Badir Program for Technology Incubators and Accelerators, one of the leading initiatives of King Abdulaziz City for Science and Technology (KACST), has launched a new investment strategy seeking to invest in “high potential” technology start-ups with a focus on the program's incubated or graduated companies.

Badir Program did not disclose the size of the total funds planned for investment in incubated or graduated start-ups, but said the investment strategy aims to bridge the funding gap that hinders emerging companies from turning into businesses capable of attracting investments.

As part of its new investment strategy, Badir Program has completed its investment financing transaction in Voxel Company - one of the most prominent projects incubated by the program and specialised in 3D terrestrial and aerial digital survey and virtual reality technology.

The Voxel Company, which was valued at $3.5 million during the valuation process, intends to use the new funding in improving and developing its services and increase its expansion in the local and regional market.
 
Badir Program CEO Nawaf Al Sahhaf said: "Our new investment in ‘Telfaz11’ and Voxel meets our new strategic goals of investment in the incubation outputs of the start-ups with the aim to help them expand and grow in the targeted markets, especially given the challenges and difficulties faced by Saudi start-ups in obtaining the necessary funding."

"Badir Program will have a dual investment strategy — funding start-up companies in the incorporation phase; and incubated & graduated companies in the growth phase. Also, the Program will continue to support the start-up ecosystem and look for opportunities in technology innovation that match program portfolio requirements and are in line with its new strategic objectives," stated Al Sahhaf.

Badir Program is one of the leading programme of KACST. It was set up in 2007 to improve and support technical entrepreneurship across the kingdom by helping the strategic policy applied in entrepreneurship and incubators in collaboration with government agencies, universities and the private sector.-TradeArabia News Service