Category: Middle East

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Uber just made the largest tech deal in Middle East history

sudshr47 March 26, 2019

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Uber spent $3.1 billion to dominate competition in the Middle East. 

It announced Tuesday that it reached an agreement to buy Dubai-based Careem, which operates in 15 countries including Morocco, Pakistan, Egypt, Jordan, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates.

The deal was for $1.4 billion in cash, $1.7 billion in loans — and marks the biggest tech industry deal in the region outside of Israel, according to the Associated Press. 

The company will operate with its two co-founders under Uber as its own brand — for now. On Careem’s website, the company wrote, “We are still Careem.” Read more…

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Two years after a first close, 500 Startups wraps its Middle East fund with $33 million

sudshr47 March 26, 2019

When 500 Startups partner Hasan Haider announced the $15 million first close for the accelerator and investment firm’s Middle Eastern focused fund, 500 Falcons, Dave McClure was still at the helm of Silicon Valley’s second most famous accelerator. Within a month, McClure was removed from the accelerator after admitting to sexual misconduct and 500 Startups […]

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Uber is paying $3.1BN to pick up Middle East rival Careem

sudshr47 March 26, 2019

After months and months of rumors it’s finally been confirmed that ride-hailing giant Uber is picking up its Middle East rival Careem in an acquisition deal worth $3.1 billion — with $1.7BN to be paid in convertible notes and $1.4BN in cash. Careem was founded as a ride-hailing rival to Uber in 2012 but has […]

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Sebastian Thrun initiates aggressive plan to transform Udacity

sudshr47 February 22, 2019

“I’m a fighter. I believe in our people, I believe in our mission, and I believe that it should exist and must exist.” Sebastian Thrun is talking animatedly about Udacity, the $1 billion online education startup that he co-founded nearly eight years ago. His tone is buoyant and hopeful. He’s encouraged, he says over an occasionally […]

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Global smartphone growth stalled in Q4, up just 1.2% for the full year: Gartner

sudshr47 February 21, 2019

Gartner’s smartphone marketshare data for the just gone holiday quarter highlights the challenge for device makers going into the world’s biggest mobile trade show which kicks off in Barcelona next week: The analyst’s data shows global smartphone sales stalled in Q4 2018, with growth of just 0.1 per cent over 2017’s holiday quarter, and 408.4 […]

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Without proof, is Huawei really a national security threat?

sudshr47 January 26, 2019

It’s Huawei vs. the U.S., the U.K., Canada, Australia, New Zealand, and most of Europe and Japan. It’s almost as if the world’s biggest surveillance superpowers don’t want Huawei cell tower and networking router equipment inside critical networks in their countries, amid concerns of the company’s links to the Chinese military. Huawei, they say, could […]

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Zwipe tops up with $14M to bring biometric payment cards to market this year

sudshr47 January 21, 2019

Biometric payment card startup Zwipe has swiped $14M to add to an earlier Series B round as it continues to work towards commercializing technology that embeds a fingerprint reader in payment plastic for an added layer of security. “We are not commercially rolled out yet, we expect that to happen in the second half of this […]

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Facebook is not equipped to stop the spread of authoritarianism

sudshr47 December 24, 2018

Facebook isn’t responsible for government decisions to clamp down on free expression. But the question remains: How can companies stop assisting authoritarian governments, inadvertently or otherwise?

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Netflix rival Iflix offloads its Africa business to focus on Asia

sudshr47 December 21, 2018

Iflix, the emerging market Netflix competitor that’s backed by Sky, is leaving Africa to double down on its business in Asia. The Malaysia-based company announced today it has sold the remaining shares in its Africa business — Kwesé Iflix — to Econet Group, the telecom firm that is already an investor in the business. The deal size […]

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Netflix rival Iflix launches $5M search for up-and-coming filmmakers in Asia

sudshr47 December 6, 2018

Netflix is increasing its efforts in Asia after it commissioned more local content and began testing more aggressive price points, but one local rival is hitting back with a program to spotlight promising creators in the region. Malaysia-headquartered Iflix, which operates in 26 countries across Africa, the Middle East and Asia, today announced a $5 million program […]

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Vishal Makhijani steps down as chief executive of Udacity

sudshr47 October 25, 2018

Vishal Makhijani, the long time chief executive of online education company Udacity, is stepping down as its chief executive officer, TechCrunch has learned. Makhijani first joined the company in 2013 as chief operating officer under Sebastian Thrun, the company’s founder and chief executive at the time. In 2016, Thrun, the original architect of Alphabet’s self-driving […]

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SoftBank CEO pulls out of speaking at Saudi investment conference

sudshr47 October 23, 2018

SoftBank Group has become the latest high profile technology business to drop out of an investment conference in Saudi Arabia following the snowballing global outcry over the killing of journalist, Jamal Khashoggi. The Wall Street Journal reports the last minute cancelation by CEO Masayoshi Son of a speaking engagement at the Future Investment Initiative conference which opens in […]

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