With thanks to our sponsors:
Milkstraw AI – the platform that finds hidden savings in your AWS bills, sometimes up to 75%, freeing up capital for growth, hiring, or building faster.
👉 See how much you could save in 60 seconds and how much further your runway can go at www.milkstraw.ai.
OCTA - AR Automation – the AI-powered accounts receivable platform trusted by 500+ companies like Careem, Lean Technologies, and Ogram to automate collections, resolve disputes, and unlock financing with zero hassle.
👉 Visit www.weareocta.com/fwdstart to get your first 6 months free
This week on VC React, we break down a Gulf food‑delivery unicorn exit, test whether prop‑tech can out‑grow fintech, and watch Silicon Valley learn that tweets have cap‑table consequences.
We start in Qatar, where Jahez has snapped up Snoonu for $320 million, minting the peninsula’s first “Q‑unicorn.” We unpack how founders turned just $17 million in capital into a 1× GMV exit, why Jahez needed a defensive outpost against China’s Keeta, and whether cross‑border M&A is finally MENA’s favourite liquidity lane.
Then it’s on to Dubai, Valencia, and Riyadh as mortgage marketplace Huspy lands a $59 million Series B to wire up brokers, banks, and buyers across three continents. We ask if “broker‑as‑a‑platform” makes prop‑tech the new fintech, whether Spain’s atomised agency market is the ideal sandbox, and how embedded loans could turn every listing into instant credit.
Next, we chat about XPANCEO, a UAE deep‑tech upstart that just raised $250 million to put AR, health stats, and night‑vision in a smart contact lens. We debate if the region is finally ready to bankroll moon‑shots, what regulatory gauntlet stands between prototype and pupil, and whether users will trade retinal data for sci‑fi superpowers.
Finally, we zoom out to Sand Hill Road, where a Sequoia partner, Shaun Maguire’s racist tweet ignites a geopolitical backlash. We explore how politics is crashing the term sheet, whether global LPs will start pricing bias, and why founders from Riyadh to Bangalore now expect investors to walk the inclusion talk.
Exits, moon‑shots, and a reality check on power and prejudice – tune in; you won’t want to miss this episode.
