CAIRO: Saudi Arabia's growing business environment has encouraged regional and global companies to establish a local presence in the emerging market.
DXwand, DXwand, native to Egypt, doesn't let go of loyalty because it aims to be closer to its customers with the team in the field.
In an interview with Arab News, Ahmed Mahmoud, CEO of DXwand, shared the company's vision of establishing a local office in Riyadh by the middle of the year.
“We have already started the formalities and received the MISA (Ministry of Investments in Saudi Arabia) license. The exact location is still under discussion, but it will be in Saudi's magical capital, Riyadh,” he said.
One step closer
Mahmoud emphasized the importance of giving value and quick impact for quick wins and also wants to show the company's position in technology and the long-term desire for cooperation.
He said: “This goal is planned to be achieved with local partners, in other technologies and industries, to ensure our success. We already have several partners in Saudi, and our plan is to increase this number by the end of 2024.”
DXwand's expansion strategy aligns well with Saudi Arabia's Vision 2030, focusing on economic diversification and digital transformation.
Mahmoud said: “By focusing on impacting the areas that Saudi Arabia is focusing on in Vision 2030, especially economic diversity, quality of life, environmental sustainability. , culture and entertainment, we have established long-term goals and corresponding initiatives to support and influence these. area.”
He also explained: “The expansion of DXwand always involves local partners that focus on industry or technology manufacturers, leading to a greater contribution to the economy of each country, make a faster and deeper impact, and achieve amazing results with local talent and resources that understand the culture and the local pain points.”
One of these partners includes the Gulf-based business expansion platform AstroLabs which aims to leverage DXwand's strong presence in the US, UAE and Egypt.
Mahmoud highlighted the importance of working with government agencies to improve their services.
“Partnering with the Saudi government is an important cornerstone to deliver on our expansion vision, and we are currently exploring potential areas of focus for collaboration and relevant government agencies,” he said.
This partnership is designed to support DXwand's adaptation to the country's evolving legal environment.
Our solutions align with national goals to improve digital infrastructure, improve government services and promote innovation.
Ahmed Mahmoud, CEO of DXwand
“Regulation for AI is an emerging area not only for Saudi Arabia but also globally. We believe in early collaboration with regulators for the benefit of both parties in understanding the risks and building proactive mitigation. We believe that AI companies should be responsible, regardless of regulations, to build safe AI technologies and ensure that they follow global privacy and security standards,” said Mahmoud.
“This will help us meet all the regulatory needs in Saudi as we mitigate risk and ensure a safe experience for our community,” he added.
Mahmoud said the business has grown by two per year since 2020, and he plans to maintain that trajectory by launching two high-impact events across the country each year.
He added that Saudi Arabia will be a key geography for one of the country's impact events in 2024. “We believe that Saudi Arabia has all the elements necessary for success to deliver one of the national events, maybe even the best,” he said. said.
Mahmoud also stated that the company has three new products in the pipeline, using AI technology, although the details are still not controlled.
“Thanks to the help of our construction partners, we have three new products in the pipeline using AI technology. We cannot share more details about them at this time until Soon we will be informed by the relevant partners,” he said.
Expansion into Saudi Arabia is important to DXwand's strategy due to factors such as alignment with Vision 2030, market opportunities and government support, Mahmoud highlighted.
He further elaborated on the alignment of DXwand's AI solutions with Vision 2030's ambitions for economic diversity and digital transformation.
“Our solutions align with the country's goals to improve digital infrastructure, improve government services and promote innovation,” he said.
He added that large investments in areas such as healthcare, education, financial services and tourism are making DXwand very profitable.
The government's support for the knowledge-based economy and technological investment is also in line with his company's goals, Mahmoud said.
The initiative to attract foreign investment and create a favorable business environment makes Saudi Arabia a strategic location that provides access to other markets in the Middle East, which will serve as a starting point for regional expansion, Mahmoud explained.
The tech-savvy Saudi population provides a receptive market for AI-driven solutions. “This demographic embraces the use of new technologies, creating the right environment for AI solutions,” he said.
Basic business
In terms of funding, DXwand has raised $6.7 million since its inception, with the latest $4 million Series A closing in December 2023. This investment will fuel DXwand's expansion in Arabia Saudi Arabia, to promote strategic cooperation with local partners, educational institutions and strategic customers. .
Mahmoud said: “We intend to use a portion of the funding to fuel the initiative to establish DXwand in Saudi Arabia and foster strategic partnerships to build an environment that supports DXwand's growth ambitions. and working with Saudi to influence and accelerate the implementation of 2030. result of the discovery and impact of the land throughout the country.”
Speaking about the industry's challenges in Saudi Arabia, Mahmoud talked about the hype surrounding AI and DXwand's approach to finding specific solutions.
He noted that DXwand's platform, DXP, was designed to address issues such as the cost of large language models, lack of proper measurement, and slow time to market.
“The DXwand DXP platform offers a 90 percent cost improvement using low-cost LLM services, and increases accuracy by 30 percent using a single device that allows both measurement and RAG ( (multiple generations of replication) to improve reliability and cost-effectiveness,” said Mahmoud.
DXwand works on a subscription-based business model, selling its products with annual or monthly subscriptions related to the size of the problem, expressed by the volume of conversations or the number of the employer.
Mahmoud stated that DXwand is a profitable company with a healthy financial model, designed to ensure the group's economy.
The motivation behind the creation of DXwand came from Mahmoud's experience at Microsoft, where he saw the potential of an AI company focused on the cultural and linguistic needs of the region.
“This potential was unrealized and gave me the temptation to take a leap of faith and leave the international giants of Silicon Valley to start the journey of DXwand,” he said.
Key indicators for DXwand include LLM price improvements, actual overtime, new registrations, new contracts, new partners and time to market.
Mahmoud emphasized the importance of carefully managing growth in Saudi Arabia to maintain its reputation and customer experience.
“For Saudi Arabia in particular, since we have just been introduced, I will focus on new partnerships, new customer registrations, and their spending experience and improving accuracy,” he noted.
Mahmoud assesses the current market environment in Saudi Arabia for AI and technology as rapidly evolving, with many opportunities and challenges.
He highlighted the Saudi government's leadership and investment in economic transformation, digital transformation, artificial intelligence and talent development.
“With government leadership and investment in economic transformation, digital transformation, artificial intelligence, and talent development, we foresee significant growth potential with in emerging markets with high GDP and population,” he said.
Regarding the industry forecast, Mahmoud expects a decrease in adoption due to economic reasons and the cost of AI production, which affects their business. But he considers it a privilege.
“We foresee a decrease in adoption due to the economic situation and the cost of producing AI and its reflection on the business case related to them, which is a good opportunity for the next year or two to take advantage of this challenge this is if you have a solution that can provide it. technology with cost effectiveness and the ability to grow quickly,” he explained.
