TiE Dubai Women's Pitch and SBWC Shine at Expand North Star

The GITEX Global 2023, and its Expand North Star event, this week, was attended by tech companies from more than 100 countries and over 1000 venture capital firms, not only showcased the latest developments in the startup scene and artificial intelligence but also celebrated the remarkable contributions of women in these sectors.

An example of this was the TiE Dubai Women Entrepreneur Pitches, where women-led startups took center stage to demonstrate their groundbreaking innovations.

Among these innovative ventures, The Waste Labs, founded by Lara Hussein and Ceylan Uren, emerged victorious, securing the TiE Dubai Women's pitch and a substantial AED 70,000 prize. This Dubai-based impact-driven startup, entirely run by women, sets its sights on transforming food waste into ingenious solutions.

The Waste Labs represents the kind of innovation that Expand North Star aims to foster. The startup envisions a world where every food scrap can be a part of a solution, not a problem. 

But the spotlight on women-led startups didn't stop there. The Sharjah Businesswomen Council (SBWC), a vital player in the region's entrepreneurial ecosystem, took center stage at GITEX by actively showcasing the technology ventures of its members at its dedicated pavilion.

These entrepreneurs had the opportunity to present their groundbreaking innovations across various sectors, from construction and logistics to education and more.

Notably, SBWC facilitated a series of meetings aimed at forging potential partnerships to drive the growth and development of these women-led businesses.

The eight startups participating in the exhibition automatically qualified to compete in the prestigious "SuperNova Challenge," the world's third-largest fund for financing startups, featuring a substantial total prize pool of $200,000. Furthermore, SBWC itself sponsored a $10,000 prize for the category of "Best Female-Led Startup."