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Innovation and Investment in Startups

6/15/2020

At Elm, we are wholeheartedly committed to bolstering the values of community partnerships with entrepreneurs in times of emergencies. In line with that, we hosted at our Elm 16th virtual seminar Dr. Abdulrahman Al-Olayan, Taibah Valley CEO, to explore its journey and investment activities.

About Taibah Valley

Located in Madinah, Taibah Valley Company is the investment arm of Taibah University. It endeavors to localize innovation in emerging technologies and unlock innovative investment opportunities based on knowledge-based and sustainable development. Taibah Valley's mission is to empower the city of Madinah as a hub for digital innovation, particularly in emerging technologies.

Why lean towards emerging technologies?

As Gartner studies suggest, more than one billion people worldwide will have their data on BlockChain, and more than five countries will experiment in this technology in the near future. Saudi Arabia has recently experimented with the first funds transfer using BlockChain tech. What makes this technology promising is its ability to transform various public areas - in a positive way - such as health and education. As for AI and IoT, the world has a long way to go when it comes to uncovering potential investment opportunities. It is expected that these technologies will revolutionize businesses and boost productivity.

Taibah Valley Projects

Since its inception, the company has been tailoring its projects to keep pace with fast-evolving technology. Its focus areas encompass consulting and training, business intelligence, emerging technologies, stimulating innovation, and entrepreneurship. Among its most outstanding projects is a product designed to preserve academic documents between scientific communities and businesses. Monitoring schools' needs system and a project to employ AI and blockchain in early detection of eye diseases.

Taibah Valley's contributions to the health sector

Among Taibah Valley's solutions and initiatives to the health sector is developing a strategy - in cooperation with King Khalid Eye Hospital - for early detection of retinopathy, to reduce the repercussions and risks of its late detection.