São Paulo – A delegation from Saudi Arabia, led by Prince Fahd bin Mansour bin Nasser bin Abdulaziz, visited Brazil this week for Startup20, a congress with startup entrepreneurs, founders and investors. During this visit, two members of the delegation and representatives from the King Abdulaziz City for Science and Technology (KACST)’s Innovation Park, Aiman Wali and Aiman Shieko, visited the Arab-Brazilian Chamber of Commerce (ABCC) where they expressed KACST’s interest in hosting Brazilian startups in Saudi Arabia and attracting funding for their projects.
Wali said that KACST has over 30 research centers and laboratories in various sectors. KACST aims to promote the development of startups primarily in four key areas: health, energy, sustainability, and the future of the economy, which includes artificial intelligence, space research, gamification, and e-sports, among others.
The institution has collaborations and memoranda of understanding with universities such as the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) in the United States and the University of Cambridge in the United Kingdom, as well as companies like US’s aerospace firm Boeing. In March, KACST hosted representatives from the Brazilian Association of Science Parks and Business Incubators (Anprotec) for a workshop held in Saudi Arabia.
Startup gathering event
ABCC New Business Director Estevão Margotti suggested that the ABCC and KACST could develop a forum in the future to connect Brazilian and Saudi startups with potential investors, as one of KACST’s needs is also to attract funds for projects carried out in their labs and innovation park.
Head of International Consulting and innovation lab CCAB Lab, Karen Mizuta presented the CCAB Lab, an intermediary between companies and innovation systems in Brazil and Arab countries. ABCC Secretary-General and Vice President of International Relations Mohamad Mourad also participated.
During their visit to Brazil, the Saudi delegation attended the Startup20 seminar, held on Monday (9) and Tuesday (10) at the São Paulo State Industries Federation (Fiesp). The forum was part of the events related to the G20, a summit of the world’s largest economies, which is being chaired by Brazil this year and will take place in November in Rio de Janeiro. In addition to the ABCC, KACST representatives also visited the Institute of Technological Research (IPT) in São Paulo, where they discussed potential collaborations.
Read more:
Saudis want interchange with startups from Brazil
Translated by Guilherme Miranda
