Incubators and accelerators in the UAE
Below you will find a list of the largest incubators and accelerators in the UAE. The specialists of our company, Make Fortune Business Solutions, provide full support to startups in the UAE from choosing the right place to start a business and submitting documents to full support of your business activities. We are interested in your company to flourish and develop.
1. Incubators for IT companies.
There are many incubators in the UAE, in which a startup gets access to project financing, to an environment of like-minded people, and also to mentoring support.
According to a study by the Department of Economic Development (DED) of Dubai, startups account for 50% of the total number of registered companies in the emirate. Below is a list of the main incubators in the UAE, the development of which is an integral part of the state's digital technologies development strategy.
1) in5
It is a platform created by the TECOM Group for startups and entrepreneurs in 2013. The focus of this program is to support startups through mentoring, events and access to laboratories, studios and creative jobs. Also, startups get the opportunity to submit their ideas to venture capital funds to receive funding in the early stages of the project.
Within in5, there are three areas: Tech, Media, Design. First, we launched the Tech direction. Startups launched on this platform have raised more than $ 15 million in 7 years. In 2017, we launched Media, which focuses on media work.
2) Bedayat
Created as part of Dubai SMEs (Small and Medium Enterprises), Bedayat was launched in 2019 to develop small and medium enterprises in collaboration with the Sustainable City free zone. Like other incubators in Dubai, Bedayat provides training courses and opportunities to meet with business experts and gives aspiring entrepreneurs the opportunity to test their products before going to market.
3) Goodforce Labs
The Goodforce Labs incubator has been launched in the Dubai Airport Free Zone (DAFZA). This incubator supports start-ups and promotes innovation in sectors such as agriculture, food processing, education, finance. Highly qualified mentors and experts provide assistance to entrepreneurs and start-ups.
4) Intelak
This incubator provides early and late-stage aviation, travel and tourism startups with access to programs, mentoring from leading organizations and a community of like-minded people to launch, grow and scale their startup. Early-stage projects can receive funding of AED 50,000 (USD 13,600). In addition, the Intelak platform also has an accelerator and a separate Idea Lab program for local startups.
2. Accelerators for IT companies
In addition to the network of incubators for the development of startups, accelerators are widespread in the UAE that contributes to the development of companies.
1) Dubai Future Accelerators Project
The Dubai Future Accelerators program addresses current socio-economic challenges and integrates these innovations into the urban ecosystem. The program is designed to connect government organizations and large private businesses with start-ups and small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). The program includes 8 separate, sequential cycles with a total duration of 9 weeks.
The last project involved 70 companies from 16 countries, 6 government agencies, and 27 private companies. As a result of the first cycle, contracts worth USD 33.5 million were awarded.
2) DIFC Fintech Hive
This accelerator is organized on the territory of the Dubai International Financial Center and cooperates with more than 100 startups operating in the fields of fintech, insurtech and regtech. DIFC FinTech Hive works with the leaders of leading banks and insurance companies to deliver industry-specific programs that meet the needs of the region's financial sector. Each program has been designed to provide you with access to finance, regional business intelligence, and market access, all with a focus on growing your potential.
DIFC has established a $ 100 million fund to invest in the development of the industry. Among the partners of DIFC FinTech Hive are leading companies from New York, London, Hong Kong, Kuala Lumpur, Singapore, Mumbai, Paris, Brussels, Holland and Bahrain, which contributes to the further entry of the program participants to the international market. More than 80 startups took part in the program, and more than 60 pilot projects were created.
3) Dubai Smart City Accelerator
In May 2017, the Dubai Silicon Oasis (DSO) free zone launched the first Dubai Smart City Accelerator in the Middle East and North Africa region, aiming to support Dubai's 2021 strategy to become the world's smartest city.
Dubai Smart City Accelerator is a product of DSO's collaboration with six strategic partners - Emirates Integrated Telecommunications Company (du), Smart Dubai Office, Dubai Chamber of Commerce, Rochester Institute of Technology in New York, Orange Business Services and Visa - total investment AED 18.4 million (USD 5 million).
The accelerator’s intensive 3+3 month program provides selected Smart City companies with hands-on mentorship from over 100 industry experts, office space in Dubai, seed funding, and access to a global network of investors and corporate partners from across the Smart City industry.
Startups that get selected for the program will be given Startupbootcamp’s acceleration package benefits including office space in Dtec, consultation and advisory support, as well as access to Startupbootcamp and its partner organizations and $20,000 (Dh73,460) in cash. Once completed, the startups will join Startupbootcamp's global alumni network consisting of some 400 enterprises from more than 50 countries worldwide.
The program looks for innovative startups in the areas of
- IoT & Connectivity
- Urban Automation & Mobility
- Artificial Intelligence
- Blockchain
- Open City Data
- Sustainable Cities & Living
- Smart Government
- Smart Retail industry
4) Dubai Start-up Hub
Dubai Start-up Hub is a strategic initiative of the Dubai Chamber of Commerce and Industry that supports young entrepreneurs and startups that have been on the market for less than five years. As part of the initiative, various training, masterclasses and practical seminars on a business organization are held. The main goal of Dubai Start-up Hub is to attract innovative international start-ups to the emirate, as well as to ensure the growth of local entrepreneurship in key sectors of the economy for subsequent entry into the global market.
Why Make Fortune
We love modern technology. We follow the development of AI, Big Data, blockchain, robots, biotechnology, the Internet and things and other technologies that are already changing our lives.
One of the areas of our business is supporting the creation and subsequent development of startups and IT companies in the UAE.
We see how the world is changing rapidly, and we want to participate in these changes not only as an observer but as direct participants. Contact us and we will tell you what options you have for developing your startup in the UAE.
