17 high-potential technology startups have graduated the “Forward KSA” accelerator program, an initiative by AstroLabs to help promising new businesses to establish a presence in Saudi Arabia and the UAE.
The graduation ceremony also coincided with the celebration of the first anniversary of AstroLabs’ Riyadh office opening.
Just in case you’re not familiar with the brand, AstroLabs is a leading coworking community and learning academy focused primarily on Saudi and the UAE. The platform launched its Riyadh unit in December 2018, shortly after becoming the first-ever company to have received the international incubator license by Saudi Arabian General Investment Authority.
Speaking of Forward KSA and the freshly graduated startups, Country director of AstroLabs KSA, Mustafa Nabelsi, commented: “We are proud of the startups that have graduated from our program and look forward to witnessing the immense success and value that they will bring to the Saudi economy.”
The application window for the program opened on March 31, 2019. More than 120 startups applied to be a part of the program, not inclusive of the 13 high-potential startups AstroLabs had already shortlisted based on various predefined criteria and a comprehensive interview process.
Meanwhile, Saudi Arabia’s Ministry of Communications and Information Technology also recommended four additional startups as prime candidates for the program.
Forward KSA officially kicked off in September 2019 with 17 startups that were provided with extensive training, assistance, and mentorship to accelerate their growth journey and scale-up.
