Startup Qatar Investment Programme receives more than 1,000 applications in two months of launch

The Startup Qatar Investment Programme, launched by Qatar Development Bank (QDB) two months ago, has already received more than 1,000 applications, indicating the growing demand from the startups.

This was disclosed by the Investment Promotion Agency (Invest Qatar) in its social media handle X.

The Startup Qatar Investment Programme aims to attract tech startups to establish or expand operations in Qatar. It offers funding for both seed and growth stage companies, alongside incentives and support services in line with the available incentives and subsidies offered by Startup Qatar, a platform unveiled by Invest Qatar within the framework of the Qatar Web Summit 2024.

The programme offers funding of up to $500,000 or QR1.8mn for startups looking to establish a presence in Qatar and up to $5mn for established global startups seeking to grow their operations in the Qatari market.

The investment is offered to startups launching in Qatar with a proof of concept (PoC) or minimum viable product (MVP) who seek funding to establish their operations in the Qatari market.

For the established startups expanding to Qatar, the investment programme targets already established entities seeking funding to expand their operations into the Qatari market, offering funding of up to $5mn to fuel this growth.

The investment programme targets tech startups focused on high-growth, innovative business ideas and/or knowledge-based concepts with the potential to generate significant value and contribute to Qatar’s economic expansion.

The priority sectors are Climatetech, Agritech, Energytech, Healthtech, Fintech, Edutech, Sportstech, Supplychain tech, Cybersecurity, Proptech, Robotics and Drones, Internet of Things and Big Data; and Artificial Intelligence and Machine Language.

The investment programme is specifically designed to empower startups that focus on innovative business ideas, demonstrate an ability to solve real-world challenges and successfully meet the needs of the Qatari market.

The programme focuses on supporting knowledge-based companies that show potential for sustainable growth and could add value and contribute to the development of the Qatari economy.

It also aims to accelerate the development and adoption of technology in Qatar’s educational, financial, sports, agricultural, health and real estate sectors, and to foster growth across industries such as artificial intelligence, machine learning, Internet of Things and big data among others.

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