Wa’ed Ventures: a decade of empowering entrepreneurs
An inside look at the progress of Wa’ed Ventures, Aramco’s $500-million, tech and localization-focused venture capital fund.
- Wa’ed Ventures has invested $270 million in over 75 startups so far, supporting Saudi Arabia's entrepreneurial ecosystem
- Through its investment in tech startups, it also supports Aramco’s digitalization efforts
- By supporting localization of global technologies like AI, drones, and quantum computing, Wa’ed Ventures is working to boost innovation in the Kingdom
Aramco’s efforts to advance Saudi Arabia’s entrepreneurial ecosystem dates back to the early 2010s. To support aspiring entrepreneurs, Aramco established the Saudi Aramco Entrepreneurship Center, also known as Wa’ed, in 2011.
Wa’ed aimed to empower first-time entrepreneurs by helping them further establish their businesses, supporting existing small and midsize enterprises (SMEs) to expand and cultivating an entrepreneurial ecosystem. It did this by providing entrepreneurs with business planning advice, collateral-free loans, and business support services including coaching and mentoring programs.
The launch of Waed Ventures
In the five-year period from 2018 to 2022, there was a boost in the Kingdom’s venture capital activity, which grew from $59 million to nearly $1 billion. Despite this significant growth in venture capital activity, there remained a lack of funding for startups at the ‘late-stage,’ which is when startups become more established in the market and start generating revenue. So, in 2021, to plug this late-stage funding gap, Wa'ed increased its ‘ticket size’ from $5 million to $20 million, which then enabled the fund to participate in a wider range of investments. Although startups are ‘up and running’ at late-stage, additional funding is critical at this point to allow them to execute ‘continuous development and expansion’ plans.
Around the same period, Wa’ed identified another gap in the venture capital activity in the Kingdom — most of the available funds flowed to sectors like logistics, e-commerce, and education with limited funding for startups focused on deep tech, which is a class of emerging technologies built upon scientific and engineering innovation, whose primary focus is to address social challenges.
To address this gap in deep-tech-focused funding, in 2022, Wa’ed increased the size of its fund from the initial $200 million to $500 million, in order to support a higher number of pioneering startups focused on emerging technologies including artificial intelligence (AI), space technologies, robotics, and Fintech — technologies designed to improve and automate banking and financial services.
The mandate was further expanded to include investments in global frontier-tech companies, with a condition of investment being a requirement to localize key operations in Saudi Arabia, such as establishing tech teams and research and development functions within the country. This enabled Wa’ed to begin localizing deep-tech companies offering innovative technologies like quantum computing, drones, and 5G communication that are gaining momentum globally but remain underdeveloped in the Kingdom. By investing in these domains, we began accelerating the local innovation cycle.
In 2023, Wa’ed rebranded as ‘Wa’ed Ventures’ to reflect its change in primary focus from a entrepreneurship support organization to a venture capital fund, and expanded its investment activity to include funding a wider-range startups from other countries, supporting those seeking to localize their products and services in Saudi Arabia. This move was aimed at filling local technology gaps in the Kingdom and to help boost local economic diversification.
Driving the growth of startups
Wa’ed Ventures operates as a life-cycle investor, meaning it provides support to startups throughout their journey, from their early stages up until maturity. By providing tailored funding at every stage, Wa’ed enables businesses to grow, scale, and achieve long-term, sustained growth. Its approach to supporting startups not only includes financial backing but also strategic guidance, leveraging expertise to address the specific challenges faced at different growth phases.Advancing innovation technologies, such as 3D printing, contributes to creating a forward-looking and technology-driven ecosystem in the Kingdom.
To support its portfolio of companies, Wa’ed Ventures additionally offers post-investment services, including mentorship and advisory support, fostering long-term partnerships. Startups also benefit from Wa’ed Ventures’ one-on-one consultations with industry experts, as well as fund-raising support and technical support. Wa’ed Ventures also actively assists its startups in identifying and recruiting top talent. Through these undertakings, Wa’ed Ventures fosters innovation and contributes to building a robust, technology-driven ecosystem in Saudi Arabia.
When assessing potential investments, the founder or entrepreneur is the primary focus. Wa’ed Ventures places the highest priority on the expertise, vision, and leadership of the founding team. Equally important are the challenges being addressed through the new product or service and the size of the target market. This strategic approach ensures that each investment is well-positioned for potential long-term success and aligns with Wa’ed Ventures’ mission to foster innovation and growth.
Strategic investments
Through its investment in tech startups, Wa’ed Ventures has simultaneously been supporting Aramco’s digitalization efforts, which are aimed at utilizing the latest breakthroughs in technology so that we can deliver tomorrow’s energy more safely, efficiently, and with a lower emissions footprint.
In October 2024, Wa’ed Ventures earmarked $100 million for early-stage AI investments, and appointed an advisory board consisting of globally-renowned leaders in AI to aid with strategic deal sourcing and accelerate the localization of global startups. This move was aimed at supporting Aramco’s broader strategy to adopt cutting-edge AI solutions across its business.
To further Aramco’s broader digitalization efforts, Wa’ed Ventures successfully localized several emerging technologies in the Kingdom. One example is Wa’ed’s investment in Pasqal, a Paris-based startup co-founded by the winner of the 2022 Nobel Prize in Physics, Dr. Alain Aspect, and which specializes in quantum computing, a type of computing that applies the laws of quantum mechanics to simulate and solve complex problems that are too difficult for the current generation of classical computers. In 2024, Pasqal signed an agreement with Aramco to install, maintain, and operate the first quantum computer in Saudi Arabia, which is scheduled for deployment in the second half of 2025.
Rebellions, a Korean AI company focused on driving innovation in the AI semiconductor industry is another Wa’ed Ventures investment. In 2024, Rebellions signed a Memoranda of Understanding with Aramco to deploy specialized computer microprocessors, in Aramco’s data centers, with a view to enhance our digital infrastructure and help drive advanced AI innovations.
Localizing emerging technologies, such as air mobility and drone technology, enriches the local tech and digitalization landscapes.
California-based AI startup aiXplain, which has set up its regional headquarters in Riyadh to support local businesses with innovation tools to build, deploy, and scale AI solutions, has also received backing from Wa’ed Ventures.
Another example of successful localization of emerging technology is Wa’ed Ventures’ investment in Terra Drone, a Japanese drone and air mobility technology company, which established a Saudi Arabian subsidiary in 2023. Terra Drone is deploying the technology locally and developing and manufacturing new drone and air mobility products.
OQ Technology is a startup that provides the world's first global satellite 5G operator that provides global cellular communication through satellites offering connectivity anywhere in the world including remote and rural areas. By investing in OQ Technology, Wa’ed Ventures aims to build one of the largest data and network operations centers in the Middle East for 5G satellite services and develop new products in line with Saudi Arabia’s space initiatives.
These select investments, amongst many others, have played an instrumental role in developing the deep-tech or advanced technology ecosystem in Saudi Arabia.
Building ‘National Champions’
Wa’ed Ventures is part of Aramco’s broader National Champions Program, which was established in 2020 to support technology innovation in the Kingdom. The National Champions Program is a four-stage venture life-cycle initiative.
It begins with Lab7, our purpose-built innovation and product development center, which was inaugurated in 2023 to help innovators, developers, and entrepreneurs nurture their ideas and convert them into a business. This is followed by Wa’ed Ventures, which works closely with Lab7 to grow these businesses and support them until they become established and are ready to exit the Lab7’s program through an acquisition or public offering. Wa’ed Ventures also works in close collaboration with the ‘third stage’ organization within National Champions, Taleed, established in 2020, to accelerate the growth of the local SME ecosystem. The two organizations coordinate to help scale these SMEs into viable, fully-functional corporations. When the companies attain scale, they are supported by the Namaat program, the last part of the National Champions eco-system, launched in 2021, which works to convert established corporations into National Champions: potentially-trailblazing organizations that could help reshape their industry and have a national or even global impact.
As a critical part of our National Champions Program, Wa’ed Ventures’ long-term vision and commitment is to continue working with all the entities of the program while playing a part in funding emerging technologies, empowering emerging entrepreneurs with the tools, networks, and infrastructure to build startups that could become National Champions, and positively contributing to the local and global economy.
Impact beyond the Kingdom
As of 2024, Wa’ed Ventures has deployed approximately $270 million across its 75-plus portfolio of companies, a number of which have not just established their business in-Kingdom but also expanded into new markets.
One-such firm is Iyris (previously called Red Sea Farms) — an AgriTech business in which Wa’ed became a co-investor back in 2021 — which has developed saltwater tolerant crops. With freshwater supplies under pressure globally, Iyris has established an economically viable, saltwater-based agricultural system that enables them — and their clients — to grow food using saltwater, rather than freshwater, as the primary input for cooling-controlled agriculture. In addition, they have also developed Second Sky — a transparent heat-blocking greenhouse cover designed to block excessive heat, maintain consistent temperatures, and reduce heat stress on plants. With these products, Iyris aims to enable commercial farming in hot and arid climates around the world. As of 2024, not only is their technology being deployed at scale in Saudi Arabia and the UAE, but also in North Africa, the U.S., and Europe.
Another success story is Saudi-based retail enablement company Zid, an e-commerce platform which offers merchants solutions for every step of their entrepreneurial journey, from setting up their stores and launching their brands online and offline, to accepting payments, shipping orders, and accessing capital. Wa’ed Ventures’ late-stage investment in the startup helped Zid expand in Saudi Arabia and the wider Middle East.
A decade of growth
Wa’ed Ventures, as an ecosystem enabler, has been instrumental in identifying and addressing gaps within Saudi Arabia’s entrepreneurial ecosystem. Over the past decade, they have consistently supported local tech startups across various growth stages by providing both financial resources and post-investment services. Additionally, through strategic global investments, Wa’ed has facilitated the entry of transformative, tech-driven, international startups into the Kingdom, ensuring that both Aramco and the broader tech-community benefit from cutting-edge advancements.
Together, these actions have helped elevate Saudi Arabia’s entrepreneurial ecosystem from fairly humble beginnings, back when Wa’ed started, to where it is fast-becoming a leading venture capital center in the region. Today, Wa’ed Ventures continues to accelerate its investments in companies developing cutting-edge technologies, so that Aramco, Saudi Arabia, and the World can hopefully reap the benefits for many years to come.
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