UAE-based Presight has selected 10 AI startups from 17 countries to join its first AI-Startup Accelerator, following a competitive process that drew 120 applications.
The cohort spans sectors including smart cities, energy, finance, climate risk, education, cybersecurity, sovereign AI, and model infrastructure. Startups have already raised over US$150 million combined and received backing from Microsoft, Google, Alchemist, and Techstars.
Finalists pitched live in Abu Dhabi on June 2- 3. A panel including representatives from Microsoft, MBZUAI, Stanford’s StartX, and Presight executives evaluated each 10‑minute presentation.
Selected startups include Derq (UAE/USA) for intelligent transportation systems, Resync (Singapore) for building energy optimisation, AlphaGeo (Singapore) for climate risk analytics, and Zypl.ai (UAE/Tajikistan) for synthetic AI data in financial services. Other cohort members span domains from GenAI security (Vulcan) to sovereign AI platforms (NodeShift).
The 10 founders will participate in a multi-week boot camp in Abu Dhabi, which will offer technical mentorship, commercial proofs of concept, go-to-market support, and investment readiness ahead of a demo day.
Presight CEO Thomas Pramotedham said the accelerator will speed up the adoption of advanced AI solutions within Presight’s ecosystem, serving as a strategic growth engine rather than a traditional R&D pathway.
The programme benefits from support by Microsoft and MBZUAI. Microsoft will provide cloud credits, AI tools, and Founders Hub mentorship, while MBZUAI will offer technical guidance through its incubation programme.
This accelerator marks the latest in the UAE’s push to position itself as a regional AI hub. Abu Dhabi’s Hub71 ecosystem, backed by Mubadala and G42, has reported over Dh535 million invested in tech startups since 2019. The initiative aligns with global trends. The MENA region saw $1.1 billion of startup investment across 207 transactions last year, with AI participation growing.
The selected cohort will now enter the Abu Dhabi boot camp, supported by Presight’s infrastructure, G42 partnerships, and access to industries such as finance, energy, education, and smart cities. The accelerator culminates in a demo day where startups will pitch to VCs and corporate partners.
