Best AI Startups in the Middle East

The Middle East, the land of bustling commercial ports and trade, is also home to some of the biggest AI startups! In fact, the startup scene in the Middle East is thriving, giving the Big 5s a run for their money. AI startups in the Middle East have dabbled in all fields, including real estate and logistics, energy, education, manufacturing, pharmaceuticals, and much more. That being said, this is probably because of the Middle East’s need to automate its operations and increase its impact, making them quite the forerunner in the market! 

As Marvel movies depict it in theaters, AI startups in the MENA region bring it to life! These tech warriors appear to take the stage by promoting cutting-edge technologies to solve modern-day problems. This is great news for businesses as more companies seek to use AI tools to improve their customer experiences. The region is diverse when it comes to AI startups, but we’ve found a few that really take the cake here!

This AI startup based in Riyadh, founded by MIT graduates, is taking the MENA region by storm! They intend to give enterprises solutions through deep technology that revolve around decision-making so that the extra burden of making sound decisions is handed over to AI. This would mean high accuracy as well as speed, especially in a market devoid of such technologies. Their in-house solutions are RetailX, RealEstateX, and LogisticsX. By placing distribution centers and managing logical pipelines, RetailX helps you manage your inventory. RealEstateX uses AI to make logical decisions regarding the amount of money to invest, risks, etc. LogisticsX is yet another project that uses AI to make all decisions related to your logistics chain.

Based in Cairo, this AI startup aims to allow non-coders to build machine-learning models. Founded in 2016, DevisionX stands for "deep vision systems." Automation of enterprise processes like quality inspection, time management, production waste, etc. is supported by DevisionX. Their product, Tuba, allows you to label, train, and deploy your AI-vision applications thanks to its smooth and easy-to-understand interface. This would also mean a much faster process than when done manually!

Avey is a healthcare app founded in 2017 in Qatar by Dr Mohammad Hammoud. His vision while creating the mobile application Avey was to help people self-diagnose and book appointments with doctors to get treatments as soon as possible! This AI tool handles everything, ranging from self-diagnosing yourself with a bunch of symptoms, booking an appointment with a doctor for further treatment, buying medicines, and communicating with other people who’re suffering from the same ordeal. Incubated at the Qatar Science and Technology Park, Avey claims to be the best self-diagnostic tool out there!

Making property marketing easier is what Overwrite.ai is all about. Are you a realtor who needs to write a fun property description that must work great for the type of clients you handle? Look no further, for Overwrite.ai does the job for you in seconds! Founded in 2018 by Ayman Alashkar, this Dubai-based startup has paved its way in the real estate industry quite well. This could not only help you with listings but also help create content for social media that would engage your audience better. With a team of linguistic experts, ML engineers, marketers, and real-estate experts, Overwrite.ai seems to have hit the jackpot!

Using AI for accurate facial recognition is in high demand currently, and Eye-C has hopped on the trend as well! Reducing identity theft and fraud was what Eye-C wanted to tackle when Sam Goldstone started Eye-C in Dubai back in 2021. Their in-house solutions include ROC Enroll, ROC Watch Web, and ROC SDK. ROC Enroll is used for facial and object recognition, which would help enterprises with ID proofing. ROC Watch Web turns your video surveillance system into a smart system, while ROC SDK is their software development kit that can be used for facial recognition in enterprises.

This location-based startup, headquartered in Makkah, Saudi Arabia, provides solutions for tracking, localization, and navigation systems for smart buildings. This AI startup, founded in 2015 by Yusuf Sabadia, Shaharyar Ali Anis, Dr Saleh Basalamah, and Dr Anas Basalamah, ticks all our boxes for making the cut! Their five solutions include IPS - SDK, NaviBees SDK, ALS, VALS, and Wayfinder. IPS gives you real-time location, be it outdoor or indoor, while NaviBees SDK provides indoor and outdoor positioning for buildings. ALS allows you to determine the location of your workers, whereas Wayfinder Kiosk does just what its name suggests—helps you find your way! VALS is yet another solution that allows real-time tracking of your visitors!

While the UAE leads the way in terms of AI startups in the MENA region, Saudi Arabia isn't far behind! In fact, it is said that the role of AI in the Mena region’s economy will be $320 billion by 2030. What better tool than AI to boost existing services to function twice as well as others? Since oil isn’t going to be the only key player anymore, the MENA region has decided to boost government and financial services using AI. With AI joining the field, automation of routine tasks is made easier, thus making tasks more efficient when it comes to logistics and transportation. By lowering costs to do so via automation, AI has been quite the game-changer! Innovation and decision-making are yet other features offered by the AI era.  By driving innovation in the Middle East and making things possible, the AI Renaissance continues to take the MENA region by storm! One can only wait and see as the AI future unfolds itself in the Middle East with smart cities and whatnot!