Wamda

Episode 30 - What happens when things don't go to plan?

At the start of this year, Wamda launched the second cohort of its fellowship programme, Wamda X. The 13 startups selected embarked on a series of workshops, one-to-one mentoring and exclusive events to kickstart their businesses. But towards the end, lockdown measures were enacted in the UAE and so plans had to change. The remaining workshops were conducted online, so too was the demo day. For the fellows themselves, they also had to tweak their business plans to become "pandemic-proof".

In this podcast, we speak to Wamda X's Annelies Docx and two of the startups that graduated - Holo and Simply New Cars, to discover what happens when things don't go according to plan. 

Episode 29 - How do you maintain the relevance of a brand?

Jones the Grocer is a staple of the UAE's restaurant scene, but few are aware of the legal and financial difficulties faced by Yunib Siddiqui, the man who introduced the brand to the country, as he attempted to build the chain amid a competitive food and beverage market. Now, the Coronavirus pandemic has hurled yet another challenge at Siddiqui. In this podcast we explore the ways businesses can navigate unexpected difficulties and how, with limited resources you can maintain the relevancy of your brand.

Episode 28 - Is the world going into hibernation?

The Covid-19 pandemic has caused an economic slowdown, one that risks a global recession. For many who have been sent to work from home, it may feel like going into hibernation, awaiting the moment when restrictions are lifted and life goes back to normal. But will we re-emerge to a familiar world? In this podcast we speak to an investor, an entrepreneur and a blogger helping the restaurant community about the impact of the Coronavirus on the Middle East's business community.

Episode 27 - How did Bahrain become a fintech hub?

Bahrain’s government has made vital steps to encourage entrepreneurship to stimulate its economy and one area where it seems to be excelling is in financial technology (fintech) with the establishment of the Bahrain Fintech Bay in 2018. The government-backed incubator, accelerator and sandbox has been issuing pioneering licences for fintech, making it one of the most attractive hubs for fintech startup in the Middle East and North Africa (Mena).

In this podcast we speak with Khalid Dannish, the chief executive officer of Bahrain Fintech Bay and AJ Nelson, co-founder of Rain, the first cryptocurrency exchange to receive a licence in Mena, on how the GCC state has managed to become a fintech hub.

Episode 26 - How do we create AI in Arabic?

Jordan-based Mawdoo3, the largest Arabic online portal, realised the need for an Arabic digital voice assistant and so, it went about creating one. Given the complexities of the Arabic language and the many dialects spoken across the region, building an Arabic artificial intelligence (AI) tool is no easy feat. But now, after several years of research and engineering, the region has its own assistant: Salma.

We spoke to Hussein Al-Natsheh, chief AI officer at Mawdoo3, about the company’s experience in building Salma, the need for more research and development and attracting talent back to the region.

Episode 25 - Can footsteps power our world?

Sustainability has emerged as one of the most dominating trends this past year, with greater focus on clean and renewable energy. For Laurence Kemball-Cook, founder of UK-based Pavegen, which produces tiles that harness kinetic energy to power streetlamps, it is footsteps that can provide clean energy to power a city. In this short podcast, Kemball-Cook outlines his journey to create a prototype and launch his startup and the need to become more sustainable.

Episode 24 - Pivots and Failures with Repeat's Omer Aslan Gurel

Omer Aslan Gurel could have easily followed the path that was laid out for him – go to university and eventually join his family business. But he rebelled. Inspired by Richard Branson’s autobiography, Gurel decided to become an entrepreneur and launched his first venture in Dubai during his gap year.

The success of his startup inspired him to continue and now, Gurel is on his seventh venture, Repeat, a smart loyalty platform for restaurants.

In this podcast, Gurel discusses the lessons he has learned along the way, the timeline every startup should follow and why the Middle East has the potential to become the foodtech hub of the world.  

Episode 23 - Will travelling at speeds of 1000km/h change society?

The hyperloop is a new form of transport that, in theory, can travel at speeds of about 1000 kilometres per hour. Spearheading the design and implementation of the technology is the Virgin Hyperloop One. The company was in Dubai recently, showcasing its travel pod at Gitex. We spoke with its executive director of strategy and growth, Tim Wilkinson who highlighted hyperloop's achievements so far, its challenges and how this form of transportation will change the way we live and work. 

Episode 22 - Can artificial intelligence eradicate death?

Ben Goertzel is one of the most prominent artificial intelligence (AI) architects in the world. He is the founder of singularityNET and the chief scientist at Hanson Robotics, the makers of Sophia, the humanoid. In this podcast, Goertzel discussed the future of AI and the impact it will have on societies, economies and political systems of the future. 

Episode 21 - The Food Tech Series with For the Love of Bread

The food and beverage sector is incredibly competitive in the Middle East, something that Rami Badawi and Amber Haque are only too aware of. The couple opened and ended up shuttering two restaurants before founding their latest venture, a wholesale bakery.

In this last episode of the Food Tech series we discuss the challenges facing the food sector in the region and how Instagram has proven to be a crucial factor in garnering custom for the bakery.