Kaust accelerates Taqadam

King Abdullah University of Science & Technology (Kaust) and financial services firm Saudi British Bank (Sabb) partnered yesterday to set up an accelerator program called Taqadam aimed at both students and faculty.

Taqadam will support entrepreneurs develop their early-stage concepts into startups and spinouts. It will offer a six-month program and welcome between 20 and 30 teams.

Participating entrepreneurs will benefit from initial grant funding and mentorship from both Saudi and international experts through the Kaust Entrepreneurship Center. Promising companies will also be eligible for seed funding from the Kaust Innovation Fund and Sabb.

Taqadam will be open to students, faculty, staff and recent graduates from universities in the country. The program is particularly focused on sectors such as fintech, smart city, sensors, internet technologies, new materials and sustainable technologies in solar, oil and gas, and water.

Jean-Lou Chameau, president of Kaust, said: “This collaboration is a significant and proactive step to ensure that valuable new technologies in the kingdom are given a platform to move from the lab to the marketplace.

“We are excited to join with Sabb on this new university entrepreneur accelerator and to help startups achieve their full potential.”

David Dew, managing director of Sabb, said: “Partnering with Kaust to create a competition to seed fund and accelerate innovative ideas from Saudi universities is an investment in our country’s youth, with many benefits for the kingdom.

“Taqadam represents one of Sabb’s major initiatives toward supporting the kingdom’s 2030 vision and our aspirations to aid and support the SME sector of the Saudi economy.”