UAE-Based ZIWO Secures Strategic Backing To Expand Its Arabic-First, AI-Powered Cloud Contact Center Platform Across The MENA

UAE-based ZIWO, an Arabic-first, artificial intelligence (AI)-powered cloud contact-center-as-a-service (CCaaS) platform, has secured a strategic growth credit investment from the Amplify Growth Fund, managed by the UAE-based investment group Ajeej Capital.  

Founded by Renaud de Gonfreville, Pierre de Mascarel, and Eric Ouisse in the UAE in 2011, ZIWO (formerly known as Aswat) delivers enterprise-grade capabilities such as real-time voice intelligence, automated quality assurance, predictive analytics, and multilingual generative artificial intelligence (AI). The new investment will support ZIWO’s expansion into more than 10 MENA countries, while deepening regional partnerships and integrations to allow organizations to leverage AI automation and intelligence for more efficient high-volume customer interactions.

Tailored for complex, high-volume contact center environments, the ZIWO platform supports multiple Arabic dialects alongside English and French. It has seen strong adoption of its cloud-native CCaaS platform, and now serves more than 1,000 customers across more than 20 industries across the region. In an interview with Inc. Arabia, de Gonfreville, who is also the CEO of ZIWO, explained that he and his team built the company's offering after finding out that solutions by global platforms couldn't cater to markets in the MENA.

“ZIWO was born out of a realization that the Middle East needed a communication platform built specifically for its unique market dynamics,” de Gonfreville said. "We started by building telecom infrastructure and call center software for major regional clients, which eventually led to the launch of ZIWO as a standalone cloud contact center solution.” ZIWO is today headquartered in Dubai, with a footprint in Riyadh, Cairo, and Casablanca, and Pakistan. In addition to enabling companies to manage phone calls, WhatsApp conversations, and AI voice agents through its CCaS platform, it is built in full compliance with local telecom regulations and integrates seamlessly with the business tools companies already use. 

According to de Gonfreville, learning to navigate the complex regulatory landscape of the MENA has been key to the company's success so far; it also played a strong role in signaling to investors that ZIWO is built for the long haul. "Amplify Growth Fund was particularly drawn to our proven traction—specifically our 6.6x revenue growth since our Series A—and our ability to scale efficiently while maintaining high service quality," he said. “However, what resonated most strongly was our deep understanding of the region's operational and regulatory realities. Unlike global competitors who often struggle with local telecom fragmentation and compliance, ZIWO was built to navigate these complexities from day one. They saw immense value in our 'Arabic-first' approach to AI and cloud technology, which addresses a critical gap for enterprises in the GCC." 

As the company now gets ready to scale beyond its current markets, ZIWO has developed a framework for evaluating when a market is truly ready for an AI-driven contact center platform. "When deciding where to prioritize our resources within this footprint, we look for markets that have passed the 'early adopter' phase and are moving toward mass adoption of cloud telephony," de Gonfreville explained. "The strongest signal for us is regulatory maturity paired with enterprise demand. In markets like KSA and the UAE, we see a massive shift where governments are not just allowing, but actively encouraging cloud adoption. When we see traditional sectors—like finance, retail, and government services—starting to demand AI capabilities and customer relationship management integrations to replace their legacy hardware, we know that the market is ready for the scale up that ZIWO provides." 

Looking ahead, de Gonfreville noted that AI integration is rapidly transforming the contact center industry, listing three key trends to keep an eye on over the next two to three years. “The first is invisible AI agents—it's not just about automation; it's about natural fluidity," he said. "The best platforms will feature AI that handles interruptions, pauses, and dialects so naturally that customers forget they are speaking to a machine. The second is seamless human-in-the-loop—the future standard is the contextual handoff. An AI agent must pass the call and the full transcript/sentiment to a human agent instantly, ensuring the customer never has to repeat themselves. Finally, there's the trust and infrastructure advantage—enterprises are risk-averse. Research shows that over 80 percent of buyers prefer purchasing AI capabilities from their existing, trusted contact center vendors rather than unproven startups. The market leaders will be those who provide AI as a native, certified part of the telecom infrastructure, ensuring security and a technically flawless transition between AI and humans.” 

This leads into de Gonfreville's advice for his fellow entrepreneurs in emerging markets. “Talk to your customers before you write a single line of code—and I mean really talk to them, in their language, in their context," he said. "In emerging markets, the gap between what Silicon Valley assumes people need and what they actually need is where the biggest opportunities hide. The customer communication reality in MENA is particularly challenging. Regulation, technology, and business standards differ significantly from those in the rest of the world, and building trust within the communication ecosystem is essential before anything else. Communication is critical for most companies, and what they need above all is a solid, resilient platform—not the longest list of features." 

Pictured in the image from left to right is Renaud de Gonfreville, co-founder and CEO of ZIWO, and Sharaf Sharaf, Fund Head at Amplify Growth Fund. Image courtesy ZIWO.