and stimulate innovation.

Examples include:

• Monsha’at programs, such as financing initiatives and startup competitions.
• The Human Resources Development Fund (Hadaf), which offers wage support and training grants.
• The Saudi Venture Capital Company (SVC)’s indirect funding initiatives through funds and accelerators.
• Government grants and R&D programs in partnership with KAUST, KACST, or the Ministry of Communications and Information Technology.
• Loans and guarantees offered by Kafalah and Saudi EXIM Bank for export-oriented startups.

Pros of Non-Dilutive Funding

• You stay in control: No need to give up shares or decision-making power.
• Ideal for early stages: Helps test and validate ideas before raising equity.
• Government-backed stability: Programs often align with national priorities, providing reliable support.
• Encourages innovation: Especially useful in sectors like HealthTech, AgriTech, and renewable energy.

Cons of Non-Dilutive Funding

• Highly competitive: Programs have limited slots and strict eligibility criteria.
• Lengthy approval cycles: Applying and securing funds can take time.
• Restricted spending: Funds may need to be used for specific projects or milestones.
• No investor mentorship: You miss the strategic support that comes with equity investors.

What Is Equity Financing?

Equity financing means selling a portion of your company’s ownership in exchange for capital. In Saudi Arabia, this is becoming more common as venture capital activity grows and global investors turn their eyes toward the Kingdom.

Examples include:

• Angel investors and family offices
• Venture capital firms like RAED Ventures, Impact46, and Wa’ed Ventures
• Corporate investors such as STC Ventures and Aramco Ventures
• Government-backed funds through SVC, and Jada Fund of Funds’ partnerships

Pros of Equity Financing

• Large growth capital: Fuels rapid scaling, hiring, and market expansion.
• Mentorship and connections: Investors often open doors to networks, talent, and markets.
• Shared risk: You’re not repaying loans if the business struggles.
• Market validation: Attracting investors signals credibility to customers and partners.

Cons of Equity Financing

• Ownership dilution: You give up part of your company.
• Reduced control: Investors may request board seats or decision rights.
• Exit expectations: Most investors look for returns within a few years.
• Possible vision misalignment: Strategic differences can arise between founders and investors.

Which One Should You Choose?

There’s no one-size-fits-all answer; it depends on your startup stage, goals, and risk appetite.

• If you’re developing a prototype, conducting research, or still validating your market, non-dilutive funding helps you stay independent while building traction.
• If you’re ready to scale, expand internationally, or grow fast, equity financing offers not just money, but expertise and networks.

Many Saudi startups, from biotech innovators to logistics platforms, combine both approaches using grants and government programs early on, then raising venture capital once they’re ready to expand.

Wrapping Things Up…

Choosing between non-dilutive funding and equity financing isn’t about which is better; it’s about what your startup needs right now. Non-dilutive funding helps you grow without giving up ownership, while equity financing brings in not just money but mentorship and networks. The smartest founders in Saudi Arabia often blend both, using grants or accelerator funds early on, then turning to investors once their model proves itself. 

Noha Gad 

Saudi Arabia’s startup ecosystem is witnessing dynamic growth, moving beyond its traditional focus on oil, energy, and large-scale infrastructure. With a youthful population eager to innovate and a government that supports business startups, the Kingdom has become a fertile environment for emerging businesses in specialized sectors that address local, regional, and global challenges. This expansion reflects a broader shift toward using technology and innovation to build new industries and create jobs.

The focus on specialized innovations is closely connected to the ambitious Saudi Vision 2030, which focuses on sustainability, economic diversification, and building a knowledge-based economy. This national blueprint aims to reduce reliance on oil revenues and prepare for future economic changes by nurturing startups that develop groundbreaking solutions in areas such as agriculture and desert farming, waste management, and urban infrastructure. These niche innovations will contribute directly to the Kingdom’s sustainability goals, promoting resource efficiency, environmental protection, and enhanced urban living conditions. 

In this feature, we will explore three vibrant and strategically important sectors where Saudi startups are gaining traction: desert farming, waste management, and urban mobility.

Desert Farming 

Agriculture in Saudi Arabia faces multiple challenges due to the Kingdom’s arid desert climate characterized by limited water resources, high temperatures, and sandy, nutrient-poor soils. These difficult conditions make food production dependent on imports a persistent issue, driving an urgent need for innovative agricultural technologies that can sustainably increase local food production while conserving scarce water resources. 

Several Saudi companies and startups are pioneering solutions in desert farming using advanced technologies, such as hydroponics, aeroponics, AI-powered irrigation, and soil enhancement, to optimize water usage, improve crop yields, and enable farming in harsh desert environments. 

   Key Players

        *Saudi Desert Control. As a leader in sustainable land transformation, the company uses the Liquid Natural Clay (LNC) technology to transform arid land into fertile soil within just seven hours by combining natural minerals and clays with water. This innovation contributes to improving water retention, boosting plant health and crop yields, and reducing operational costs by 30% for new farmland establishments.

        *Iyri (formerly RedSea). This sustainable AgriClimate Tech company targets advancing commercial farming for low to mid-tech farmers in hot climates. Its patented, proprietary technologies reduce water and energy consumption by up to 90%. Iyris’ award-winning technology, SecondSky, is deployed in multiple greenhouse coverings and shade nets to minimize the stress and impact of near-infrared heat radiation on plants while allowing the spectrum of light that plants need for photosynthesis. This revolutionary innovation helps deliver more resilient, productive, and profitable crops in regions where climate change and excessive heat limit sustainable, productive growth. Additionally, iryis has developed plant genetics via a novel hybridization process that has the potential to breed resiliency to salinity, heat, and drought across a broad range of crops, ensuring stress-resistant, dependable food production.

       *Arable. This startup specializes in custom hydroponic systems tailored for Saudi Arabia’s desert climate. It uses advanced hydroponic technology to cultivate premium vegetables and herbs that are fresher, tastier, and longer-lasting than imported alternatives, using less water and reducing environmental impact.

       *Saudi Arabian Hydroponic Company (Zarei). Based in Al-Khobar, Zarei specializes in modern techniques of cultivation without soil (hydroponics) and the establishment of agricultural greenhouses using sophisticated modern techniques. Hydroponics relies on water in a closed cycle, saving more than 90% of water consumption compared to traditional agriculture methods.

       *GreenMast. This Riyadh-based agri-business company aims to revolutionize the farming model in the GCC region, leveraging fully-controlled high-tech hydroponics greenhouses. It offers various services to transform the farming sector, including greenhouse management and consultancy.

Waste Management

Saudi Arabia’s Vision 2030 focuses on transforming the Kingdom’s environmental practices, accelerating the circular economy, and setting global benchmarks in recycling and resource recovery. With aspirations to divert 85% of industrial waste from landfills by 2035, this national blueprint targets increasing municipal waste recycling rates through advanced technologies and integrated systems. The Kingdom’s sustainability goals also include accelerating the adoption of waste-to-energy solutions to reduce reliance on landfills and investing in infrastructure, partnerships, and innovations to support the circular economy.

A recent report released by the Mordor Intelligence stated that the waste management market in Saudi Arabia is expected to jump to $37.7 billion by 2030 from $25.8 billion in 2025, with a robust compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 7.85%. the report also anticipated construction mega-projects, mandatory source segregation beginning in 2025, and carbon-credit eligibility for waste-to-energy facilities to increase the revenue base across collection, recycling, and recovery services after 2027.

Several Saudi companies and startups are driving innovation in the waste recycling sector to meet the Kingdom’s need for advanced and sustainable waste management solutions.

  Key Players

• Edama. As the organic waste recycling KAUST startup, Edama develops innovative organic waste recycling facilities to optimize the recovery and transformation of organic waste into innovative agricultural products.
• The Saudi Investment Recycling Company (SIRC). SIRC was launched by the Public Investment Fund (PIF) to develop, own, operate, and finance various activities across all waste types to establish recycling capacities in the Kingdom and build a circular economy for a sustainable future. It targets meeting the objectives of Vision 2030 and the revised Waste Management National Regulatory Framework through its subsidiary network, which includes:

              *Municipal Solid Waste Recycling Company (Yadoum), which focuses on developing progressive and sustainable solutions in the realm of municipal solid waste.

              *Akam Recycling Company for Environmental Services (Akam), a leading provider of environmental services and waste treatment activities. It plans to invest over SAR 160 million as part of its commitment to creating a sustainable future for the Kingdom.

              *Metal Recycling Company for Environmental Services (ELECTA), which focuses on managing the waste of electrical and electronic equipment, as well as metal scraps. 

              *Oil Management Company (Azyat), a pioneering provider of sustainable lubricant waste management solutions.

              *Medical Waste Treatment Company (Wazeen), a trailblazer in redefining how hazardous medical waste is managed and treated.

              *Global Environmental Management Services (REVIVA), a dedicated execution arm in the realm of industrial hazardous waste treatments.

Additionally, the public-private partnerships (PPPs) unlocked substantial investment toward collection, sorting, and waste-to-energy plants, ensuring scalable and bankable operations aligned with regulatory frameworks. Environmentally, these startups and initiatives significantly contribute to minimizing landfill dependency, greenhouse gas emissions, and pollution.

Urban Mobility Innovations

Saudi Arabia is taking confident steps towards redefining its urban mobility landscape by embracing sustainable practices that align with the Vision 2030 framework, aiming to reduce its carbon footprint, enhance the quality of urban life, and create a more sustainable future for its growing population.

A cornerstone initiative in the Kingdom’s sustainability mobility agenda is the development of electric vehicle (EV) infrastructure through building numerous EV charging stations across major cities to support the adoption of electric cars.

Saudi Arabia invested heavily in projects like the Riyadh Metro and Jeddah Metro to elevate public transportation networks. These projects are expected to reduce air pollution in urban areas.

To further advance sustainable mobility practices, Saudi Arabia adopted smart traffic management systems that utilize AI and big data analytics to optimize traffic flow, reduce congestion, and lower emissions. It also deployed autonomous vehicles to enhance mobility while minimizing environmental impact. These self-driving cars can operate more efficiently than human-driven cars, leading to reduced fuel consumption and lower emissions.

Moreover, the Kingdom integrated solar-powered buses and hybrid vehicles into the public transport fleet not only to decrease the carbon footprint but also to provide a sustainable and cost-effective alternative to traditional fuels.

Finally, niche startups in Saudi Arabia are strategically vital for the Kingdom’s sustainable development and economic transformation. By pioneering innovative solutions in desert farming, waste management, and urban mobility, these startups directly address environmental challenges while supporting diversified economic growth in line with Vision 2030. As government support, venture capital, and regulatory reforms strengthen, the outlook for continued innovation in these sectors is highly promising, reinforcing Saudi Arabia’s position as a regional leader in sustainable entrepreneurship.

Ghada Ismail

Raising money for a startup is exciting. You pitch your idea, meet investors, and finally get the “yes” that can help your business grow. But once the celebration ends, you’ll see terms in the deal that protect investors if things don’t go as planned. That safety net is called downside protection.

What It Really Means

Downside protection is a promise that if your company loses value or struggles, investors won’t lose as much money. It’s common in startup deals everywhere, and it helps investors feel safer about putting in their cash. It refers to the legal mechanisms investors use to protect their money if a startup’s valuation falls or if the company fails to meet expectations. While it sounds investor-friendly, it’s also a standard part of venture deals worldwide. Understanding it is essential for founders who want to negotiate fair terms and avoid unpleasant surprises later.

How It Shows Up in Deals

1. Extra Shares When Value Drops
   Suppose you raised money when your company was worth $10 million, but later you can only raise money at $7 million. Early investors might get extra shares so their piece of the company doesn’t shrink.
2. Getting Paid First if Things End
   If the company is sold or closes, investors usually get their money back before founders or employees see anything. Some agreements even let them get back more than they put in.
3. Price Adjustments
   If you sell new shares at a lower price later, some deals let investors pay that lower price too, so they don’t overpay.

Why Investors Want It

Starting a company is risky, as most startups could just fail. Downside protection helps investors feel safer, which can make them more willing to invest in the first place.

What It Means for Founders

These protections can help you raise money, but they come with trade-offs:

• Your share may shrink if the company’s value drops.
• Future investors might hesitate if early investors have too many special rights.
• Morale can suffer if the company has to raise money at a lower value.

How to Protect Yourself

• Understand every term. Ask questions until you’re sure you know how it works.
• Negotiate fair rules. For example, ask for formulas that limit how many extra shares early investors can get.
• Get expert help. A lawyer or advisor who knows startup deals can spot problems quickly.

Wrapping Things Up…

Downside protection isn’t a trap; it’s a normal part of funding a startup. The key is to understand it before you sign. That way, you can give investors the confidence they need without giving away more of your company than you expect.

Noha Gad

The commerce landscape is undergoing a significant transformation in 2025, driven by rapid technological advancements and changing consumer behaviors. Traditional retail and e-commerce are evolving beyond simple online transactions into immersive, engaging, and socially connected experiences. This shift reflects the importance of integrating technology, social media, and sustainability principles into how consumers discover, interact with, and purchase products and services. Thus, new types of commerce have emerged to redefine the relationship between brands and customers, creating innovative avenues for engagement, personalization, and convenience.

One of the most notable trends shaping commerce today is the rise of social commerce that integrates shopping experiences seamlessly into social media platforms. This type of commerce allows brands to engage directly with audiences, showcase products in real time, and drive immediate sales, creating a highly interactive retail experience.

Augmented reality (AR) and virtual reality (VR) technologies also revolutionize how consumers shop online by offering immersive and interactive digital experiences. Virtual try-ons, 3D product visualizations, and fully virtual stores enable customers to make informed purchase decisions from the comfort of their homes. 

Additionally, sustainability-driven commerce is another critical and rapidly growing trend that reflects consumers’ increasing preference for eco-friendly, ethical, and transparent shopping practices. Brands that embed sustainability into their business models, from sourcing and packaging to circular economy initiatives, are gaining trust and loyalty in a market where environmental responsibility is no longer optional.

In this blog, we will discover more about key trends that reshape the commerce landscape and how these shifting paradigms highlight a future where commerce is not just transactional, but experiential, interactive, and responsible.

Social commerce 

This term refers to the integration of e-commerce features directly within social media platforms, allowing users to discover, engage with, and purchase products without leaving their favorite applications. This trend gained rapid popularity among consumers who increasingly rely on social networks not only for social interaction but also for product recommendations, reviews, and seamless shopping experiences. 

Social commerce is witnessing significant growth thanks to multiple features, such as shoppable posts, stories, and in-app checkout options that simplify purchasing. These features reduce friction by allowing users to buy products directly through social media feeds, eliminating the need to navigate to external websites. Also, the integration of chatbots and customer service tools within social platforms enhances personalized shopping assistance and builds customer trust.

This type of commerce has a great impact on the way consumers discover brands and makes shopping more interactive and community-driven. For brands, social commerce opens new channels for storytelling, customer feedback, and direct engagement, enabling more personalized marketing strategies that foster loyalty and repeat business.

Live commerce

Live commerce integrates live video streaming with real-time shopping, creating an interactive experience where brands and influencers showcase products directly to an engaged audience. This type leverages the excitement and immediacy of live broadcasts to drive instant purchasing decisions, transforming the traditional sales funnel into a dynamic, entertainment-driven event. 

One of live commerce’s main strengths is the ability to interact with viewers in real time via chat, polls, and question-and-answer sessions. This interaction builds trust, answers consumer questions instantly, and encourages spontaneous purchases by creating a sense of urgency with limited-time offers and exclusive promotions.

This type of commerce enables brands to demonstrate products in action, showcasing features, benefits, and use cases more vividly than traditional online listings. It also features deeper emotional connections with consumers, ultimately reducing product returns and helping consumers make informed decisions.

AR and VR commerce

AR and VR transform online shopping by creating interactive experiences that bridge the gap between physical and digital retail. These technologies enable consumers to visualize products in a realistic context, enhancing confidence in purchase decisions and reducing the sense of uncertainty that often comes with online shopping. One of the biggest challenges in online shopping is the inability to physically experience products before purchase. AR and VR address this by offering personalized shopping experiences tailored to individual preferences and environments.

Sustainability-Driven Commerce

As awareness of climate change and resource depletion grows, shoppers increasingly demand products that minimize harm to the planet and promote fair labor practices. This shift requires businesses to integrate sustainability into every aspect of their operations, from product design and sourcing to packaging and distribution.

Sustainability-driven commerce emphasizes ethical sourcing practices, ensuring fair wages and safe working conditions throughout the supply chain. Brands are adopting blockchain and other technologies to increase transparency and traceability, allowing consumers to verify the origins and lifecycle of products. This transparency fosters trust and accountability, essential for maintaining brand reputation in a socially aware market.

As we navigate the rapidly changing world of commerce in 2025, adaptability and innovation have become essential for businesses aiming to thrive. Today’s consumers expect more than just products; they seek experiences that resonate with their lifestyles, values, and desire for authenticity. This evolution forces brands to reimagine their strategies and focus on creating deeper connections through meaningful engagement, transparency, and responsiveness. As 2025 unfolds, the most successful retailers will be those that master this balance, leveraging technology to connect, entertain, and inspire, while championing sustainability to build lasting trust and loyalty.

Noha Gad

The Saudi fintech sector is rapidly evolving, driven by the Saudi Vision 2030 agenda, which emphasizes digital transformation, financial inclusion, and economic diversification. With a tech-savvy young population and supportive regulatory reforms, Saudi Arabia has become a fertile ground for innovative fintech solutions that integrate technology with customer-centric services.

Among the pioneering players shaping this dynamic ecosystem is Madkhol, a Shariah-compliant fintech company specializing in financial planning and wealth management. Focused on expanding financial inclusion among younger generations, Madkhol offers innovative technology-based financial solutions with a commitment to financial wellness. 

In this interview, Sharikat Mubasher speaks with Saad Bin Atyan, Co-founder and CEO of Madkhol, to explore the company’s innovative approach, diverse product offerings, and future growth plans, as well as insights into its recently launched ‘Ratibi+’ program.

What are the key services that distinguish Madkhol from traditional fintech and investment companies in Saudi Arabia? 
Madkhol stands out by bridging fintech innovation with human-centered solutions. Unlike traditional players, we focus not only on investment returns but also on financial wellness and employee loyalty. Our services integrate robo-advisory, Sharia-compliant portfolios, and employee-focused products like Ratibi+, giving us a unique position at the intersection of wealth management and workforce engagement.

How does Madkhol utilize AI and robo-advisory solutions to empower investors in Saudi Arabia and beyond?
Our AI-powered robo-advisory analyzes market trends, personal preferences, and risk profiles to build tailored portfolios. This ensures that every investor, from a first-time saver to a high-net-worth client, receives guidance at scale. AI also enables us to automate rebalancing, forecast scenarios, and provide personalized insights in real time, making wealth management more inclusive and accessible.

Earlier this year, Madkhol raised $2.2 million in a seed round to develop its AI-powered solutions. What are the company’s plans to expand its product portfolio and market reach?

The seed round enabled us to accelerate the development of our AI-powered solutions and expand our product portfolio. Our focus is twofold: first, to strengthen Ratibi+ as the leading employee investment and loyalty program in Saudi Arabia, and second, to roll out advanced robo-advisory services for individuals and institutions across the region. Market-wise, we are targeting strategic partnerships with corporates, banks, and HR tech platforms to scale our reach.

Can you tell us more about the Ratibi+ program and how it benefits both employees and companies?
Ratibi+ is our flagship product designed to redefine employee compensation. It allows employees to save and invest directly from their salaries, while employers can offer matching contributions with vesting periods. For employees, this creates financial security and long-term growth; for companies, it reduces turnover, strengthens loyalty, and positions them as forward-thinking employers.

How do you see the role of AI in advancing wealth management and enhancing the investment environment? 
AI is transforming wealth management from a service for the few into a tool for the many. It enhances accuracy in portfolio design, ensures continuous monitoring, and democratizes access to financial insights. In the Saudi context, AI supports Vision 2030 by fostering a culture of savings and investment, ultimately creating a more resilient and inclusive financial ecosystem.

How did participating in Money 20/20 Middle East help Madkhol gain exposure to global fintech trends and innovations?
Money 20/20 Middle East gave us an invaluable platform to connect with global fintech leaders, discover cutting-edge trends, and showcase Ratibi+ on an international stage. It reinforced our belief that Saudi fintech can compete globally while addressing unique local needs.

In your opinion, how do events like Money 20/20 contribute to shaping the fintech ecosystem in Saudi Arabia and the wider region?
Events like Money 20/20 act as catalysts; they bring together investors, innovators, and regulators in one place. For Saudi Arabia and the region, this accelerates knowledge exchange, fosters partnerships, and highlights how fintech can play a key role in achieving Vision 2030’s economic diversification goals.

What are the biggest challenges facing fintech startups in Saudi Arabia, and how does Madkhol address these challenges? 
The main challenges are building trust, navigating regulation, and achieving scale. Madkhol addresses these by ensuring Sharia-compliant products, working closely with regulators, and focusing on partnerships with corporates and banks to reach mass adoption. Trust, compliance, and collaboration are the pillars of our approach.

Noha Gad

Modern commerce is witnessing a significant transformation triggered by rapid developments in technology. The traditional retail landscape, which was centered on physical stores and direct customer interactions, is evolving into a digitally interconnected ecosystem. This change was driven by emerging technologies that enhance how products are sold and redefine the overall customer experience and operational efficiency. 

Technologies such as artificial intelligence (AI), virtual reality (VR), and augmented reality (AR) emerged as key enablers that revolutionize each aspect of modern commerce. Businesses increasingly utilize cutting-edge tools to understand and anticipate customer needs, tailor offerings, and create more engaging shopping environments. AI-driven analytics allow retailers to handle vast amounts of data, providing insights that help optimize product assortments, pricing strategies, and personalized marketing.

On the other side, VR and AR fill the gap between digital and physical worlds, offering immersive and interactive experiences for customers, ultimately enhancing logistical operations by improving warehouse management, staff training, and real-time problem-solving.

As modern commerce continues to evolve, organizations embracing these technologies are well-positioned to meet rising consumer expectations and adapt to the fast-changing market landscape effectively. Thus, understanding the importance of this technological evolution is essential for businesses to remain competitive

How AI transforms modern commerce

AI has become a cornerstone of innovation in modern commerce, driving significant improvements across customer engagement, inventory management, and operational efficiency.

-Personalization and customer insights. AI uses machine learning algorithms to analyze customer data, such as browsing behavior, purchase history, and preferences. This enables businesses to deliver personalized product recommendations and marketing messages in real time, enhancing customer satisfaction and boosting conversion rates.

-Inventory management and forecasting demand. AI models can optimize inventory levels by processing large datasets on sales trends, seasonality, and external market factors. This reduces risks of overstock or stockouts, cutting costs related to excess inventory and lost sales opportunities

-Customer experience enhancement.  AI-powered chatbots and virtual assistants provide 24/7 customer support by handling routine inquiries, guiding shoppers through product selections, and resolving common issues quickly. This ultimately contributes to enhancing customer experience and reducing response time, thereby enabling human agents to focus on more complex problems. 

-Fraud detection. AI models detect unusual patterns and potential fraud in real time by analyzing transaction data and user behavior. This capability enhances the security of digital payments and protects both merchants and customers from cyber threats.   

Using VR and AR to enhance the shopping experience 

VR and AR are transforming the shopping experience as they create immersive environments that engage customers in ways traditional retail cannot. For instance, virtual stores and showrooms allow shoppers to explore products in a fully digital space without leaving their homes. Both innovations enable virtual product try-ons and demonstrations, especially valuable in sectors like fashion, furniture, and automotive.

Additionally, VR and AR are used for remote product training and retail staff education. Retailers can simulate real-world scenarios to train employees on product knowledge, customer interaction, and store layout without disrupting physical store operations. This method improves staff preparedness and service quality, directly benefiting the shopping experience.

These innovative technologies also fill the gap between physical and online retail, making shopping more interactive, engaging, and convenient in the modern commerce landscape. They enable interactive marketing campaigns and promotions that engage customers in innovative ways.

The integration of AI, VR, and AR technologies in modern commerce has a significant impact on supply chains and logistics as they can optimize inventory and deliveries, enhance warehouse and fulfilment efficiency, promote logistics planning, and improve risk management. 

Finally, these emerging technologies are fundamentally reshaping the landscape of modern commerce, creating opportunities for businesses to innovate and deliver exceptional customer experiences. 

Beyond customer interaction, they revolutionize the operational backbone of commerce by optimizing supply chains and logistics. AI-driven analytics improve forecasting and inventory control, AR guides warehouse staff to operate more efficiently, and VR simulations help plan resilient delivery routes and workflows. Together, these innovations not only reduce costs but also enhance speed, accuracy, and flexibility in meeting consumers’ growing demands.

Looking ahead, the continued convergence of AI, VR, and AR is expected to unlock more transformative possibilities that will redefine how people discover, interact with, and purchase products.

Kholoud Hussein 

In today’s rapidly transforming digital economy, artificial intelligence has emerged as both a disruptor and an enabler, redefining how industries operate and compete. Nowhere is this transformation more visible than in the financial services sector, where AI is powering new models of efficiency, personalization, and compliance. With global investment in AI accelerating, and financial institutions seeking tools that balance innovation with trust, the conversation around AI’s role has never been more critical.

Against this backdrop, Saudi Arabia is positioning itself as a global hub for AI and digital transformation under Vision 2030, investing billions to cultivate expertise, infrastructure, and sustainable innovation. The Kingdom’s ambitious agenda has created fertile ground for technology leaders to collaborate with regulators, enterprises, and entrepreneurs in building a robust digital economy.

It is in this context that Sharikat Mubasher sat down exclusively with Tomas Skoumal, Chairman & Co-founder of Dyna.Ai, to discuss how the company’s Agentic AI Suite and enterprise solutions are reshaping the financial landscape. In this interview, Skoumal outlines Dyna.Ai’s competitive edge, the challenges it helps financial institutions overcome, and the company’s role in supporting Saudi Arabia’s transformation into a regional AI powerhouse.

Dyna.Ai positions itself as a leader in AI-as-a-Service, with solutions already reshaping finance and beyond. How do you define your unique edge in such a competitive and fast-moving AI market?

Our edge is the ability to combine deep financial services experience with modern AI solutions that are enterprise-ready and built for measurable business outcomes. In the financial services sector, technology adoption isn’t about deploying the most recent innovation, but it’s about delivering results such as improving customer engagement, reducing operational risk, and generating new revenue streams.

Our flagship Agentic AI Suite and our Enterprise Solutions Suite for financial services provide multi-modal, multi-channel engagement with 95%+ accuracy and sub-200 millisecond response times. Products like VoiceGPT and AvatarGPT power AI employees that enable our customers to scale hyper-personalization, multilingual support, and real-time interactions in banking and insurance workflows. It is this combination of advanced platform capabilities and practical industry integration, underpinned by industry-leading security, that sets us apart.

AI is becoming central to financial services worldwide. From your perspective, what specific challenges in banking and fintech is Dyna.Ai solving most effectively today?

Banks and fintechs are being tested across a few major priorities: personalizing customer services at scale, managing risk in real time, and remaining compliant within complex regulatory environments. Our AI copilots and digital agents redefine personalized engagement, while other enterprise solutions like E-KYC solutions address the core needs of Saudi Arabia’s $39.9 billion fintech market, which is projected to reach $125 billion by 2034.

With 75% of Saudi financial transactions already digital and job postings in AI growing 54% annually, our Agent Studio enables institutions not only to deploy AI but to train their own AI teams and build long-term capabilities. These solutions help financial institutions stay ahead of customer expectations while enhancing trust, compliance, and efficiency.

Your expertise spans advanced AI models, human-AI interaction, and big data analytics. How are you combining these capabilities to deliver solutions that are both cutting-edge and practical for clients?

We see the future of finance requiring systems that can communicate with human fluency and operate with the precision of advanced data analytics. Our approach integrates commercial LLMs with our proprietary Dyna LLM through the Agent Studio platform, giving banks the flexibility to meet local regulatory requirements while setting new global standards. Our suite of highly tailored Agentic AI products, with culturally adapted capabilities, allows for intuitive engagement in culturally relevant ways. Add to this data-rich applications like fraud prevention and AI-driven decision engines, and the result is a suite of tools that are cutting-edge yet embedded in clear business cases such as Shariah-compliant products, compliance monitoring, and customer service.

Saudi Arabia is investing heavily in AI and digital transformation under Vision 2030. How do you see Dyna.Ai contributing to this national agenda, and what opportunities excite you most in the Kingdom?

Saudi Arabia plans to train 20,000 AI specialists by 2030 and has pledged $20 billion in AI investments. With 66 of Vision 2030’s 96 goals tied to data and AI, this is one of the world’s most ambitious transformations. Dyna.Ai directly supports these efforts through our Agentic AI Suite, including Agent Studio, VoiceGPT, and AvatarGPT. Our Saudi office and growing local team reflect our commitment to long-term capability building. As we grow our partnerships across industries, including banking, fintechs, government, telecommunications, etc, we are excited to provide enterprise-ready tools that not only scale operations but also build indigenous AI expertise, ultimately positioning Saudi Arabia as a regional AI hub.

The global debate around AI often touches on trust, ethics, and transparency. How is Dyna.Ai addressing these concerns to ensure clients can scale AI responsibly?

Responsible AI is fundamental to our mission. From the start, we designed the Agentic AI Suite with guardrails such as transparency, explainability, and compliance monitoring. Governance features allow clients to understand, audit, and control how AI-driven decisions are made, whether in lending, fraud detection, or customer engagement. For example, our AI employee products provide explainable interactions in Arabic and other languages. We work closely with regulators to ensure our solutions meet both global and Saudi standards. This commitment builds the trust needed for sustainable scaling across the financial services ecosystem.

As you participate in Money 20/20 Saudi Arabia, what do you hope to achieve from this gathering of global financial leaders, and how does it align with your growth ambitions in the region?

Money20/20 allows us to show, not just tell. Through live demonstrations of the Agentic AI Suite, including real-time Arabic engagements, we want financial leaders to witness the business impact of AI in action. With Saudi fintech projected to reach $125 billion by 2034 and AI expected to add $320 billion to the MENA economy by 2030, we see this event as a chance to build strategic partnerships that align with the Kingdom’s economic trajectory. Our presence at the event is about reinforcing our commitment to Vision 2030 and partnering with Saudi banks, insurers, and fintechs to innovate at scale.

As Tomas Skoumal highlights, Dyna.Ai is not just deploying advanced technology but building trust and long-term capability in financial services. Through its Agentic AI Suite, the company is enabling hyper-personalized engagement, compliance-driven innovation, and scalable digital solutions that align closely with Saudi Arabia’s Vision 2030. With its growing local presence and commitment to responsible AI, Dyna.Ai positions itself as a strategic partner in turning the Kingdom’s AI ambitions into reality.

Ghada Ismail

In startups, the original idea is rarely the winning one. Markets shift, customer needs evolve, and sometimes the product simply doesn’t click. The difference between failure and breakthrough often comes down to one thing: the ability to pivot.

A pivot isn’t about giving up. It’s about adjusting course to find what truly works. For founders, especially in fast-growing ecosystems like Saudi Arabia, knowing when and how to pivot can turn setbacks into opportunities and keep a startup alive long enough to thrive.

What Is a Pivot?

A pivot is not about tearing everything down and starting from scratch. It’s about keeping the vision intact while changing the route to get there. Think of it as a course correction rather than a restart.

Instagram is a classic example. Before becoming the photo-sharing giant we know today, it was a clunky app called Burbn that let users check into locations. The team noticed that people loved the photo feature more than anything else and decided to pivot around it. The rest is history.

When Should Startups Pivot?

The decision to pivot isn’t easy. Founders often wrestle with sunk costs and pride. But the market doesn’t lie. Common signals that it might be time include:

• No traction despite strong execution: The product works, but users aren’t sticking around.
• Customer behavior doesn’t match expectations: Feedback points to a different problem or need than originally targeted.
• High acquisition costs with low retention: You’re paying heavily to bring people in, but they don’t stay.
• Competitors gaining ground: A rival is growing faster with a different approach, forcing you to reconsider your model.

Listening carefully to customers and tracking metrics honestly will often reveal whether you’re on the wrong track.

Different Types of Pivots

Not all pivots look the same. Some involve small tweaks, others a major shift. A few common ones are:

• Product pivot: Focusing on one feature that resonates and dropping the rest.
• Market pivot: Targeting a new customer segment or geography.
• Revenue model pivot: Changing how you monetize—say, from subscriptions to transaction fees.
• Channel pivot: Finding new ways to reach customers, such as moving from offline distribution to digital-first.

Each requires discipline and clear communication with stakeholders, especially investors and employees.

How to Pivot Without Losing Focus

A pivot can feel like a setback if not framed well. But handled correctly, it can re-energize a startup. A few principles help:

• Protect the vision: Stay clear on the “why,” even if the “how” changes.
• Test before leaping: Run small experiments to validate the new direction before committing fully.
• Be transparent: Keep investors, team members, and early customers informed. Trust is easier to maintain when you bring people along for the ride.
• Maintain morale: Remind your team that adaptability is strength, not weakness.

Wrapping Things Up…

Startups don’t succeed by sticking rigidly to their first idea. They succeed by learning, adapting, and sometimes changing direction altogether. Pivoting isn’t a mark of failure—it’s often the very thing that unlocks growth.

For founders, the key is to treat pivoting not as a last resort but as part of the entrepreneurial journey. Because in the end, the startup that survives is the 

Noha Gad

In today’s world, the way people manage money and investments not only impacts financial returns but also has profound effects on the environment and society. Sustainable finance is an approach that recognizes this connection by integrating environmental, social, and governance (ESG) standards into financial decisions. 

The ESG standards offer a framework for evaluating how companies and investments perform in these critical areas: environmental responsibility, social impact, and governance transparency. They help investors understand the broader risks and opportunities that traditional financial metrics might miss.

Sustainable finance plays a pivotal role in advancing ESG principles by directing capital toward initiatives that promote long-term sustainability and responsible growth. This approach is crucial for addressing global challenges, notably climate change and social inequality.

Green finance, which is a key component of sustainable finance, focuses specifically on funding environmentally beneficial projects, including investments in renewable energy, energy efficiency, pollution control, water management, and biodiversity preservation. Instruments such as green bonds and sustainability-linked loans are common tools used to mobilize capital for these purposes.

Ultimately, sustainable and green finance aim to rebuild financial systems to serve society and the planet in a better way, directing investments into activities that align with sustainability goals and support the transition to a low-carbon, equitable economy.

How does sustainable and green finance support 3?

Integrating ESG criteria into investment and financing decisions ensures that the capital is allocated to projects and companies that demonstrate responsible practices aligned with ESG principles. This integration helps drive positive environmental outcomes, social inclusion, and transparent governance. For instance, green finance channels funds into renewable energy, energy efficiency, and ecosystem conservation projects that directly address the environmental goals of ESG.

Financial instruments like green bonds and ESG-linked loans were designed to link funding conditions to ESG performance, incentivizing companies to improve their sustainability practices.

Benefits of integrating sustainable finance with ESG standards

Integrating sustainable finance with ESG standards brings significant benefits to businesses, investors, and society. This includes: 

*Lower operational costs and improved efficiency.

*Enhanced risk management.

*High stock market performance.

*Strong employee engagement.

*Improved brand reputation.

*Compliance with regulations.

Although the integration of sustainable finance into ESG standards offers various advantages, it faces different challenges, notably:

• Changing regulatory landscape: Financial institutions face a rapidly shifting regulatory environment with new rules emerging globally. Navigating these evolving requirements demands agility and continuous adaptation.
• Risk of greenwashing: misleading sustainability claims, known as greenwashing, impose major challenges that affect transparency and lead to mislabeling of funds as sustainable without sufficient backing.
• Fragmented standards: The absence of globally accepted ESG and green finance standards creates confusion and complicates compliance.
• High compliance costs: Meeting enhanced ESG disclosure requirements can be expensive and resource-intensive, particularly for smaller firms.
• Data quality and transparency issues: Reliable and standardized ESG data remain rare. This makes it difficult for investors to assess sustainability credibly.

Sustainable and green finance are expected to witness significant growth in the future, triggered by evolving regulatory frameworks and innovation. The global sustainable finance market is projected to expand rapidly, with assets under management (AUM) anticipated to rise substantially in the next few years. This growth will be triggered by increasing investor demand for ESG-aligned products and the widespread awareness of the importance of integrating sustainability for long-term financial performance and risk management.

Innovative financial instruments, such as sustainability-linked loans, green bonds, climate-linked derivatives, and voluntary carbon credits, are emerging to realize various sustainability goals. Technology is playing a transformative role, with advances in artificial intelligence and blockchain enhancing transparency, data accuracy, and efficiency in ESG reporting and sustainable asset issuance.

Overall, the sustainable finance ecosystem is expected to become more advanced and integrated, driving a global transition toward a resilient, low-carbon, and equitable economy. Strategic adaptation to these trends will be pivotal for investors, companies, and policymakers aiming to capitalize on opportunities while addressing pressing environmental and social challenges.

Kholoud Hussein 

New playbook

Venture capital in Saudi Arabia is being fundamentally rewired by artificial intelligence. What once was a search for disruptive apps and platforms is now a race to fund companies that can build and defend algorithmic moats. Investors are no longer content with “AI-enabled” features bolted onto legacy models; they are chasing startups whose entire business logic is inseparable from data and AI. This shift is already visible in the numbers: according to MAGNiTT, Saudi Arabia attracted $860 million in venture funding in the first half of 2025, a 116% year-on-year jump, with deal counts up 31%. For the first time, Saudi matched the UAE as the region’s top investment destination during a half-year period. That momentum stands out against a global backdrop of caution in venture capital, underscoring that Saudi’s bet on AI-first entrepreneurship is not a marginal play—it is becoming central to the Kingdom’s economic diversification strategy.

Government policy has been crucial in shaping this trajectory. At LEAP 2025, Riyadh announced $14.9 billion worth of AI-related investments, ranging from hyperscale data centers to startup support funds. As Minister of Communications and Information Technology Abdullah Al-Swaha remarked at the event, “Our goal is not just to adopt AI technologies, but to produce them, to export solutions from Saudi Arabia to the world.” He highlighted that the local digital workforce had grown from 150,000 in 2021 to 381,000 in 2024, reflecting how the Kingdom has quickly built a foundation of talent that AI startups can tap into. This expansion in skills gives confidence to investors that early-stage ventures can scale without relying entirely on imported expertise.

Data over markets

Artificial intelligence has altered the very metrics that Saudi venture capitalists use to evaluate opportunities. Instead of relying on traditional total addressable market (TAM) models, investors are now considering what some describe as the “trainable addressable market.” This perspective asks: given Saudi regulations, data residency rules, and ethical frameworks, how much usable data can a startup access, label, and train on? The size of that trainable set directly affects how far a company’s model can improve and thus how much value it can capture.

Business owners in fintech, healthtech, and logistics confirm this shift. A Riyadh-based founder in digital health explained, “When we speak with VCs now, they don’t just ask how many clinics or patients we could serve. They ask how many hours of labeled diagnostic data we own, what our annotation process looks like, and how quickly our model improves with new inputs.” This level of technical due diligence signals that capital allocators in the Kingdom are now fluent in the economics of training data and algorithmic scaling.

This reframing also affects the startup lifecycle. A company that secures proprietary datasets through government partnerships, industry consortia, or user acquisition strategies becomes disproportionately attractive to investors, even at the seed stage. In Saudi Arabia, where public-private partnerships are a policy priority, startups that align with government initiatives—whether in smart cities, healthcare digitization, or financial inclusion—often gain preferential access to unique data streams. That, in turn, enhances their valuation and ability to secure follow-on capital.

Infra edge

Saudi Arabia’s decision to invest directly in AI infrastructure is perhaps the most consequential development for both startups and venture investors. In May 2025, the Kingdom launched Humain, a national AI company backed by the Public Investment Fund, with a mandate to develop domestic compute, models, and data-center capacity. Media reports indicate that Nvidia has committed 18,000 Blackwell chips to the project, with the first 100-megawatt data centers in Riyadh and Dammam expected to come online in 2026.

This matters for startups because compute scarcity has been one of the greatest bottlenecks globally. Access to high-performance GPUs in markets like the U.S. and Europe is constrained and expensive, and Saudi entrepreneurs often struggle to secure capacity at reasonable costs. By hosting this infrastructure locally, the Kingdom is effectively subsidizing the next wave of AI startups. As one venture capitalist in Riyadh noted, “When a founder can train models inside the Kingdom, on Saudi data, at predictable costs, it fundamentally changes the investment case. You reduce execution risk, regulatory risk, and margin pressure at once.”

Regulators, too, view local compute as essential. Sensitive sectors such as finance and healthcare require data to remain within Saudi borders. Having world-class capacity available in Riyadh allows startups to deploy solutions for banks, hospitals, and ministries without running afoul of compliance rules. This alignment between infrastructure and regulation is why many VCs now speak of compute availability as a national “comparative advantage.”

Startups lead

Saudi startups are not waiting for the infrastructure to mature; they are already showing how AI-native strategies can produce growth. Mozn, headquartered in Riyadh, began as a fintech analytics firm but has evolved into a leader in AI-driven fraud prevention. At LEAP 2025, Mozn unveiled new modules for agentic AI in financial crime prevention, expanding its offerings beyond traditional AML into real-time fraud detection. Partnering with banks like D360, Mozn has become an example of how Saudi startups can build for regulated industries and then scale regionally.

Another standout is Quant, which applies AI to big data problems across sectors, including retail, real estate, and government services. By tailoring models to Arabic and regional contexts, Quant provides insights that global platforms often overlook. As one retail client explained, “Quant’s AI models understand local consumer behavior in a way no off-the-shelf product can. That’s why we can optimize inventory and pricing with confidence.”

Beyond these, companies like Unifonic, Lean Technologies, Foodics, and Sary are integrating AI deeper into their platforms. Whether in customer engagement, financial connectivity, restaurant demand forecasting, or procurement optimization, these startups are weaving machine learning into core workflows, turning AI into an essential rather than optional feature. For VCs, such integration signals resilience: when AI drives the core economics of a business, customer stickiness and margins improve.

Policy and trust

While Saudi Arabia is moving fast, officials emphasize the importance of responsible adoption. Abdullah bin Sharaf Al-Ghamdi, president of the Saudi Data and AI Authority (SDAIA), has often stated that AI is not merely a technology but a “societal transformation.” Speaking at global forums, he pointed to pilot programs in water management and emissions reduction where AI delivered measurable sustainability gains, stressing that these successes must go hand-in-hand with ethical safeguards.

SDAIA’s launch of the National AI Readiness Index reflects this balance. By benchmarking government agencies on their ability to adopt AI responsibly, the state creates predictable demand pipelines for startups. For venture capitalists, this offers greater visibility: they can track which ministries are ready to procure AI solutions, in what domains, and on what timelines. This reduces uncertainty in sales cycles, a key concern for investors underwriting enterprise-focused startups.

VC craft shifts

The practice of venture capital itself is adapting. Technical diligence now includes model governance, data provenance, evaluation metrics, and cost-per-inference calculations. As one Saudi GP put it, “It’s not enough for a founder to show traction in users or revenues. We want to see model cards, red-teaming schedules, and evidence that the AI pipeline is production-ready.”

Portfolio construction is also changing. Many Saudi investors are adopting a barbell strategy—allocating to infrastructure plays like MLOps and inference orchestration on one end, and regulated application-layer companies on the other. The middle ground—generic AI platforms with weak moats—is less attractive unless the distribution advantage is overwhelming.

Perhaps most interesting is the rise of operator-led angel syndicates. Former Careem executives, now veterans of scaling tech across the region, are active in early-stage AI rounds. Their practical knowledge of distribution, compliance, and procurement is proving invaluable for young founders. This layer of operator capital shortens go-to-market timelines and reassures institutional investors.

Fintech lens

Fintech provides a clear example of how AI is reshaping venture logic in Saudi Arabia. Fraud prevention, AML, and sanctions screening are high-stakes accuracy problems that demand both speed and compliance. Mozn’s agentic AI solutions, launched in 2025, show how Saudi startups can deliver measurable results. Banks report lower false positives and faster processing times, directly improving ROI. For VCs, this kind of quantifiable impact justifies larger checks at higher valuations.

Events like Money 20/20 Middle East in Riyadh amplify the effect by bringing together regulators, banks, and startups. Vendors showcasing AI compliance tools that are tailored for Arabic and Saudi hosting requirements gain an immediate edge in procurement cycles. For investors, this is evidence that the ecosystem has reached a level of maturity where global capital and local demand intersect.

Bottlenecks

Despite the optimism, challenges remain. Compute costs, talent shortages, and capital efficiency are recurring concerns. Yet Saudi Arabia is actively addressing all three. Humain’s compute buildout and Nvidia’s chip shipments promise to ease capacity constraints. On the talent side, the government has grown the digital workforce by more than 2.5 times in three years, reaching 381,000 professionals. Special visa schemes also attract senior ML engineers from abroad.

Capital, meanwhile, is increasingly strategic. Sovereign-linked vehicles and corporate venture arms from banks, telcos, and industrial groups are investing in AI startups, not just for returns but to acquire capabilities. This dual role as both customer and investor reduces risk for VCs and accelerates time-to-revenue for startups.

Founder edge

For founders, the message is clear: competitive advantage in Saudi AI will belong to those who own unique Arabic data, can ship production-grade models with regulatory compliance built in, and exploit domestic compute to reduce latency and costs. These are the traits that shift a startup from being “AI-enabled” to “AI-essential.” Investors recognize this and are rewarding such companies with premium valuations and substantial follow-on commitments.

Risk priced

Risks are not ignored. Model brittleness, evaluation challenges in Arabic dialects, and global talent shortages are real. But local infrastructure, policy transparency, and concentrated demand all reduce the severity of these risks. Compared to global peers, Saudi AI startups are less likely to be binary bets and more likely to become durable, ROI-driven businesses.

Next 24 months

Looking ahead, three themes dominate Saudi venture theses:

1. Arabic-first enterprise copilots in finance, logistics, and government workflows.
2. AI safety and trust tools, including monitoring, red-teaming, and security solutions.
3. AI and Industry 4.0 converge in Saudi industrial corridors, particularly as new data centers connect to edge infrastructure.

To conclude, Saudi Arabia’s venture market is not merely experimenting with AI; it is being rebuilt around it. With record-breaking VC inflows, policy-backed AI investments, and domestic compute capacity on the horizon, the Kingdom is setting the stage for compounding innovation. As Al-Ghamdi of SDAIA recently said, “AI is not just about technology—it is about shaping the future of our society and economy.” For investors, that future is already investable. For founders, the edge will belong to those who turn Saudi Arabia’s unique data, infrastructure, and policy alignment into globally relevant AI products.