The Abu Dhabi Investment Office and Microsoft welcomed 21 technology start-ups in the second edition of the jointly-run GrowthX Accelerator programme that aims to provide selected companies with access to the market and investors.
The new batch of start-ups will participate in a series of activities for 12 weeks. The activities will equip them with technical and technological knowledge to advance their business ideas, which aim to solve real-world challenges being faced by corporations in the region, Microsoft said on Tuesday.
THE NEW BATCH'S FOCUS SECTORS
AiFlux – renewables, oil and gas
DevisionX – manufacturing
Event Gates – security and manufacturing
Farmdar – agriculture
Farmin – smart cities
Greener Crop – agriculture
Ipera.ai – space digitisation
Lune Technologies – fibre-optics
Monak – delivery
NutzenTech – environment
Nybl – machine learning
Occicor – shelf management
Olymon Solutions – smart automation
Pivony – user-generated data
PowerDev – energy big data
Sav – finance
Searover – renewables
Swftbox – delivery
Trade Capital Partners – FinTech
Valorafutbol – sports and entertainment
Workfam – employee engagement
The programme also aims to further drive Abu Dhabi's position as a global hub for technology and entrepreneurship.
“Abu Dhabi has been a leader in leveraging advanced technology to generate sustainable economic impact,” said Mohamed Al Dhaheri, acting executive director of business enterprise at Adio.
"Key to our approach has been the empowerment of innovative tech start-ups that play an important role in accelerating innovation and boosting entrepreneurship."
The UAE continues to support the start-up ecosystem with programmes and partnerships to boost the sector and encourage investments.
Start-ups in Hub71, the global technology ecosystem based in Abu Dhabi Global Market, secured Dh1.5 billion ($408 million) worth of investments, created 1,000 new jobs and posted revenue of about Dh1.2bn since the hub's inception in 2019.
Abu Dhabi venture capital firm Shorooq Partners launched a $150m fund to support early-stage start-ups operating in the Middle East and North Africa and Pakistan region, while Abu Dhabi's holding company ADQ and the Turkey Wealth Fund formed a new $300m technology fund.
Abu Dhabi has been a leader in leveraging advanced technology to generate sustainable economic impact
Mohamed Al Dhaheri,
acting executive director of business enterprise at the Abu Dhabi Investment Office
Dubai, meanwhile, is home to almost 40 per cent of the Mena region’s scale-ups or companies with 10 or more employees, which have recorded average annual growth of at least 20 per cent over the past three years. The emirate also accounted for almost 57 per cent of the scale-up funding in the region last year, a report from the Dubai Chamber of Digital Economy said.
The GrowthX Accelerator is part of the Microsoft for Start-ups Middle East and Africa programme.
Microsoft said GrowthX will familiarise the participating start-ups in business practices including selling, hiring, fundraising, mentoring and community building, while taking part in marketplaces, talent partnerships, investor workshops, community connections and corporate pitches.
The new programme comes about two months after the first cohort concluded, and its success was a driving factor for the new cohort that aims to be "more hands-on and offers even more value", said Roberto Croci, managing director of Microsoft for Start-ups.
"The 21 start-ups participating in this event will gain incredible knowledge from mentors in the programme that will not only help them scale their businesses, but drive real impact across the region," he added.
Adio helps investors and companies establish, grow and develop their businesses in Abu Dhabi as part of its efforts to grow the capital’s private sector and diversify its economy.
The specs
Engine: 4.0-litre V8 twin-turbocharged and three electric motors
Power: Combined output 920hp
Torque: 730Nm at 4,000-7,000rpm
Transmission: 8-speed dual-clutch automatic
Fuel consumption: 11.2L/100km
On sale: Now, deliveries expected later in 2025
Price: expected to start at Dh1,432,000
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
The specs
- Engine: 3.9-litre twin-turbo V8
- Power: 640hp
- Torque: 760nm
- On sale: 2026
- Price: Not announced yet
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Why are asylum seekers being housed in hotels?
The number of asylum applications in the UK has reached a new record high, driven by those illegally entering the country in small boats crossing the English Channel.
A total of 111,084 people applied for asylum in the UK in the year to June 2025, the highest number for any 12-month period since current records began in 2001.
Asylum seekers and their families can be housed in temporary accommodation while their claim is assessed.
The Home Office provides the accommodation, meaning asylum seekers cannot choose where they live.
When there is not enough housing, the Home Office can move people to hotels or large sites like former military bases.
Brief scores:
QPR 0
Watford 1
Capoue 45' 1
Dhadak 2
Director: Shazia Iqbal
Starring: Siddhant Chaturvedi, Triptii Dimri
Rating: 1/5
More from Neighbourhood Watch
Six large-scale objects on show
- Concrete wall and windows from the now demolished Robin Hood Gardens housing estate in Poplar
- The 17th Century Agra Colonnade, from the bathhouse of the fort of Agra in India
- A stagecloth for The Ballet Russes that is 10m high – the largest Picasso in the world
- Frank Lloyd Wright’s 1930s Kaufmann Office
- A full-scale Frankfurt Kitchen designed by Margarete Schütte-Lihotzky, which transformed kitchen design in the 20th century
- Torrijos Palace dome
The specs
Engine: 4.0-litre flat-six
Torque: 450Nm at 6,100rpm
Transmission: 7-speed PDK auto or 6-speed manual
Fuel economy, combined: 13.8L/100km
On sale: Available to order now
The burning issue
The internal combustion engine is facing a watershed moment – major manufacturer Volvo is to stop producing petroleum-powered vehicles by 2021 and countries in Europe, including the UK, have vowed to ban their sale before 2040. The National takes a look at the story of one of the most successful technologies of the last 100 years and how it has impacted life in the UAE.
Read part four: an affection for classic cars lives on
Read part three: the age of the electric vehicle begins
Read part one: how cars came to the UAE
The five pillars of Islam
1. Fasting
2. Prayer
3. Hajj
4. Shahada
5. Zakat
THE SPECS
Engine: 3.5-litre V6
Transmission: six-speed manual
Power: 325bhp
Torque: 370Nm
Speed: 0-100km/h 3.9 seconds
Price: Dh230,000
On sale: now
MATCH INFO
Chelsea 0
Liverpool 2 (Mane 50', 54')
Red card: Andreas Christensen (Chelsea)
Man of the match: Sadio Mane (Liverpool)
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Washmen Profile
Date Started: May 2015
Founders: Rami Shaar and Jad Halaoui
Based: Dubai, UAE
Sector: Laundry
Employees: 170
Funding: about $8m
Funders: Addventure, B&Y Partners, Clara Ventures, Cedar Mundi Partners, Henkel Ventures
Test
Director: S Sashikanth
Cast: Nayanthara, Siddharth, Meera Jasmine, R Madhavan
Star rating: 2/5
War
Director: Siddharth Anand
Cast: Hrithik Roshan, Tiger Shroff, Ashutosh Rana, Vaani Kapoor
Rating: Two out of five stars
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
HOW TO WATCH
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Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Match info:
Portugal 1
Ronaldo (4')
Morocco 0
Pharaoh's curse
British aristocrat Lord Carnarvon, who funded the expedition to find the Tutankhamun tomb, died in a Cairo hotel four months after the crypt was opened.
He had been in poor health for many years after a car crash, and a mosquito bite made worse by a shaving cut led to blood poisoning and pneumonia.
Reports at the time said Lord Carnarvon suffered from “pain as the inflammation affected the nasal passages and eyes”.
Decades later, scientists contended he had died of aspergillosis after inhaling spores of the fungus aspergillus in the tomb, which can lie dormant for months. The fact several others who entered were also found dead withiin a short time led to the myth of the curse.
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
McLaren GT specs
Engine: 4-litre twin-turbo V8
Transmission: seven-speed
Power: 620bhp
Torque: 630Nm
Price: Dh875,000
On sale: now
Leaderboard
15 under: Paul Casey (ENG)
-14: Robert MacIntyre (SCO)
-13 Brandon Stone (SA)
-10 Laurie Canter (ENG) , Sergio Garcia (ESP)
-9 Kalle Samooja (FIN)
-8 Thomas Detry (BEL), Justin Harding (SA), Justin Rose (ENG)
Company%20profile
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THE NEW BATCH'S FOCUS SECTORS
AiFlux – renewables, oil and gas
DevisionX – manufacturing
Event Gates – security and manufacturing
Farmdar – agriculture
Farmin – smart cities
Greener Crop – agriculture
Ipera.ai – space digitisation
Lune Technologies – fibre-optics
Monak – delivery
NutzenTech – environment
Nybl – machine learning
Occicor – shelf management
Olymon Solutions – smart automation
Pivony – user-generated data
PowerDev – energy big data
Sav – finance
Searover – renewables
Swftbox – delivery
Trade Capital Partners – FinTech
Valorafutbol – sports and entertainment
Workfam – employee engagement
