Angel investor group Cairo Angels has announced the four finalists of its coronavirus-focused pitch challenge.
Cairo Angels, Egypt’s first formal network of angel investors, invests in and supports startups and early stage, high growth businesses across the Middle East and Africa.
In response to the global COVID-19 pandemic, Cairo Angels launched the “We’ve Got Your Back” initiative last week, aimed at supporting solutions that can help elderly or vulnerable people living alone complete their shopping and errands and therefore lower their risk of infection from the novel coronavirus.
Cairo Angels will provide the winner with EGP100,000 (US$6,000) in cash funding, with Cairo Angels looking to develop a secure and updated database for volunteers, whose identity can be verified through social media accounts and ID cards, with the inclusion of reviews. The winner will also receive mentorship and other kinds of support.
The four finalist startups are Kofoof, a software company that specialises in business software development; Markazzy, which helps homeowners find, choose and use home improvement products with ease and convenience; NIoTEK, which combines hardware and software and applies them in Internet of Things (IoT); and Tactful AI, an AI-powered and data-centric customer engagement technology.
Zeina Mandour, general manager of Cairo Angels, said the group would be launching a number of initiatives aimed at applying startup innovation to assist the most vulnerable during this time of global crisis.
“We at Cairo Angels are grateful for the support of our partners Mayday and Microsoft who have agreed to provide additional important awards to the ultimate winner of the competition,” she said.
