Abu Dhabi: Abu Dhabi’s startup ecosystem, Hub71, announced new appointments within its leadership team on Thursday. The startup hub’s deputy CEO, Ahmad Ali Awan, has been named the new CEO as of January 2024. Hub71 said Alwan was a founding member in 2019 and was appointed deputy CEO of Hub71 in October 2022.
“Since then, Alwan has played a critical role in spearheading Hub71’s strategic development to become one of the region’s premier tech startup hubs, supporting more than 260 startups that have raised over Dh5 billion in capital,” the tech ecosystem announced.
Alwan’s appointment also comes amid senior leadership moves internally, including the appointments of Basma Ahmed AlBadi AlDhaheri as Head of Value Creation, Hashem Al Kaabi as Head of Operations and Corporate Services, Mohammed Alkhoori as Head of Marketing and Communications, and Peter Abou Hachem as Head of Growth and Strategy.
Ahmed Jasim Al Zaabi, Chairman of Hub71, said, “Within Abu Dhabi’s soaring ‘Falcon Economy’, Hub71’s transformative impact on the startup landscape is undeniable. The journey ahead is exciting, and we are confident that his deep knowledge and experience in helping startups and founders grow and scale disruptive technology companies from the UAE will shape the future of Abu Dhabi’s tech ecosystem.”
In 2023, Hub71 helped solidify Abu Dhabi’s ranking as the fastest-growing tech ecosystem in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) and among the fastest-growing worldwide, according to Startup Genome and the Global Entrepreneurship Network.
Before becoming Deputy Chief Executive Officer, Alwan was a part of the UAE Clusters Asset Management team at Mubadala’s UAE Investment Platform, where he managed a portfolio of UAE-based aerospace and technology assets. Before that, Alwan was critical in launching Abu Dhabi Catalyst Partners in 2019.
In addition, Ahmad was previously part of Mubadala’s Portfolio Strategy team and contributed to formulating the corporate strategy, overlaying internal and stakeholder objectives, and supporting Mubadala’s leadership with special projects.
