The Department for Digital Economy and Technology, affiliated with the Federation of Egyptian Chambers of Commerce, has announced the names of the 33 startups that will represent Egypt at the Web Summit, one of the world's largest and most influential tech events, which will take place in Lisbon, Portugal, from 13 to 16 November. The Egyptian delegation includes startups that will exhibit their innovative solutions under the Egyptian pavilion, as well as startups that will attend the summit's activities as visitors. This official participation is supported by the Ministry of Communications and Information Technology and the Information Technology Industry Development Agency (ITIDA), which aim to empower startups in their growth journey and enhance their abilities to attract investments and financing through their exposure to international and regional specialized events in cooperation with the Department for Digital Economy. The Egyptian pavilion, sponsored by ITIDA, will be located in Hall 5 and will feature a rotating display of the solutions of the participating startups. The partners' pavilion, located in Hall 1, will be a designated space for hosting meetings of startups and receiving visitors who are interested in the Egyptian ecosystem. The exhibiting startups are: Synapse Analytics, Intella, MARSES Robotic Solutions, Appasap, Robota Industries, Insala Robotics, Stacks, SIDEUP (previously known as VOO), Spare, LeadsMart, Educatly, Bekia, The baby garage, Cosmos Bionics, el-dokan, OBM Education, Egrobots, Front Door, CliniDo, AMWAL, PIANAT.ai, Wfrley, Sprints, and Awfar. The visiting startups are Chefaa, MEDEX, Swft, Interact Labs, Tatbeek, Easy T for Managerial Consulting, MazAid, CoatConnect, and Vexls (Tasmimak). Ahmed El-Wakil, President of the Federation of Egyptian Chambers of Commerce, stated that the participation of Egyptian startups and entrepreneurs in such events is a positive step, especially amid global economic challenges. He pointed out that startups need the collaboration of all state institutions, including civil society organizations, to align with Egypt's ambitious 2030 vision and to overcome the challenges they may face. He considered the Web Summit a golden opportunity for local companies to secure funding and foreign partnerships. Khalil Hassan Khalil, Head of the Department for Digital Economy and Technology at the Federation of Egyptian Chambers of Commerce, affirmed the support of the member companies in the department, especially information technology companies. He considered this support a main goal for the department to keep up with the new developments in the world of technology, refine the talents of Egyptian startups, and gain new experiences. He also emphasized the significant role played by "ITIDA" in supporting small and medium-sized enterprises as well as startups through nurturing innovators and entrepreneurs. Khalil explained that this is the fourth consecutive participation for Egypt in this summit, which focuses on startups and entrepreneurs. He stressed the necessity of supporting creators and providing them with a conducive environment for creativity and innovation. He also praised the political leadership's support for startups and overcoming obstacles. Egypt is witnessing a surge in entrepreneurship. The sector of technology-based innovative startups has achieved unprecedented growth rates with increasing interest from investment funds. financial institutions. and specialized organizations in nurturing and accelerating innovative businesses and startups. He added that 84 companies applied to participate in the exhibition, and 48 companies were approved by the committee formed by the department, ITIDA, and the Technology Innovation and Entrepreneurship Center (TIEC), to showcase their activities during the sessions before the judging committee. The committee evaluated these companies according to several criteria: innovative product excellence, expected market size, product applicability, the product's ability to access global markets, the product's ability to attract investment, and the professionalism of the company's representative. Web Summit hosts more than 100,000 visitors from over 160 countries and 1,200 speakers. It also showcases innovations from more than 1,500 startups around the world and aims, through this participation, to enhance Egypt's international position in the fields of innovation-based entrepreneurship and promote the components of the thriving technology startup sector. This includes highlighting the incentives and advantages enjoyed by Egypt in this field to contribute to attracting more investments to this sector, expanding the base of venture capital funds and international financing institutions, and specialized platforms supporting entrepreneurs in Egypt.
