Global Innovation Leader 1776 Opens Dubai Campus

Dubai Future Foundation’s Support Will Drive Collaboration Between Global Startups & Regional Institutions 

Dubai, UAE – October 15, 2016:   The Washington, D.C.-headquartered 1776 opened the doors to its first international campus in the prestigious Emirates Towers in Downtown Dubai, United Arab Emirates. The new campus, as well as the Dubai Future Foundation’s Dubai Future Accelerators (DFA), were inaugurated on the same day by His Highness Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice-President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai.
“1776 is the first international technology incubator to setup a direct presence in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region, and we are pleased to have them as our partner to provide custom services for the Dubai Future Foundation, its member entities, and the DFA startups, following our MOU signing last April,” said His Excellency Saif Al Aleeli, CEO of the Dubai Future Foundation. 

Three of 1776’s global startups -- Civil Maps, Alesca Life and Ecoisme -- have been selected for the DFA’s first acceleration cycle to work with Dubai Police, Dubai Municipality, and the Dubai Electricity and Water Authority (DEWA), on addressing their announced challenges. All DFA startups will also have access to 1776 Dubai campus programming. 

"As a founding member of the Startup Federation which was launched at the 2016 Global Entrepreneurship Summit in Silicon Valley, 1776 is also reaching out to incubators and accelerators across the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) to join dozens of top-tier international incubators and accelerators already in the Federation, thus creating a single global network for startups, institutions and investors to learn, engage and collaborate”, said Evan Burfield, 1776 co-founder & co-CEO.

The first such regional partnership is with the UK-Lebanon Tech Hub, which will bring its ‘scale-up’ startups to the 1776 Dubai campus as a first point of entry into the UAE and GCC markets. This will enable them to quickly make connections with potential customers, partners and investors, in addition to gaining visibility with UAE-based regional and international media. 

1776 Dubai is now accepting startup applications through its website, 1776.vc/dubai, with different membership offerings - virtual and co-working, both reserved and unreserved. Membership includes access to Union and 1776’s global network of mentors, experts, investors, institutions, and more than 250 virtual and physical program elements every quarter. 

About 1776
1776 is a public benefit corporation that scouts and funds high-growth startups around the world focused on solving society’s most fundamental challenges in sectors like education, energy, transportation and financial services. Launched by co-CEOs Donna Harris and Evan Burfield and headquartered in Washington, D.C., with additional campuses in Dubai, New York, and San Francisco, 1776 serves hundreds of startups and institutions worldwide through its innovation curriculum, mentorship, investment and programming. It hosts more than 500 international events per year that attract heads of state, Fortune 500 CEOs, influential investors and global press.

About the Dubai Future Accelerators
The Dubai Future Accelerators is the world's largest government-supported accelerator launched by Sheikh Hamdan Bin Mohammad Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Crown Prince of Dubai and Chairman of the Dubai Future Foundation, in line with the directives of His Highness Sheikh Mohammad Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice-President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai. The Dubai Future Accelerators program identifies ground breaking companies from around the world and gives them the opportunity to find and test new solutions to real-life challenges.