The Mohamed bin Zayed University of Artificial Intelligence (MBZUAI) in Abu Dhabi and OurCrowd Arabia, the Abu Dhabi-based subsidiary of Israel’s OurCrowd, have announced a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to jointly develop and manage initiatives aimed at accelerating the growth of the AI technology ecosystem at MBZUAI’s campus in Masdar City, Abu Dhabi.

Key initiatives outlined in the MoU include:

• Establishing an AI-focused venture capital investment fund to attract local and global AI technology companies for global scaling from Abu Dhabi.
• Developing strategic collaboration between MBZUAI and Integrated Data Intelligence (IDI) Limited, OurCrowd’s AI subsidiary in Abu Dhabi, on applied AI technology research projects across various industries.
• Enhancing Abu Dhabi’s AI innovation ecosystem through strategic partnerships with key government and government-related entities.
• Offering internship and job opportunities to MBZUAI graduates via OurCrowd’s extensive global network of technology startup companies and industry partners.

Sultan Al Hajji, MBZUAI’s Vice President of Public Affairs and Alumni Relations, said, “Part of MBZUAI’s existence is to foster entrepreneurship and this partnership creates a mechanism for incubating startups and creating local opportunities for the university’s pipeline of talent. Through this strategic partnership with OurCrowd Arabia, MBZUAI is forging ahead with its mission to develop a dynamic, vibrant, AI ecosystem that will help to position Abu Dhabi as a global center for AI. Together, we will encourage funding to enable AI start-ups to scale up in the UAE’s capital, help to develop and commercialize AI research, and provide exciting opportunities in the field for young AI talent – including graduates and researchers from MBZUAI. The proposed initiatives are a perfect complement to MBZUAI’s and OurCrowd Arabia’s areas of expertise.”

OurCrowd Arabia Executive Chairman Sabah al-Binali added, “We are honored to have signed this MoU with MBZUAI to jointly grow the AI ecosystem in Abu Dhabi. OurCrowd Arabia continues to build on its strategic relationships having started with our partnership with ADIO under its Innovation Program announced in November 2022. We look forward to continuing to leverage OurCrowd’s global experience and relationships to support the Abu Dhabi and UAE startup ecosystems.”

In addition, OurCrowd Arabia, which launched in the UAE capital in 2021, is setting up a new VC investment center in Abu Dhabi to manage deals for its existing platform and cater to emerging markets.