Mohammad Albalooshi

So this center that we've established also sits in the center of the city, makes it pretty accessible from any part of the city, and it's in a pretty vibrant place. I think what also makes a lot of sense for DIFC is the proximity to all the financial institutions and all the, let's say, money managers. I usually say startups want to be next to all the investors.

So DIFC, of course, is home to the who's who of the world and, of course, the who's who of the region. For startups to be next to that pool of capital, that makes a lot of sense. It started with a very, I would say, a humble idea back in 2016, when Dubai had made it very clear that it wants to be at the forefront of innovation.

So DIFC, of course, is home to the who's who of the world and, of course, the who's who of the region. For startups to be next to that pool of capital, that makes a lot of sense. It started with a very, I would say, a humble idea back in 2016, when Dubai had made it very clear that it wants to be at the forefront of innovation.

So DIFC, of course, is home to the who's who of the world and, of course, the who's who of the region. For startups to be next to that pool of capital, that makes a lot of sense. It started with a very, I would say, a humble idea back in 2016, when Dubai had made it very clear that it wants to be at the forefront of innovation.

And the IFC, of course, wanted to position itself as a leader in the space. In a very humble way, we created an accelerator just to understand, because before that, the IFC always catered towards the large financial institutions and service providers. But I think in 2016, we realized that we have to look at startups because there was a lot of potential in startups.

And the IFC, of course, wanted to position itself as a leader in the space. In a very humble way, we created an accelerator just to understand, because before that, the IFC always catered towards the large financial institutions and service providers. But I think in 2016, we realized that we have to look at startups because there was a lot of potential in startups.

And the IFC, of course, wanted to position itself as a leader in the space. In a very humble way, we created an accelerator just to understand, because before that, the IFC always catered towards the large financial institutions and service providers. But I think in 2016, we realized that we have to look at startups because there was a lot of potential in startups.

And it was clear to us that a lot of the growth for us is going to come from startups. So how do we now build a proposition or position ourselves as a hub for that ecosystem? So we started looking at the ecosystem by launching an accelerator program. What that did is it taught us a lot. I still remember, you know, all of a sudden we started speaking to a clientele that is very different.

And it was clear to us that a lot of the growth for us is going to come from startups. So how do we now build a proposition or position ourselves as a hub for that ecosystem? So we started looking at the ecosystem by launching an accelerator program. What that did is it taught us a lot. I still remember, you know, all of a sudden we started speaking to a clientele that is very different.

And it was clear to us that a lot of the growth for us is going to come from startups. So how do we now build a proposition or position ourselves as a hub for that ecosystem? So we started looking at the ecosystem by launching an accelerator program. What that did is it taught us a lot. I still remember, you know, all of a sudden we started speaking to a clientele that is very different.

I usually make a joke. I say startups want everything and they don't want to pay for it. Because they want a lot of handholding, they want a lot of financial support, a lot of financial subsidy. I think making that case to the leadership that this is a sector that we need to invest in, in the beginning, but in the long term, that will do great for Dubai.

I usually make a joke. I say startups want everything and they don't want to pay for it. Because they want a lot of handholding, they want a lot of financial support, a lot of financial subsidy. I think making that case to the leadership that this is a sector that we need to invest in, in the beginning, but in the long term, that will do great for Dubai.

I usually make a joke. I say startups want everything and they don't want to pay for it. Because they want a lot of handholding, they want a lot of financial support, a lot of financial subsidy. I think making that case to the leadership that this is a sector that we need to invest in, in the beginning, but in the long term, that will do great for Dubai.

And of course, from an economic growth perspective for the IFC, of course. And honestly, we're seeing that today. Today, we have companies that have gone very big in size. They've been able to raise and attract a lot of global capital, and they've created a lot of jobs, which essentially is our top main priority, creating jobs, next generation jobs. That's one of my main KPIs.

And of course, from an economic growth perspective for the IFC, of course. And honestly, we're seeing that today. Today, we have companies that have gone very big in size. They've been able to raise and attract a lot of global capital, and they've created a lot of jobs, which essentially is our top main priority, creating jobs, next generation jobs. That's one of my main KPIs.

And of course, from an economic growth perspective for the IFC, of course. And honestly, we're seeing that today. Today, we have companies that have gone very big in size. They've been able to raise and attract a lot of global capital, and they've created a lot of jobs, which essentially is our top main priority, creating jobs, next generation jobs. That's one of my main KPIs.

So I think a humble beginning. I think the first time when we started, we took an office space of about 3,000 square feet. Today, the Innovation Hub spans over more than 300,000 square feet. So it has grown 100x over the last six years, even when it comes to the number of jobs that have been created or the number of companies, how it has grown over the last few years.

So I think a humble beginning. I think the first time when we started, we took an office space of about 3,000 square feet. Today, the Innovation Hub spans over more than 300,000 square feet. So it has grown 100x over the last six years, even when it comes to the number of jobs that have been created or the number of companies, how it has grown over the last few years.

So I think a humble beginning. I think the first time when we started, we took an office space of about 3,000 square feet. Today, the Innovation Hub spans over more than 300,000 square feet. So it has grown 100x over the last six years, even when it comes to the number of jobs that have been created or the number of companies, how it has grown over the last few years.

You know, we started our fintech journey in 2017, and we did pretty good. I think we grew significantly, and we created and dedicated the largest startup ecosystem in the region. And it was sometime in 23 when AI, of course, became AI. We talked to ourselves. We said, what can we do when it comes to AI?