Abu Dhabi: Supported by the Ministry of Economy, the  4th Annual Angel Rising Investor Education Symposium organized by startAD and VentureSouq saw more than 250 local and global experts come together to discuss methods to empower new angel investors, as well as strengthen the potential of angel investment in creating a robust entrepreneurial ecosystem in the UAE.

The symposium provided education on key topics related to angel investing, in order to demystify investments in start-ups and persuade investors to enhance the region’s competitive edge on the global stage. Anchored at NYU Abu Dhabi, startAD is committed to helping build the entrepreneurship ecosystem in the UAE. 

NYU Abu Dhabi Vice Provost for Innovation and Entrepreneurship, and startAD Managing Director Ramesh Jagannathan, said: “It is important for the investor community to grow in lockstep with the entrepreneurship community for the ecosystem to flourish. The annual Angel Rising investor education symposium is an important marker defining the UAE investment landscape. With every year, we see a growing interest in the content, speakers and a tangible need for the community to have these impactful conversations.”

His Excellency Sultan bin Saeed Al Mansoori, UAE Minister of Economy said: “The UAE has established a strong support system for startups and entrepreneurs that reinforces the country's keenness in launching strategic initiatives that are aimed at empowering these firms and boosting their growth. These companies continue to play a vital role in the progress of the business sector, further consolidating the nation's efforts towards economic diversification and the creation and promotion the culture of knowledge and innovation, which are key elements of UAE Vision 2021.”

“The 4th Annual Angel Rising Investor Education Symposium, attended by leading international thinkers, experts and investors, is aimed at providing investors, entrepreneurs and the owners of startups with in-depth knowledge of effective practices in entrepreneurship development while also sharing the success stories of startups,” H.E Al Mansoori added.

“Every year we have welcomed the best speakers in the world to address critical topics and movements in the global and regional investment ecosystem. The engagement seen at this edition of Angel Rising is a testament to the rapidly evolving entrepreneurial landscape of the UAE,” said Tammer Qaddumi, founding partner of VentureSouq.

The symposium promoted the creation of a new class of angel investors by providing information on key topics related to angel investing, facilitating conversation among community and industry leaders, and inspiring more investors to drive greater innovation in the UAE.

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About startAD

startAD is an innovation and entrepreneurship platform that supports early stage startups in the UAE.  startAD is a partnership between NYUAD and Tamkeen, an Abu Dhabi Government-owned company and seeks to strengthen the entrepreneurial ecosystem in the UAE by offering core programs and entrepreneurship initiatives. Available exclusively to nationals and residents of the UAE, these programs enable the development of technology startups in emerging local industries of strategic importance to the UAE such as energy, aviation, logistics, fintech, smart transportation and facilitate investment in local-based startups. 

Selected startups that display outstanding potential and promise may also benefit from ADvance mentoring and seed funding from startAD to help scale their businesses.

For more information, please log on to: http: www.startad.ae

About Tamkeen

Tamkeen is an Abu Dhabi Government-owned company that delivers projects to meet the Government of Abu Dhabi’s vision of knowledge-based development. This is achieved by collaborating with a variety of local and international institutions to enrich the Emirate’s social, cultural and educational landscape in line with the Abu Dhabi Economic Vision 2030.

About NYU Abu Dhabi

NYU Abu Dhabi is the first comprehensive liberal arts and science campus in the Middle East to be operated abroad by a major American research university. NYU Abu Dhabi has integrated a highly-selective liberal arts, engineering and science curriculum with a world center for advanced research and scholarship enabling its students to succeed in an increasingly interdependent world and advance cooperation and progress on humanity’s shared challenges. NYU Abu Dhabi’s high-achieving students have come from 115 nations and speak over 115 languages. Together, NYU's campuses in New York, Abu Dhabi, and Shanghai form the backbone of a unique global university, giving faculty and students opportunities to experience varied learning environments and immersion in other cultures at one or more of the numerous study-abroad sites NYU maintains on six continents.

About VentureSouq

VentureSouq (VSQ) is a GCC-based venture investing platform that strives to democratize capital by enablingindividuals to invest into high-growth technology companies globally. To date, VSQ has an investor network of over 1,000 angels & institutions across the GCC, and has made over 30 investments. VSQ also develops rich educational content around venture investing, and delivers this content through a number of programs throughout the region. VSQ’s goal is to create a new class of informed angel investors that will serve as a viable funding source for emerging companies regionally and internationally.

© Press Release 2018