Egypt & North Africa

YouTube Premium and Music just got more expensive

YouTube raising prices on Premium and Music is the kind of move that looks straightforward in a press release and feels considerably more complicated when the billing notification lands, and for subscribers across MENA where the value case for paid streaming was already a harder sell, the timing raises questions that go beyond what the new monthly rate actually is.

Anthropic temporarily banned OpenClaw's creator and every Claude developer should take note

Anthropic's temporary ban of OpenClaw's creator is a small story with large implications, and the developers building AI-powered tools across MENA on third-party model APIs should read it carefully, because the structural risk it reveals does not get smaller as the ecosystem grows.

X moves against clickbait creators and Arabic content producers have reason to pay attention

X is reducing payments to clickbait accounts, but the more important question is whether a platform built on engagement-driven revenue can genuinely reward quality content without rethinking the structural incentives that made clickbait the most rational strategy in the first place.

The honest trade-off between bootstrapping and raising for MENA founders

The startup world has spent a decade treating fundraising as a milestone rather than a tool, but the founders who build the most durable companies are the ones who ask a simpler question first: do I actually need someone else's money to win? The answer depends on your market, your margins, your psychology, and how much of your company you are willing to trade for speed you may not need.

Term sheet clauses every MENA founder must understand

Most founders read a term sheet the way most people read a terms-and-conditions page — quickly, optimistically, and with a quiet faith that everything will probably be fine. It rarely is. Buried inside the standard language are three clauses that will determine, far more than your ownership percentage ever will, how much money you actually walk away with when your company exits. Get the valuation math wrong and you lose equity before the ink dries. Accept a participating liquidation preference without understanding it and an investor can take the majority of a modest exit while you held the majority of the company. Sign a full ratchet anti-dilution clause and a single down round can halve your ownership without you raising another dollar. This guide breaks down each clause plainly, shows you what the numbers actually look like, and tells you what to fight, what to accept, and what should make you walk away from the table entirely.

What MENA investors actually want — the unwritten rules nobody puts in their thesis

We sat with five investors across Karachi, Dubai, and Riyadh and asked them to be honest. What came back wasn't the standard pitch advice. It was the stuff they talk about after you leave the room.

Egyptian fintech Lucky secures $23M Series B as it expands consumer credit into Tunisia and Morocco

The real numbers behind MENAP venture capital: A founder's field guide

A comprehensive analysis of venture capital ecosystems across Saudi Arabia, UAE, Kuwait, and Pakistan, revealing fund sizes, check ranges, decision timelines, and sector preferences that founders need to navigate regional fundraising successfully.

$12.6M round positions Flextock to capture rising e-commerce demand

E-commerce enablement startup Flextock has raised $12.6 million to scale its merchant growth platform, expanding fulfillment, logistics, and embedded services across the MENA region.

Egypt’s Tactful AI lands $1M as it prepares for series A push

Egyptian CX startup Tactful AI secures $1 million in Pre-Series A funding to scale its agentic AI platform across Egypt and EMEA, with plans to accelerate R&D and target a Series A within 12 months.

Lebanese Legal Tech HAQQ Raises $3 Million to Scale AI Platform

Beirut-based legal technology startup HAQQ has raised $3 million to expand its AI-powered legal services platform across the Middle East and North Africa.

Business For Teens raises pre seed capital

Egyptian edtech startup Business For Teens closes a six figure pre-seed funding round to expand entrepreneurship and financial literacy programs for teenagers.

Nawah Scientific closes $23M series A round

Egypt based Nawah Scientific raises $23 million in a Series A round to expand its cloud laboratory infrastructure and scale life sciences research across new markets.

 MidLyr raises USD 2.5M to expand in Egypt & Middle East

MidLyr, an Egyptian-led enterprise-AI startup, has raised USD 2.5 million in pre-seed funding to expand into Egypt and the Middle East, targeting banks and fintechs with its regulation-focused platform.

KarmSolar to invest USD 110M in Egypt’s renewable energy

Cairo airport unveils AI assistant “Maryam” with Orange Egypt

Cairo International Airport has introduced “Ask Maryam,” an AI-powered digital assistant developed with Orange Egypt to modernize passenger experience and streamline airport services.

Egyptian fintech MNT-Halan taps debt market again with $71.4M issuance

Egyptian fintech unicorn MNT-Halan raises $71.4 million in its seventh securitised bond deal to expand lending and deepen financial inclusion across Egypt.

Chari raises $12M from SPE Capital & Orange Ventures after securing Morocco’s Central Bank license

Moroccan fintech and e-commerce startup Chari raises $12 million in a Series A round led by SPE Capital and Orange Ventures to launch a merchant super app integrating payments, FMCG orders, and financial services for small retailers.

Gen Z is quietly building the Middle East’s next economy

Gen Z founders in Saudi, UAE & Egypt are redefining entrepreneurship, turning social reach into scalable businesses powered by tech and payments.