Ibtikar Fund And Flat6Labs Invest In DataQueue

Ibtikar Fund and Flat6Labs Jordan Seed Fund have jointly invested an undisclosed amount in DataQueue, a Netherlands- and Palestine-based startup specializing in artificial intelligence (AI) data training and solutions. The investment reflects both funds' support for technological development in the MENA region. 

Founded in 2021 by Bashir Alsaifi, DataQueue provides tools designed to simplify AI adoption for businesses. Its offerings include VoiceHub, a conversational AI platform capable of handling multilingual interactions; CallStudio, a speech analytics tool that monitors support center performance in over 50 languages; and DQ Platform, a lifecycle management tool for data annotation and model training. 

The company is particularly focused on developing AI applications in the internet of things (IoT) and robotics fields for Arabic-speaking markets. In an interview with Inc. Arabia, Alsaifi, DataQueue's CEO, highlighted the MENA region's potential, saying, “The region's rich linguistic, cultural, and social diversity positions startups to address significant gaps in localized AI solutions. By leveraging platforms like DataQueue, which streamline data annotation, model fine-tuning, and deployment, they can accelerate development, reduce costs, and scale quickly to meet diverse market needs.”

Alsaifi also noted the challenges of creating advanced Arabic speech-to-speech models. “The diversity of Arabic dialects and pronunciation makes training models challenging, especially with limited high-quality datasets," he said. "Most open-source AI architectures don’t support dialectical Arabic well, and the difficulty increases when trying to balance performance, speed, and quality in real-time applications." However, to overcome these hurdles, Alsaifi said that his company has refined its models to handle linguistic diversity effectively, ensuring reliable and efficient solutions for high-compliance industries. 

Meanwhile, DataQueue’s DQ Platform, designed for lifecycle management, is central to its mission of enabling startups in emerging markets to compete globally in the AI supply chain. Alsaifi noted, “Startups in emerging markets can leverage our DQ Platform to accelerate the development and deployment of AI solutions. With tools for fine-tuning, training, deploying, and seamlessly integrating models, they can bring their products to market faster. This allows them to focus entirely on their clients’ needs without being burdened by backend or infrastructure challenges, empowering them to innovate and secure a competitive edge in the global AI landscape.”  

This is the second round of funding that DataQueue has raised from Ibtikar Fund, with the first raised in August 2023. The latest round will support the company's expansion into Arabic-speaking and European markets.