Hub71, Abu Dhabi’s global tech ecosystem, said on Wednesday that its startup community secured AED 30 million ($8.1m) in 2021 through more than 20 corporate deals.
Since its inception in 2019, the affiliated startups have bagged AED1.5 billion of investments and create about 1,000 jobs, while the aggregate valuation of the startups soared to AED5.87 billion, according to the 2021 Impact Report that highlighted growth and success stories emerging from more than 100 startups.
Hub71 boasts startups from 25 nations across 18 diverse sectors, ranging from FinTech, Robotics, AI & Big Data to HealthTech, AgTech and Cybersecurity.
Startups at Hub71 closed 32 funding rounds in which companies such as Trella closed an AED 154 million Series-A funding round, and BitOasis, the cryptocurrency platform, along with Securrency, the blockchain-based financial infrastructure company, both raised AED 110 million in Series-B rounds to fund their expansion across the UAE and the region.
Seven Proof of Concepts (POCs) have been successfully implemented and three-multimillion-dirham deals have been signed through Hub71’s The Outliers program, which seeks innovative solutions to challenges set by corporate and government partners, it added.
Hub71 said it has connected founders with investors and funds and contributed AED 36 million through its various initiatives to ease the startup journey in Abu Dhabi.
Mohammed Ali Al Shorafa Al Hammadi, Chairman of Hub71, said, “Following Hub71’s 191 percent startup growth in 2020, Abu Dhabi has emerged stronger as technological and innovative economy characterized by progress.”