Happy Friday! A climate-tech moonshot, banking the unbanked in emerging markets, and Saudi’s new fleet of electric jets.

P.S. If you missed our weekly Wednesday deep-dive, we looked at how startups like Yodawy and Chefaa are bridging the gap between patients and the medication they need to survive, as well as the broader e-pharmacy landscape in Egypt, check it out here.

Today’s briefing is a 5 min read:

• 🪨 Omani climatetech 44.01 raises $37 million Series A to turn carbon into rock

• 🇸🇦 Saudi’s Wa’ed Ventures makes its first direct investment in a US-based company

• 💳 Dopay closes $13.5 million Series A extension round to bank underbanked workers in emerging markets

• 🔈 VC React Podcast - Episode #4 is now live!

🚀 Weekly funding round-up

Dopay (🇪🇬 Egypt), a digital payroll and payments platform that serves unbanked and underbanked workers in emerging markets, has raised a $13.5 million Series A extension round led by Argentem Creek Partners.

Ogram (🇦🇪 UAE), a leading flexible staffing solutions provider, has closed an undisclosed expansion round led by Oraseya Capital, as it prepares to enter the Saudi market.

Swyt (🇦🇪 UAE), a platform that streamlines and secures IT operations, including device management, application tracking, and employee onboarding/offboarding, has raised an undisclosed seed round from angel investors.

Tokinvest (🇦🇪 UAE), a marketplace for real-world asset tokenisation, has raised $500k in pre-seed funding from undisclosed strategic investors.

Okhtboot (🇸🇦 KSA), a platform specialising in providing mobile car care services, has raised $250,000 in funding with the participation of a group of angel investors.

Climatetech

🪨 Omani climatetech 44.01 raises $37 million Series A to turn carbon into rock

🪨 Omani climate tech startup 44.01 has raised a $37M Series A round for its mineralisation technology, which aims to eliminate CO2 safely, permanently, and at scale by turning it into rock.

• FYI - 44.01 refers to carbon’s molecular mass.

The company's technology speeds up CO2 mineralisation, removing captured CO2 from the air or difficult industrial processes in under twelve months.

💰 Investor lowdown: The round was led by Equinor Ventures and UAE-based Shorooq Partners, with participation from a vast number of climate-focused investors, including Amazon’s Climate Pledge Fund and Planet A Ventures.

💨 Carbon capture context

Currently, there are two main methods for permanent underground CO2 sequestration:

• Carbon Mineralisation: Used by companies like 44.01 and Carbfix, this method reacts CO2 with rocks to form stable minerals.

• Supercritical CO2 Storage: Stores CO2 in porous rocks like saline aquifers or old oil and gas reservoirs. This method needs monitoring for leaks due to pressure build-up.

🐂 44.01 bull case

1. Carbon mineralisation may cost three times more than supercritical storage, but it virtually eliminates CO2 leakage and can sequester billions of tons of CO2, which will be crucial for achieving net-zero emissions by 2050.

2. Suitable rock formations for CO2 mineralisation are found on every continent.

3. Mineralisation projects can be built quickly and modularly, offering a cost-effective alternative to traditional geological carbon storage.

🔮 Flashforward

With this financing round, 44.01 aims to commercialise its technology in Oman and the UAE, where pilot projects have shown it can store 50 to 60 tons of CO2 per day.

• At commercial scale, 44.01 plans to sequester 100 tons of CO2 daily per injection borehole.

💰VC round-up

🇸🇦 Wa’ed Ventures, backed by Aramco, has led a $6.5 million pre-Series A funding round for California-based AI platform aiXplain, marking the fund’s first direct investment in a U.S.-based company. aiXplain's Saudi subsidiary will serve as its MENA headquarters, driving growth and localizing AI solutions in the Kingdom. The startup is also partnering with regional AI organisations to develop an Arabic LLM alliance, that will debut later this year

🇦🇪 BECO Capital has returned to contribute to Vectara's $25 million Series A funding round, led by FPV Ventures and Race Capital. Vectara, an early pioneer in Retrieval Augmented Generation (RAG) technology, also announced its new Mockingbird LLM, designed for RAG. Vectara's total funding now stands at $53.5 million.

🌱 Hub71 and Princeville Capital have partnered to support top ClimateTech startups globally, focusing on Abu Dhabi and beyond. Combining Princeville's strategic expertise and Hub71's network and capital, they aim to offer startups mentorship, resources, and value creation opportunities, accelerating their success and driving transformative growth in ClimateTech across the region.

 💸 Exits round-up

📰 UAE-based Majarra, an Arabic digital content provider, has acquired NLP technology provider Lableb for an undisclosed amount. Majarra offers premium Arabic content through platforms like Harvard Business Review Arabia and MIT Technology Review Arabia. Lableb, specializing in Arabic search-as-a-service, will maintain operational independence. The acquisition aims to drive innovation, particularly in deploying Large Language Models (LLMs) for the Arabic-speaking world.

💻 Tech round-up

💰 myZoi, a fintech focused on financial inclusion for the underbanked, has launched what they claim to be the UAE’s first inclusive digital wallet. Following a $14 million fundraise in September 2023 from SC Ventures and SBI Holdings and obtaining two UAE Central Bank licenses, the wallet enables underbanked employees to transfer money home to up to five recipients for the cost of one, reducing fees and enabling savings.

🧱 Jordan has launched MODEE DLT, a national blockchain network developed with Blockexe and integrated with the SANAD system. The blockchain provides secure, decentralized transaction records, enhancing transparency, efficiency, and competitiveness in government sectors. This initiative aims to improve e-government services both locally and internationally.

🛩️ German aerospace company Lilium NV is set to supply up to 100 electric vertical take-off and landing jets to Saudia, marking its debut in Saudi Arabia. Saudia, the Kingdom’s first national carrier, confirmed the purchase of 50 Lilium Jets, with an option for 50 more, formalizing a framework deal from late 2022. The first jets are expected to arrive in 2026, enhancing sustainable air mobility and improving travel efficiency for 330 million passengers.

💰 VC React Podcast: Episode 4

In this week's episode of the VC React Podcast, Ahmad and I, dig into Omani climate tech company 44.01's $37 million Series A round, tech moonshots, Dopay's mission to bank the unbanked, and the business models behind Arabic digital content providers like Majarra.

‍And as usual, we were not alone - we had the tremendous pleasure to be joined by:

• Issa Aghabi (Founder & Managing Director at Access Bridge Ventures)

• Zeina Mandour (Venture Investments Manager at Dar Ventures)

I should hasten to add that Issa and Zeina offer some fascinating insights in this episode, so I really do wholeheartedly encourage you to check it out!

📆  Events and opportunities

🇦🇪 Hub71, Abu Dhabi’s tech ecosystem is accepting applications for Cohort 16, across its Access Program, Hub71+ Digital Assets (Web3 / blockchain) and Hub71+ ClimateTech.

Startups onboarded to the program will receive: AED 250,000 worth of in-kind incentives in the form of support services, and AED 250,000 in cash for exchange for equity through a SAFE note. High-performing startups are eligible to receive a top-up of up to AED 250,000 in exchange for additional equity, upon completion of the program or after one year.

📅 Deadline to apply: August 1st, 2024

🌍 Viaka is hosting their second ViakaSessions event, featuring key figures in the Tunisian startup ecosystem:

Manar L. (Cynoia), Amin Ben Abderrahman (Konnect Networks), Salma Baghdadi (@The Wave Global), and Faten Aissi (Flat6Labs).

The panel will be moderated by Hossam Shafick (Silicon Badia).

💡 Learn about Tunisia's startup landscape, recent exits like Instadeep and Expensya, and the impactful "Startup Act" of 2018.

📰 What we’re reading

• Hasan Zainal. +360% for Saudi fintech (+ the latest fintech map)

• Nafez Dakkak. Relationships and learning in the "AI Boom"

• MAGNiTT. H1 2024 Saudi Arabia Venture Capital Report