Home

  • Contribute
    BECOME A REGULAR CONTRIBUTOR
    If you would like to contribute regularly to startupsceneme please send your CV and writing samples to info@startupsceneme.com
    CONTRIBUTE AN ARTICLE

    Are you building a startup and want to share your story? Do you have tips for entrepreneurs, or insights to MENA industries? Submit your article with a photo and we'll get in touch with you.

    Photo format: 800 x 491 pixels.

    Contribute An Article
  • Suggest Event
  • BookMark
  • Subscribe
Leena ElDeeb
A Cairo-based business journalist, with an annoying passion for politics and theology. Leena has always wanted to become a war zone correspondent, reporting between bullets and missiles, but she graduated to find herself cornered in the business sector and has recently succumbed to this fact and fell in love with it.
ARTICLES
Sort By:

Egypt’s New Investment Law: What To Expect

05 Apr 2018
Egypt ratified the long-awaited investment law, providing more incentives and [...]

Meet the 8 Migrant Entrepreneurs Who Rocked at Cairo's "Women On The Move"

03 Apr 2018
Startups Without Borders has just launched "Women On The Move" at the Greek Campus, [...]

7 Unspoken Rules in MENA’s Business Etiquette

10 Apr 2018
Wondering why your business relationships are not going very well? You might find [...]

MENA’s Fintech To Receive $2.5 Billion by 2022, What Does That Mean To Blockchain-Banned Countries?

12 Apr 2018
The region’s blockchain technology just got a little more exciting, but what does [...]

5 Books Every Boss Lady Needs To Read

22 Apr 2018
Whether you’re a boss lady juggling responsibilities, or an employee eyeing a [...]

The Egyptian Team Behind the World's First Conscious Tech Summit

17 Apr 2018
“The longer I stayed in Silicon Valley, the longer it disappointed me,” says [...]

Why Algebra Ventures Is Joining Forces with Startup Scene for the First Startup Picnic in Egypt

23 Apr 2018
In the run up to the inaugural edition of Startup Scene's Startup Picnic, we sit [...]

Are Startups Really Creating More Jobs in the Arab World?

01 May 2018
Will innovative companies be able to solve an ageing crisis such as unemployment? [...]

Meet The Gaza Startups Competing Globally Despite the Siege

06 May 2018
“Whenever there’s hard work there’s always hope,” says Sara Al-Afifi, Mentorship [...]

How Close Are We To Dystopia? 5 MENA Startups Mirroring Netflix's "Black Mirror"

13 May 2018
From child-tracking devices to augmented reality game centres, we explore 5 [...]

How Can We Make AI Conscious? We Ask the Engineers of the Future

16 May 2018
Speaking at Vested Summit, which took over Egypt's Town of El Gouna last week, Hong [...]

What Happened To Qatari Startups After The Blockade?

15 Jul 2018
A year after the trade, air, and land blockade enforced by the Arab state’s [...]

A Day In The Life Of Egypt's 20-Year-Old Blockchain Entrepreneur

27 May 2018
We speak to Nour Haridy, the young founder who took on the mission to de-flaw the [...]

7 MENA Entrepreneurs Tell Us How They Stay Productive While Fasting in Ramadan

23 May 2018
Working in Ramadan can be a real challenge, especially for those addicted to [...]

This Egyptian Entrepreneur Is Using Augmented Reality and Machine Learning For Home Furnishing

03 Jun 2018
How many times have you bought a couch and found out it didn’t match your carpet [...]

He Set Off on A Mission to Hack "Digital Injustice" And Now Just Raised $100,000 in Oman 

07 Jun 2018
We speak to Amir El-Sherbiny, CEO and co-founder of WebVille, the content-focused [...]

What Happens in the Valley? The Middle Easterner's Guide to the World's Tech Hub

04 Jul 2018
From the best coffee and pizza places, to tips and advice from Middle Eastern [...]

If Business Cards Become Obsolete In The Digital Age, What Next?

21 Jun 2018
In the era of Bump, My Name Is E and JumpScan, we ask 5 Middle Eastern [...]

Egypt's Bitcoin Pioneer Raised $8 million for a Startup that Could Put Swiss Banks In Jeopardy  

12 Jun 2018
We speak to Rami Khalil, the Alexandrian blockchain geek who started Bitcoin Egypt [...]

How Can Fresh Faces Survive Egypt's Film Monopoly Imposed By Tycoons? We Ask Good People

03 Jul 2018
Hend Ghorab is one of the young minds competing against traditional giants in the [...]

How the Founder of Odiggo Managed to Garner 2,000 Customers in 7 Months

28 Jun 2018
We sit down with Ahmed Omar, the founder and CEO of Odiggo, the digital marketplace [...]

5 Middle Eastern Entrepreneurs Working With Blockchain To Reach The Future

10 Jul 2018
We speak with 5 of the region's fiercest entrepreneurs aiming to decentralise not [...]

3 Agritech Startups Creating a Farming Revolution in Egypt

29 Jul 2018
We speak to Egyptian Agritech startups, Agrimatic, Askova, and Wastilizer using [...]

Go Lean or Go Home? A Look at the MENA's First Lean Startup Night

18 Jul 2018
As the first Lean Startup Night took off in Cairo, we ask its MENA ambassador Hani [...]

CEO at 17: The Egyptian Entrepreneur that Could Kill PowerPoint

22 Jul 2018
"We noticed that people all over the world spend more than 140 million hours every [...]

How This Egyptian Entrepreneur is Putting Courier Data In Order

30 Jul 2018
Mediating between merchants and courier companies, VOO’s CEO Waleed Rashed walks [...]

The West Is Fighting For Net Neutrality, Will The Middle East Follow? We Ask Digital Grassroots

31 Jul 2018
We sit down with Noha Abdel-Baqy, Digital Grassroot's co-founder and ambassador in [...]

This Lebanese Engineer Is Bringing Beach Mattresses Into The 21st Century

06 Aug 2018
From a university project to the global market, Antoine Sayah tells us about how [...]

Inside The Lebanese STEM Academy Teaching Generation Z How To Code

16 Aug 2018
We speak with students, a little above the age of 10, who go to Geek Express every [...]

This Egyptian Startup Is Not Your Typical Web Development Company

15 Aug 2018
A decentralised tech commune at the outskirts of the capital, with a cat as the [...]

From Maktoob to Kambio, Jordan's Samih Toukan Walks Us Through His Entrepreneurial Journey

19 Aug 2018
"The current venture capital operating model is complicated and appears outdated - [...]

Meet The Egyptian Team That Won 2nd Place At Hajj Hackathon

02 Sep 2018
We sit down with the Alexandrian developers behind a virtual wallet that promises [...]

His Cat Died, So He Launched "Vetcode" A Pet-Care Startup That Reached 7 Million Users In 6 Weeks

04 Sep 2018
“We have more than 70,000 veterinarians in Egypt, in the meantime there is no [...]

CEO at 17: The Egyptian Entrepreneur that Could Kill PowerPoint

22 Jul 2018
"We noticed that people all over the world spend more than 140 million hours every [...]

Egypt's Bitcoin Pioneer Raised $8 million for a Startup that Could Put Swiss Banks In Jeopardy  

12 Jun 2018
We speak to Rami Khalil, the Alexandrian blockchain geek who started Bitcoin Egypt [...]

He Set Off on A Mission to Hack "Digital Injustice" And Now Just Raised $100,000 in Oman 

07 Jun 2018
We speak to Amir El-Sherbiny, CEO and co-founder of WebVille, the content-focused [...]

How Can Fresh Faces Survive Egypt's Film Monopoly Imposed By Tycoons? We Ask Good People

03 Jul 2018
Hend Ghorab is one of the young minds competing against traditional giants in the [...]

This Egyptian Entrepreneur Is Using Augmented Reality and Machine Learning For Home Furnishing

03 Jun 2018
How many times have you bought a couch and found out it didn’t match your carpet [...]

3 Agritech Startups Creating a Farming Revolution in Egypt

29 Jul 2018
We speak to Egyptian Agritech startups, Agrimatic, Askova, and Wastilizer using [...]

How the Founder of Odiggo Managed to Garner 2,000 Customers in 7 Months

28 Jun 2018
We sit down with Ahmed Omar, the founder and CEO of Odiggo, the digital marketplace [...]

This Egyptian Startup Is Not Your Typical Web Development Company

15 Aug 2018
A decentralised tech commune at the outskirts of the capital, with a cat as the [...]

A Day In The Life Of Egypt's 20-Year-Old Blockchain Entrepreneur

27 May 2018
We speak to Nour Haridy, the young founder who took on the mission to de-flaw the [...]

5 Middle Eastern Entrepreneurs Working With Blockchain To Reach The Future

10 Jul 2018
We speak with 5 of the region's fiercest entrepreneurs aiming to decentralise not [...]

Meet The Gaza Startups Competing Globally Despite the Siege

06 May 2018
“Whenever there’s hard work there’s always hope,” says Sara Al-Afifi, Mentorship [...]

Are Startups Really Creating More Jobs in the Arab World?

01 May 2018
Will innovative companies be able to solve an ageing crisis such as unemployment? [...]

How This Egyptian Entrepreneur is Putting Courier Data In Order

30 Jul 2018
Mediating between merchants and courier companies, VOO’s CEO Waleed Rashed walks [...]

What Happens in the Valley? The Middle Easterner's Guide to the World's Tech Hub

04 Jul 2018
From the best coffee and pizza places, to tips and advice from Middle Eastern [...]

The West Is Fighting For Net Neutrality, Will The Middle East Follow? We Ask Digital Grassroots

31 Jul 2018
We sit down with Noha Abdel-Baqy, Digital Grassroot's co-founder and ambassador in [...]

The Egyptian Team Behind the World's First Conscious Tech Summit

17 Apr 2018
“The longer I stayed in Silicon Valley, the longer it disappointed me,” says [...]

Egypt’s New Investment Law: What To Expect

05 Apr 2018
Egypt ratified the long-awaited investment law, providing more incentives and [...]

How Close Are We To Dystopia? 5 MENA Startups Mirroring Netflix's "Black Mirror"

13 May 2018
From child-tracking devices to augmented reality game centres, we explore 5 [...]

7 MENA Entrepreneurs Tell Us How They Stay Productive While Fasting in Ramadan

23 May 2018
Working in Ramadan can be a real challenge, especially for those addicted to [...]

Go Lean or Go Home? A Look at the MENA's First Lean Startup Night

18 Jul 2018
As the first Lean Startup Night took off in Cairo, we ask its MENA ambassador Hani [...]

7 Unspoken Rules in MENA’s Business Etiquette

10 Apr 2018
Wondering why your business relationships are not going very well? You might find [...]

Meet the 8 Migrant Entrepreneurs Who Rocked at Cairo's "Women On The Move"

03 Apr 2018
Startups Without Borders has just launched "Women On The Move" at the Greek Campus, [...]

If Business Cards Become Obsolete In The Digital Age, What Next?

21 Jun 2018
In the era of Bump, My Name Is E and JumpScan, we ask 5 Middle Eastern [...]

Inside The Lebanese STEM Academy Teaching Generation Z How To Code

16 Aug 2018
We speak with students, a little above the age of 10, who go to Geek Express every [...]

What Happened To Qatari Startups After The Blockade?

15 Jul 2018
A year after the trade, air, and land blockade enforced by the Arab state’s [...]

Why Algebra Ventures Is Joining Forces with Startup Scene for the First Startup Picnic in Egypt

23 Apr 2018
In the run up to the inaugural edition of Startup Scene's Startup Picnic, we sit [...]

5 Books Every Boss Lady Needs To Read

22 Apr 2018
Whether you’re a boss lady juggling responsibilities, or an employee eyeing a [...]

How Can We Make AI Conscious? We Ask the Engineers of the Future

16 May 2018
Speaking at Vested Summit, which took over Egypt's Town of El Gouna last week, Hong [...]

This Lebanese Engineer Is Bringing Beach Mattresses Into The 21st Century

06 Aug 2018
From a university project to the global market, Antoine Sayah tells us about how [...]

Meet The Egyptian Team That Won 2nd Place At Hajj Hackathon

02 Sep 2018
We sit down with the Alexandrian developers behind a virtual wallet that promises [...]

MENA’s Fintech To Receive $2.5 Billion by 2022, What Does That Mean To Blockchain-Banned Countries?

12 Apr 2018
The region’s blockchain technology just got a little more exciting, but what does [...]

From Maktoob to Kambio, Jordan's Samih Toukan Walks Us Through His Entrepreneurial Journey

19 Aug 2018
"The current venture capital operating model is complicated and appears outdated - [...]

His Cat Died, So He Launched "Vetcode" A Pet-Care Startup That Reached 7 Million Users In 6 Weeks

04 Sep 2018
“We have more than 70,000 veterinarians in Egypt, in the meantime there is no [...]

His Cat Died, So He Launched "Vetcode" A Pet-Care Startup That Reached 7 Million Users In 6 Weeks

04 Sep 2018
“We have more than 70,000 veterinarians in Egypt, in the meantime there is no [...]

Meet The Egyptian Team That Won 2nd Place At Hajj Hackathon

02 Sep 2018
We sit down with the Alexandrian developers behind a virtual wallet that promises [...]

From Maktoob to Kambio, Jordan's Samih Toukan Walks Us Through His Entrepreneurial Journey

19 Aug 2018
"The current venture capital operating model is complicated and appears outdated - [...]

Inside The Lebanese STEM Academy Teaching Generation Z How To Code

16 Aug 2018
We speak with students, a little above the age of 10, who go to Geek Express every [...]

This Egyptian Startup Is Not Your Typical Web Development Company

15 Aug 2018
A decentralised tech commune at the outskirts of the capital, with a cat as the [...]

This Lebanese Engineer Is Bringing Beach Mattresses Into The 21st Century

06 Aug 2018
From a university project to the global market, Antoine Sayah tells us about how [...]

The West Is Fighting For Net Neutrality, Will The Middle East Follow? We Ask Digital Grassroots

31 Jul 2018
We sit down with Noha Abdel-Baqy, Digital Grassroot's co-founder and ambassador in [...]

How This Egyptian Entrepreneur is Putting Courier Data In Order

30 Jul 2018
Mediating between merchants and courier companies, VOO’s CEO Waleed Rashed walks [...]

3 Agritech Startups Creating a Farming Revolution in Egypt

29 Jul 2018
We speak to Egyptian Agritech startups, Agrimatic, Askova, and Wastilizer using [...]

CEO at 17: The Egyptian Entrepreneur that Could Kill PowerPoint

22 Jul 2018
"We noticed that people all over the world spend more than 140 million hours every [...]

Go Lean or Go Home? A Look at the MENA's First Lean Startup Night

18 Jul 2018
As the first Lean Startup Night took off in Cairo, we ask its MENA ambassador Hani [...]

What Happened To Qatari Startups After The Blockade?

15 Jul 2018
A year after the trade, air, and land blockade enforced by the Arab state’s [...]

5 Middle Eastern Entrepreneurs Working With Blockchain To Reach The Future

10 Jul 2018
We speak with 5 of the region's fiercest entrepreneurs aiming to decentralise not [...]

What Happens in the Valley? The Middle Easterner's Guide to the World's Tech Hub

04 Jul 2018
From the best coffee and pizza places, to tips and advice from Middle Eastern [...]

How Can Fresh Faces Survive Egypt's Film Monopoly Imposed By Tycoons? We Ask Good People

03 Jul 2018
Hend Ghorab is one of the young minds competing against traditional giants in the [...]

How the Founder of Odiggo Managed to Garner 2,000 Customers in 7 Months

28 Jun 2018
We sit down with Ahmed Omar, the founder and CEO of Odiggo, the digital marketplace [...]

If Business Cards Become Obsolete In The Digital Age, What Next?

21 Jun 2018
In the era of Bump, My Name Is E and JumpScan, we ask 5 Middle Eastern [...]

Egypt's Bitcoin Pioneer Raised $8 million for a Startup that Could Put Swiss Banks In Jeopardy  

12 Jun 2018
We speak to Rami Khalil, the Alexandrian blockchain geek who started Bitcoin Egypt [...]

He Set Off on A Mission to Hack "Digital Injustice" And Now Just Raised $100,000 in Oman 

07 Jun 2018
We speak to Amir El-Sherbiny, CEO and co-founder of WebVille, the content-focused [...]

This Egyptian Entrepreneur Is Using Augmented Reality and Machine Learning For Home Furnishing

03 Jun 2018
How many times have you bought a couch and found out it didn’t match your carpet [...]

A Day In The Life Of Egypt's 20-Year-Old Blockchain Entrepreneur

27 May 2018
We speak to Nour Haridy, the young founder who took on the mission to de-flaw the [...]

7 MENA Entrepreneurs Tell Us How They Stay Productive While Fasting in Ramadan

23 May 2018
Working in Ramadan can be a real challenge, especially for those addicted to [...]

How Can We Make AI Conscious? We Ask the Engineers of the Future

16 May 2018
Speaking at Vested Summit, which took over Egypt's Town of El Gouna last week, Hong [...]

How Close Are We To Dystopia? 5 MENA Startups Mirroring Netflix's "Black Mirror"

13 May 2018
From child-tracking devices to augmented reality game centres, we explore 5 [...]

Meet The Gaza Startups Competing Globally Despite the Siege

06 May 2018
“Whenever there’s hard work there’s always hope,” says Sara Al-Afifi, Mentorship [...]

Are Startups Really Creating More Jobs in the Arab World?

01 May 2018
Will innovative companies be able to solve an ageing crisis such as unemployment? [...]

Why Algebra Ventures Is Joining Forces with Startup Scene for the First Startup Picnic in Egypt

23 Apr 2018
In the run up to the inaugural edition of Startup Scene's Startup Picnic, we sit [...]

5 Books Every Boss Lady Needs To Read

22 Apr 2018
Whether you’re a boss lady juggling responsibilities, or an employee eyeing a [...]

The Egyptian Team Behind the World's First Conscious Tech Summit

17 Apr 2018
“The longer I stayed in Silicon Valley, the longer it disappointed me,” says [...]

MENA’s Fintech To Receive $2.5 Billion by 2022, What Does That Mean To Blockchain-Banned Countries?

12 Apr 2018
The region’s blockchain technology just got a little more exciting, but what does [...]

7 Unspoken Rules in MENA’s Business Etiquette

10 Apr 2018
Wondering why your business relationships are not going very well? You might find [...]

Egypt’s New Investment Law: What To Expect

05 Apr 2018
Egypt ratified the long-awaited investment law, providing more incentives and [...]

Meet the 8 Migrant Entrepreneurs Who Rocked at Cairo's "Women On The Move"

03 Apr 2018
Startups Without Borders has just launched "Women On The Move" at the Greek Campus, [...]

Startup stories straight to your inbox

Sign up for the weekly newsletter

Week Month Year

A15 Sells 76% Stake In Emirati Fintech Startup TPAY To Helios

This is considered the region's first Dragon exit and the second major exit for A15 in three years after the sale of Otlob, one of the [...]

Vezeeta Scores $12 Million in Series C Funding Led By Saudi VC STV

“We will be using the round to grow into Saudi Arabia and to expand our offerings to patients and it won’t be related to bookings,” [...]

RiseUp Returns With "Grounded Experiences" Between December 7th And 9th

This year's RiseUp will be all about realising the local needs and gaps and developing solutions for them while utilizing the resources [...]

ADGM Launches Digital Sandbox To Accelerate Financial Innovation And Inclusion Across The Region

The ADGM Digital Sandbox promises to provide institutions and startups with the ability to connect and share data, solutions, and ideas to [...]

Social Entrepreneurs Between 12 And 21 Can Apply To Ashoka Arab World's Young Changemakers Programme

This is the first time Ashoka implements this programme in the Middle East. Applications close on October 30th. [...]

Egypt's Blockchain Startup Elkrem Closes $75,000 From San Franciscan Accelerator Tachyon

With this investment the startup is going to globally launch their first product, the blockchain development board, through Kickstarter in [...]

These Are The 5 Mentors You Will Find At Egypt's Ahead Of The Curve's 6-Day Leadership Programme

Leap will focus on accelerating the leadership journeys of women entrepreneurs who have been in business for at least 1 year. Applications [...]

A15 Sells 76% Stake In Emirati Fintech Startup TPAY To Helios

This is considered the region's first Dragon exit and the second major exit for A15 in three years after the sale of Otlob, one of the [...]

Alexandria's Techne Summit Is Back With Two New Tracks: Health Tech And Real Estate

"We have multi-industry focused competitions that will reward startups with different kind of study exchange trips, cash, and in-kind [...]

Cognitev Is The Only Egyptian Startup Heading To San Francisco's TechCrunch This Year

The Internet marketing startup has been invited to the annual TechCrunch Disrupt happening between September 5 and 7. [...]

25 under 25: The Young Entrepreneurs Reinventing Egypt in 2017

Envisioning brave new industries, tackling public transportation, and using AI to offer psychological help, Egypt's new generation of [...]

The Egyptian Startup Using IoT and Big Data to Add Entertainment to Ride-Sharing

RoadCast, now running its pilot phase, is setting off to create on-demand content inside ridesharing vehicles, allowing customers to [...]

22 Questions with RiseUp’s 22-Year-Old New Manager, Dalia Kamar

In 2 years, this young, unwavering woman went from being an intern to managing the Middle East’s most world-shattering event - all while [...]

Egypt's Coding School, AlMakinah, Launched "Makinder" For Kids Who Code

With a little play on words, AlMakinah decided to plant "seeds of coding" - as they term it - in children as young as 9 and as old as 11. [...]

These 13 Egyptian Startups Just Made Forbes' Top 100 in the Middle East

The leading business magazine rounded up the region's 100 startups with the most disruptive ideas and largest funding. Which Egyptian [...]

A15 Sells 76% Stake In Emirati Fintech Startup TPAY To Helios

This is considered the region's first Dragon exit and the second major exit for A15 in three years after the sale of Otlob, one of the [...]

Vezeeta Scores $12 Million in Series C Funding Led By Saudi VC STV

“We will be using the round to grow into Saudi Arabia and to expand our offerings to patients and it won’t be related to bookings,” [...]

RiseUp Returns With "Grounded Experiences" Between December 7th And 9th

This year's RiseUp will be all about realising the local needs and gaps and developing solutions for them while utilizing the resources [...]

ADGM Launches Digital Sandbox To Accelerate Financial Innovation And Inclusion Across The Region

The ADGM Digital Sandbox promises to provide institutions and startups with the ability to connect and share data, solutions, and ideas to [...]

Social Entrepreneurs Between 12 And 21 Can Apply To Ashoka Arab World's Young Changemakers Programme

This is the first time Ashoka implements this programme in the Middle East. Applications close on October 30th. [...]

RiseUp Returns With "Grounded Experiences" Between December 7th And 9th

This year's RiseUp will be all about realising the local needs and gaps and developing solutions for them while utilizing the resources [...]

Alexandrian Craft-Entrepreneurs Are Celebrating IceAlex's Craftsmanship Incubator "Craft Pioneers"

"These integrations and approaches are the main way to support bottom-up communities and help better tackle local challenges," IceAlex's [...]

Social Entrepreneurs Between 12 And 21 Can Apply To Ashoka Arab World's Young Changemakers Programme

This is the first time Ashoka implements this programme in the Middle East. Applications close on October 30th. [...]

Vezeeta Scores $12 Million in Series C Funding Led By Saudi VC STV

“We will be using the round to grow into Saudi Arabia and to expand our offerings to patients and it won’t be related to bookings,” [...]

ADGM Launches Digital Sandbox To Accelerate Financial Innovation And Inclusion Across The Region

The ADGM Digital Sandbox promises to provide institutions and startups with the ability to connect and share data, solutions, and ideas to [...]

follow startupscene