TiE Women MENA 2025 Crowns Regional Champions at GITEX Global 2025
TiE Dubai, the regional chapter of TiE Global, has announced the winners of the sixth edition of the TiE Women MENA 2025 competition, held during Expand North Star at GITEX Global 2025 at Dubai Harbour.
Ayesha Mansha, Founder of Sahl from Saudi Arabia, claimed the MENA title, while Rahaf Aldruby and Seem Alkabbani, Co-Founders of TarKeys from the wider Middle East track, were named runner-up, receiving equity-free grants of AED 70,000 and AED 30,000, respectively.
This year’s program attracted nearly 200 licensed women-led businesses across sectors including AI, edtech, clean beauty, femtech, and HR tech. After regional rounds across five tracks, five standout founders advanced to the finals:
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Anisha Oberoi, SECRET SKIN (UAE)
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Ayesha Mansha, Sahl (Saudi Arabia)
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Mahra AlQubaisi, Elevation (Emirati track)
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Nesma Amin, Aziza (Egypt)
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Rahaf Aldruby & Seem Alkabbani, TarKeys (Rest of ME track)
Each finalist was paired with dedicated mentors to prepare for the pitch, focusing on scaling and market readiness.
The finalists presented before a jury featuring Zahra Zayat, Acting CEO of evision; Mouna Abbassy, Founder and CEO of izil Beauty; and Danial Mausoof, Vice President and Head of Technology MEA at Nokia. All five winners will now advance to the TiE Global Summit 2026 in Jaipur, India, competing for a US$50,000 global prize pool.
The winning startup, Sahl, is a Saudi-based digital platform that automates compliance processes to help businesses manage regulatory requirements efficiently. Runner-up TarKeys is an e-learning platform transforming education in Syria through interactive, high-quality content that empowers students and teachers alike.
TiE Dubai organized the event in partnership with GITEX Global and Expand North Star, with support from e& life, alongside ecosystem partners including Dubai Internet City, in5, Playbook, C3, AngelSpark, Plug and Play, Wamda, Astrolabs, and StartAD.
Carlina Marani and Raed Hafez, Co-Chairs of TiE Women MENA 2025, said:
“Over the past six years, we’ve built a mission to create equity and access for women founders. TiE Women MENA is now a flagship platform empowering female entrepreneurs to build, scale, and lead from this region to the world. The rise of women-led ventures across MENA reflects the UAE’s commitment to innovation, inclusion, and knowledge-driven growth.”
Harrison Lung, Group Chief Strategy Officer at e&, added:
“At e&, we champion women-led startups through hands-on mentoring, not just funding. Our collaboration with TiE Women MENA aligns with our mission to drive inclusive innovation and support the next generation of female founders shaping the region’s entrepreneurial future.”
The initiative’s mentors—many of whom are TiE Charter Members—include Shameema Parveen (Edutech), Ramit Harisinghani (Chalhoub Group), Maria Paula (MP) (Mashreq Bank), Sanjay Babur (Best Insurance), Ahmed Arif (Clara), Deemah Kayed (Nokia), and Hind Rasheed (Amazon).
According to TiE Dubai, gender parity could add US$2 trillion to MENA’s GDP. Yet, women-led ventures currently receive just one-fifth of male-led startup funding. TiE Women MENA aims to bridge this gap through mentorship, funding access, and visibility for women entrepreneurs across the region.
Ayesha Mansha, Founder of Sahl, shared:
“This win isn’t just for Sahl—it’s for every founder proving that world-class products can be built right here in the region. TiE Dubai’s support has been instrumental in helping us pursue our mission of making compliance simple and accessible for all.”
Established in 2003, TiE Dubai continues to foster entrepreneurship across the Middle East through networking, mentoring, funding, and educational programs that now support over 3,000 entrepreneurs.
All finalists will continue working with mentors to refine their go-to-market strategies ahead of the TiE Global Summit in Jaipur, supported by TiE Dubai’s global network and targeted investor introductions.
