Rime
Riyadh-based startup whose platform connects the cameras and sensors in shops, branches and service centres to AI agents that process data on site. Founded in 2024, it raised a seed round of more than $2 million in August 2026.
Industry: Physical AI and edge AI for retail and service branches | Location: Riyadh, Saudi Arabia | Founded: 2024 | Total Funding: USD 2M
About Rime
Rime is a Saudi physical-AI company founded in Riyadh in 2024 by Mohammed Almarshidi, its chief executive, and Aref AlOtaibi. It moves artificial intelligence out of the data centre and into physical locations, running AI agents directly on the cameras and sensors already installed in shops, branches and service centres, so that decisions are taken on site and in real time when an event occurs. Its customers are retail, food and beverage, banking and other service chains that use the platform for real-time monitoring and management of their branches.
The platform combines two technologies. Edge computing processes data locally, on or near the device that captures it, rather than sending it to a remote server. AIoT, the artificial intelligence of things, links AI models directly to the sensors and cameras that observe the physical world. Rime packages the two into an end-to-end system that lets a business deploy autonomous agents inside its own premises without relying on a constant connection to a distant data centre. Because the software works with infrastructure customers already own, it does not require them to buy new hardware. Examples TechScoop has cited include spotting a spill, flagging a queue, noticing a stock-out or detecting a safety issue.
Rime reports that it has connected more than 6,000 cameras to AI agents across over 2,000 operational sites in the GCC.
In August 2026 the company closed a seed round of more than USD 2 million led by SEEDRA Ventures, a Riyadh-based venture capital firm licensed by the Capital Market Authority, with participation from Athlah Investment, Unity Invest Partners and a group of angel investors. SEEDRA had also led Rime's earlier pre-seed round, whose size was not disclosed. The new funds are intended to scale the platform, develop its technology infrastructure, strengthen its position in Saudi Arabia and support regional expansion.
SEEDRA co-founder Abdullah AlMunif said the investment reflected the firm's venture studio approach and that SEEDRA had worked with Rime since its early stages. He argued that enterprises in the region hold large networks of cameras and sensors used only for passive recording, and that turning them into an active intelligence layer is a significant opportunity, adding that as foundation models converge in capability, the advantage lies in delivering decisions into operational environments in real time. Rime positions its work within Saudi Arabia's National Strategy for Data and AI and Vision 2030.
TechScoop has noted that physical AI is still an emerging category, that the seed round is modest, and that larger platforms already used by enterprises could add similar features. Applying AI to camera feeds also raises privacy questions in an area where regulation is still developing. No valuation was disclosed.
Leadership
- Mohammed Almarshidi, Co-founder
- Aref AlOtaibi, Co-founder
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