Sheraa’s Inaugural Showcase Day held at AUS

By Tayiba Ahmed

After working hard on their startup ideas for months, 10 entrepreneurial teams recently had the opportunity to showcase their ideas to His Highness Sheikh Dr. Sultan bin Muhammad Al Qasimi, Member of the Supreme Council of the United Arab Emirates, Ruler of Sharjah and President of AUS, who attended the Inaugural Showcase Day held at American University of Sharjah (AUS). The ceremony that took place on February 15, 2017 was held under the patronage of Sheikha Bodour bint Sultan bin Muhammad Al Qasimi, Chairperson of the Sharjah Investment and Development Authority, Shurooq.

The event was organized by Sheraa, the Sharjah Entrepreneurship Centre housed at AUS, as the graduation ceremony for the first batch of participants in its Business Accelerators Programme. The cohort consisted of 10 teams who successfully completed all training sessions and workshops. The ideas for the teams’ projects, all of which are new and innovative, were tested for their feasibility and whether they would be successful. The projects were then shortlisted to pick the most suitable ones for launch. These teams will receive preliminary financing, a commercial license, a site and other benefits.

“Sharjah is taking steps towards the integrated system for Emirati work by encouraging and supporting youth so they can usher in a bright future in the world of business,” said Sheikha Budoor at the ceremony.

Meet the teams and their startups.

1. Tayar

Founded by Hashim Al Zaabi, Mohammed Rashid, Ali Al Hashimi and Nihal Abdulla, Tayar is a hardware and software solution that allows users to monitor and control electrical devices through their smartphones, and also strategizes methods for more efficient energy consumption. Rashid and Abdulla are alumni of the College of Engineering at AUS, while Zaabi is pursuing a Bachelor of Arts in Economics and Hashimi is pursuing Bachelor of Science in Computer Engineering at AUS. For more information about Tayar, visit www.tayar.ae.

2. The Mawada Project

Noha Mahdi’s The Mawada Project creates skill-building community engagement programs for children, providing them with transformative experiences that shape them into young leaders of the future. For more information about The Mawada Project, visit www.themawadaproject.org.

3. Juxtapiece

Hanin Hazeem and Arghavan Hatamabadi used unique technology to create Juxtapiece, which produces modern, hand-crafted, customized art pieces using a variety of wood types and styles as the primary material. Both of the co-founders of Juxtapiece are graduates of the College of Architecture and Design. For more information about Juxtapiece, visit www.juxtapiece.com.

4. Hamza

Hamza, founded by Anas Shahrour and Hicham Houmane, uses the latest findings in Natural Language Processing to facilitate the creation of high-quality Arabic content. Hamza is a writing enhancement platform that corrects spelling and grammar mistakes, and provides style enhancement suggestions. For more information about Hamza, visit hamza.ae.

5. Yadoh Fatima

Juma al Gaizi and Omair al Falasi’s Yadoh Fatima is a food delivery service that brings the traditional Emirati breakfast experience back with efficiency and affordability to employees in government entities. For more information about Yadoh Fatima, follow @yadoh.fatma on Instagram.

6. Camel Goat

Camel Goat is Fayez Mitch Barakji and Adbulwahab Sahyoun’s indie video game company for gamers who want to experience creative, meaningful and story-driven adventure games. Sahyoun is a graduate of the AUS College of Engineering, while Barakji is pursuing a Master of Science in Engineering Systems Management at AUS. For more information about Camel Goat, visit www.cg-interactive.com.

7. KEZA

KEZA, a seamless technology platform founded by Nida Sumar, aims to streamline the food and beverage industry, from the dining experience to the management of restaurants. For more information about KEZA, visit www.keza.it.

8. Cartpool

Founded by Adbulhameed Al Beiruty and Omar Yasir, Cartpool is a crowd-powered platform that facilitates group buying for individuals, giving them access to significantly reduced prices. The platform lists niche products specifically targeting millennials. Yasir is a graduate of the AUS College of Engineering. For more information about Cartpool, visit www.cartpool.com.

9. YallaPickup

Elie El Tom’s YallaPickup is an app that allows customers to connect to pickup truck owners in a secure, affordable way. For more information, visit www.yalla-pickup.com.

10. Mogz

Mogz, founded by Waleed Elaghil, Sami Elaghi and Khalid Elaghi, is a collaborative educational platform that enables university students to connect, share study materials and find peer tutors. Waleed and Khalid are alumni of American University of Sharjah. For more information about Mogz, visit www.mogz.co.

Congratulations to all teams! We wish you all the best as you move forward to an even brighter future. You indeed are the next wave of entrepreneurs.

Tayiba Ahmed is a student at American University of Sharjah.

Visit www.aus.edu for more information about American University of Sharjah