Thinking of a startup? Abu Dhabi's Hub71 offers a global incubation base

Platform doubling down on India as a strategic bridge between Asia and the West

Hub71, a startup accelerator backed by Abu Dhabi’s government, is focused on India as it steps up efforts to establish itself as a technology hub linking Asia and the West, said a senior executive of the platform.

 

Hub71’s plans are part of the emirate’s broader plan to diversify its economy away from oil, PTI reported. Peter Abou Hachem, head of growth and strategy at Hub71, said the platform’s mandate is to help Abu Dhabi build one of the fastest-growing technology ecosystems, PTI reported. Hachem spoke to visiting Indian media in Abu Dhabi.

 

“Hub71 exists for the mandate to build a global tech ecosystem from Abu Dhabi,” he said.

 

 

Hub71 was launched in 2019 and has since grown into a large startup community covering more than 20 sectors, PTI reported. Hachem said the platform’s journey over the past five years has broadly unfolded in three phases.

 

Phase one focused on proving that startups from around the world could be attracted to Abu Dhabi.

 

Phase two involved building the wider ecosystem, including investors, corporates and service providers.

 

Phase three, over the last two years, has been about sharper focus and scale, with a critical mass of startups and partners now in place, PTI said.

 

According to Hachem, Hub71 now has more than 200 partners across different verticals and more than 15 partnerships with countries worldwide, which it plans to deepen further.

 

India connect and Global South focus

 

India features prominently in Hub71’s expansion strategy. The platform has established strong ties with Telangana’s innovation ecosystem through Hyderabad-based T-Hub, with both sides supporting startups, talent exchange and cross-border expansion, PTI reported.

 

Hachem said attracting companies from across India while also helping Hub71-based startups expand into the Indian market will be a key priority going forward, PTI reported. He added that Abu Dhabi’s central geographic location has helped it emerge as a capital for the Global South.

 

AI push creates new business opportunities

 

Hub71 also sees major opportunities arising from the UAE’s investments in artificial intelligence (AI) infrastructure. Hachem referred to the planned 5 gigawatt AI campus and data centre cluster being developed by UAE-based G42 in partnership with US hyperscalers and technology companies such as Nvidia, Microsoft and OpenAI, PTI reported.

 

He said the project could create opportunities not just for AI startups, but also for climate technology firms, energy players, logistics companies and software providers involved in building and maintaining data centres, according to PTI.

 

WeWork serves as Hub71’s real estate partner, managing office spaces and the on-ground community, allowing Hub71 to focus on ecosystem building rather than property management, Hachem said.