Tech events, conferences, and summits
TiE Women named five founders for a December final at GITEX Global 2026, after virtual heats from 8 to 17 September. More than 250 businesses applied. A prize for this year’s title was not published. The five also get a booth at Expand North Star.
Egypt’s Entrepreneur Awards opened an Arab Entrepreneur of the Year category on 28 September 2026. Firms need an Arab founder, an Arab register and two to ten years of operations. The published jury list names three people. Applications are open.
LEAP 2026 opens in Riyadh with its usual flood of billion-dollar deals and record numbers. But the signals worth watching are quieter, whether AI talk has turned into deployment, whether governance keeps pace with ambition, and whether real startups take root.
LEAP 2026 returns to Riyadh from 31 August to 3 September, expecting more than 201,000 visitors and over 1,800 global tech brands. The fifth edition cements the event as the world's most-attended technology conference and a Vision 2030 showpiece.
Roblox has chosen Riyadh as its regional headquarters for the Middle East and North Africa, deepening its Saudi investment. The Kingdom is one of the platform's top-grossing markets, with local creator earnings up 59 percent year on year.
Aramco Ventures has co-led a 20 million dollar seed round for US startup Twin1 AI, which builds AI-powered digital twins of professionals to scale their expertise. The bet targets the governance challenge of deploying AI inside large, regulated firms.
LEAP 2026 returns to Riyadh from 31 August to 3 September with artificial intelligence firmly at its centre, arriving as Saudi Arabia marks its Year of AI. Its DeepFest programme and Tech Arena spotlight real-world AI, governance and embodied systems.
More than 1,000 investors from over 900 firms, managing a combined 14.3 trillion dollars, are heading to LEAP 2026 in Riyadh. The scale reframes the event, which has shifted from a showcase of innovation into a platform built to connect capital with startups.
LEAP 2026 returns to Riyadh from 31 August to 3 September, bringing together more than 1,800 global tech companies and over 1,900 investors. The fifth edition cements the event as the world's most-attended tech conference and a Vision 2030 showpiece.
Saudi Arabia's Kafalah program has surpassed 100 billion riyals in financing guarantees, unlocking more than 140 billion riyals in total lending to over 28,000 SMEs. The guarantee mechanism multiplies modest public backing into vast private credit.