Happy Friday! And a very Happy Eid to everyone celebrating!

Our top stories for today are: Mostafa Kandil’s Cairo-born Swvl is expanding into the UK. Gulf telecom giants are competing for a $300 million fibre optic contract in Syria. And in an exclusive interview, we speak with Tareq Amin — the man chosen to lead Humain, Saudi Arabia’s sovereign AI company backed by the Public Investment Fund and Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman. He tells us how Nvidia and AMD plan to relocate teams to Saudi Arabia to help train the Kingdom’s next generation of AI talent.

But before that: For quick daily updates, follow us on Instagram, and you can watch our Smashi Business Show live every weekday from 10AM onwards (UAE time). Also, you can join our Whatsapp channel to receive updates from the business world.

Mostafa Kandil’s Cairo-Born Swvl Expands Into the UK

📌 What It’s About:

• Swvl has launched its mobility management SaaS platform in the UK, offering real-time fleet tracking, route optimization, and digital commute solutions to enterprise clients.

• This marks the company’s first software-as-a-service expansion in the UK market.

• The platform was co-founded in 2017 by three Egyptian entrepreneurs — Mostafa Kandil, Ahmed Sabbah, and Mahmoud Nouh — after Careem backed them with a $500,000 investment.

📌 Why It Matters:

• Swvl once made history as the first African startup to list on Nasdaq via a SPAC in 2022, achieving unicorn status with a $1.5 billion valuation.

• At the height of its success, Swvl lit up the Burj Khalifa with its Nasdaq announcement — a proud moment for the region and for Kandil, who was just 28 at the time.

• But soon after the listing, the market turned. Investor sentiment toward SPACs cooled rapidly, revenue projections were missed, and a global tech downturn didn’t help. Swvl’s valuation plummeted to under $50 million — a cautionary tale of overinflated expectations and post-SPAC volatility.

• Yet behind the celebration was a young founder who knew what setbacks felt like. Kandil had entered university at 16, and while still a student, was selected out of 30 candidates to intern at Google’s EMEA headquarters in Ireland — a break that would shape his vision for mobility, technology, and impact.

• Despite the downturn, Swvl’s UK launch signals a strategic pivot: from an asset-heavy, consumer-facing operation to a leaner, enterprise-focused SaaS model built on recurring revenue.

📌 What’s Next:

• Swvl is expected to pursue further SaaS contracts across Europe, positioning itself as a scalable tech platform for smart mobility.

• The UK move is being seen as a reset — a chance to rebuild confidence and reassert Swvl’s position in global transport-tech.

• Its ability to execute this pivot may determine whether it can climb back toward growth — and write a new chapter after the crash.

Discover the Arab World’s Cinematic Rise with The Reel Deal Podcast - Episode 1 is Out!

Introducing The Reel Deal Podcast — a new collaboration between Katara Studios and Media City Qatar that puts the spotlight on the fast-growing Arab film industry. This podcast dives deep into the stories, trends, and talents shaping the region’s cinematic future. From exclusive interviews with key players to industry insights you won’t hear anywhere else, The Reel Deal is your gateway to understanding the opportunities and creative energy emerging from the Arab world. Whether you're a producer, investor, or film enthusiast, this podcast offers a front-row seat to a cultural and commercial movement redefining global cinema.

The first episode is out! Watch it here…

Markets

In Saudi Arabia—where everyone is racing to be part of Vision 2030—one man was chosen to lead one of its most ambitious tech missions.

Tareq Amin, former CEO of Rakuten Symphony and Aramco Digital, was appointed CEO of Humain, the kingdom’s sovereign AI company, launched by Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman and backed by the Public Investment Fund (PIF) just one night before Donald Trump’s visit to Saudi Arabia.

With decades of global telecom and tech leadership, Amin is now tasked with building the infrastructure that could power the region’s AI future—and developing what many are calling the “ChatGPT of the Arab world.”

In this exclusive interview with Smashi Business, Amin tells us what’s coming.

Okay, let’s dig into it 👇

1. As a Jordanian-born leader, can you share a bit about your childhood and where you grew up? How did those early years shape your passion for technology and leadership?

I grew up in Jordan, in a culture rooted in resilience, curiosity, and community. From a young age, I was fascinated by how systems work - whether biological, social, or digital. That early curiosity, combined with a drive to challenge limitations, pushed me into engineering. But more than anything, it was the value placed on education and ambition in our region that shaped my mindset: never accept the status quo - always imagine what could be better.

2. You’ve worked in places like the US, Japan, and India. What lessons from those experiences are you bringing to your role as HUMAIN’s CEO in Saudi Arabia?

Each country taught me something unique. From the US, I learned about speed and scale. From Japan, precision and discipline. And from India, how to build for billions with ingenuity and purpose. At HUMAIN, I’m blending all of that - building a fast, sovereign, and highly scalable AI company rooted in excellence, but flexible enough to lead on a global stage.

3. What inspired you to take on the challenge of leading HUMAIN and helping Saudi Arabia become a global AI hub?

This isn’t just about AI - it’s about rewriting the narrative of who defines the future. AI is the foundation of the future and HUMAIN is the pathfinder. The vision set by Saudi Arabia through Vision 2030 is bold, and HUMAIN is its AI engine. It’s a totally unique proposition, something we’ve never seen before - a full stack AI operating company backed by Saudi Arabia and working hand in hand with the world’s leading tech companies. We have next generation infrastructure, world-class Arabic LLMs, and a mandate to shape the future - not follow it.

4. HUMAIN’s $10 billion venture capital fund, HUMAIN Ventures, is a big move. Can you explain what this fund aims to achieve and how it will help startups worldwide?

HUMAIN Ventures isn’t just deploying capital - it’s deploying a platform, it is a really important part of our strategy, giving us the opportunity to be at the forefront of innovation in the industry and play a core role in ecosystems around the world. We want to empower founders building AI technologies with scale, compute, and market access. We will be investing in the most cutting-edge start-ups in the U.S., Europe, and Asia, offering them the benefit of our network, capabilities and knowledge, so together we can create the future of AI.

5. HUMAIN has deals with US tech giants like NVIDIA and AMD. How will these partnerships help Saudi Arabia grow its own AI talent and innovation?

Growing the Kingdom’s talent and driving innovation locally is at the very core of our strategy - our vision is global, but we are sovereign by design. These partnerships give us early access to the world’s best AI hardware – and people. But we’re not just consuming - we’re co-creating. As part of these agreements, our partners will be moving teams to Saudi Arabia and upskilling local talent - a significant investment in the Saudi AI ecosystem. We're building joint centers of excellence, upskilling Saudi engineers, and embedding our Arabic LLMs directly into these ecosystems. The goal isn’t dependency - it’s acceleration.

6. You’ve said HUMAIN is moving fast to win in AI. What’s one exciting project or goal HUMAIN is working on right now to stay ahead?

Our most exciting initiative is HUMAIN OS - an operating system for AI agents that can power everything from autonomous enterprises to national digital assistants. It’s a layer that connects our models, our cloud, and our applications into one seamless ecosystem. Imagine an agent that can code, create, and converse in Arabic, English, or any dialect - with cultural nuance and regulatory compliance built in.

Gulf Telecom Giants Compete for $300 Million Syria Fibre Optic Project

📌 What It’s About:

• Gulf Arab telecom companies—STC (Saudi Arabia), Etisalat (UAE), Ooredoo (Qatar), and Zain (Kuwait)—are competing for a $300 million project to upgrade Syria’s fibre optic infrastructure.

• The project, named SilkLink, is backed by Syria’s telecommunications ministry and aims to transform the country into a digital hub connecting north-south and east-west networks.

• The bidding deadline for proposals is June 10.

📌 Why It Matters:

• This is one of Syria’s biggest tech tenders in over a decade, coming after the U.S. signaled plans to lift sanctions.

• Revamping the network is critical for a country where internet access remains among the worst globally due to war and sanctions.

• The deal reflects growing Gulf interest in post-war reconstruction and regional digital infrastructure dominance.

📌 What’s Next:

• With bids due by June 10, Syria will begin evaluating proposals in the coming weeks.

• The World Bank recently cleared Syria’s $15.5 million debt after Saudi Arabia and Qatar paid the bill—part of a broader regional effort to stabilize the country.

• Riyadh and Doha have also committed to jointly funding salaries for Syrian public sector workers over the next three months.

• These moves signal growing Gulf involvement in Syria’s recovery—and may pave the way for further state-backed investments across infrastructure, energy, and technology.

🔍From Smashi Business’ Desk

• Exclusive: NVIDIA and AMD to Relocate Teams to Saudi Arabia to Train AI Talent, HUMAIN CEO Reveals.

🔍In other news…

• US okays potential $325 million sale of sustainment support for Abrams tanks to Kuwait.

• Spain cancels a contract for anti-tank missiles built by an Israeli subsidiary.

• UAE-US gallium project is an attempt to loosen China’s grip.

• Talks begin on US-UAE trade pact as metal tariffs double.

• Oman smart city projects face pushback on heritage.

• Piers Morgan Uncensored Interview with Tim Clark, CEO of Emirates Airline.

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